Observations of Type III radio bursts discovered that electron beams with power-law energy spectra are commonly produced during solar flares. The locations of these electron beams are ~ 300 Mm above the particle acceleration region of the photosphere, and the velocities range from 3 to 10 times the local background electron thermal velocity. However, the mechanism that can commonly produce electron beams during the propagation of energetic electrons with power-law energy spectra in the corona remains unclear. In this paper, using kinetic transport theory, we find for the first time that the magnetic focusing effect governs the formation of electron beams over the observational desired distance in the corona. The magnetic focusing effect can sharply increase the bulk velocity of energetic electrons to the observed electron beam velocity within 0.4 solar radii (300 Mm) as they escape from the acceleration region and propagate upward along magnetic field lines. In more rapidly decreasing magnetic fields, energetic electrons with a harder power-law energy spectrum can generate a higher bulk velocity, producing type III radio bursts at a location much closer to the acceleration region. During propagation, the spectral index of the energetic electrons is unchanged.
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Impact of Magnetic Focusing on the Transport of Energetic Electrons in the Solar Corona
Abstract Observations of Type III radio bursts discovered that electron beams with power-law energy spectra are commonly produced during solar flares. The locations of these electron beams are ~ 300 Mm above the particle acceleration region of the photosphere, and the velocities range from 3 to 10 times the local background electron thermal velocity. However, the mechanism that can commonly produce electron beams during the propagation of energetic electrons with power-law energy spectra in the corona remains unclear. In this paper, using kinetic transport theory, we find for the first time that the magnetic focusing effect governs the formation of electron beams over the observational desired distance in the corona. The magnetic focusing effect can sharply increase the bulk velocity of energetic electrons to the observed electron beam velocity within 0.4 solar radii (300 Mm) as they escape from the acceleration region and propagate upward along magnetic field lines. In more rapidly decreasing magnetic fields, energetic electrons with a harder power-law energy spectrum can generate a higher bulk velocity, producing type III radio bursts at a location much closer to the acceleration region. During propagation, the spectral index of the energetic electrons is unchanged.
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- PAR ID:
- 10448668
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Physics: Conference Series
- Volume:
- 2544
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 1742-6588
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 012004
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Electron beams that are commonly observed in the corona were discovered to be associated with solar flares. These “coronal” electron beams are found ≥300 Mm above the acceleration region and have velocities ranging from 0.1 c up to 0.6 c . However, the mechanism for producing these beams remains unclear. In this paper, we use kinetic transport theory to investigate how isotropic suprathermal energetic electrons escaping from the acceleration region of flares are transported upwardly along the magnetic field lines of flares to develop coronal electron beams. We find that magnetic focusing can suppress the diffusion of Coulomb collisions and background turbulence and sharply collimate the suprathermal electron distribution into beams with the observed velocity within the observed distance. A higher bulk velocity is produced if energetic electrons have harder energy spectra or travel along a more rapidly expanding coronal magnetic field. By modeling the observed velocity and location distributions of coronal electron beams, we predict that the temperature of acceleration regions ranges from 5 × 10 6 to 2 × 10 7 K. Our model also indicates that the acceleration region may have a boundary where the temperature abruptly decreases so that the electron beam velocity can become more than triple (even up to 10 times) the background thermal velocity and produce the coronal type III radio bursts.more » « less
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Abstract Solar type III radio bursts are generated by beams of energetic electrons that travel along open magnetic field lines through the corona and into interplanetary space. However, understanding the source of these electrons and how they escape into interplanetary space remains an outstanding topic. Here we report multi-instrument, multiperspective observations of an interplanetary type III radio burst event shortly after the second perihelion of the Parker Solar Probe (PSP). This event was associated with a solar jet that produced an impulsive microwave burst event recorded by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array. The type III burst event also coincided with the detection of enhanced in situ energetic electrons recorded by both PSP at 0.37 au and WIND at 1 au, which were located very closely on the Parker spiral longitudinally. The close timing association and magnetic connectivity suggest that the in situ energetic electrons originated from the jet’s magnetic reconnection region. Intriguingly, microwave imaging spectroscopy results suggest that the escaping energetic electrons were injected into a large opening angle of about 90°, which is at least nine times broader than the apparent width of the jet spire. Our findings provide an interpretation for the previously reported, longitudinally broad spatial distribution of flare locations associated with prompt energetic electron events and have important implications for understanding the origin and distribution of energetic electrons in interplanetary space.
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null (Ed.)Context. Periodicities have frequently been reported across many wavelengths in the solar corona. Correlated periods of ~5 min, comparable to solar p -modes, are suggestive of coupling between the photosphere and the corona. Aims. Our study investigates whether there are correlations in the periodic behavior of Type III radio bursts which are indicative of nonthermal electron acceleration processes, and coronal extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission used to assess heating and cooling in an active region when there are no large flares. Methods. We used coordinated observations of Type III radio bursts from the FIELDS instrument on Parker Solar Probe (PSP), of EUV emissions by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and white light observations by SDO Helioseismic and Magnetic Image (HMI), and of solar flare X-rays by Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) on April 12, 2019. Several methods for assessing periodicities are utilized and compared to validate periods obtained. Results. Periodicities of ~5 min in the EUV in several areas of an active region are well correlated with the repetition rate of the Type III radio bursts observed on both PSP and Wind. Detrended 211 and 171 Å light curves show periodic profiles in multiple locations, with 171 Å peaks sometimes lagging those seen in 211 Å. This is suggestive of impulsive events that result in heating and then cooling in the lower corona. NuSTAR X-rays provide evidence for at least one microflare during the interval of Type III bursts, but there is not a one-to-one correspondence between the X-rays and the Type III bursts. Our study provides evidence for periodic acceleration of nonthermal electrons (required to generate Type III radio bursts) when there were no observable flares either in the X-ray data or the EUV. The acceleration process, therefore, must be associated with small impulsive events, perhaps nanoflares.more » « less
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2544/1/012004
