Electron Acceleration via Secondary Reconnection in the Separatrix
Region of Magnetopause Reconnection
- Xuesong Fu,
- Zhihong Zhong,
- Meng Zhou,
- Wenqing Ma,
- Ye Pang,
- Liangjin Song,
- Xiujuan Ou,
- Runqing jin,
- Xiaohua Deng
Abstract
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process known to play a crucial
role in electron acceleration and heating, however, the mechanism of
electron energization during reconnection is still not fully understood.
This study introduces a novel electron acceleration mechanism in which
electrons can be accelerated by secondary reconnection in the separatrix
region. The secondary reconnection occurs in a thin current sheet
resulted from the shear of the out-of-plane Hall magnetic fields of the
primary magnetopause reconnection. It results in intense electron energy
fluxes towards the primary X-line. This result will likely be an
important piece in the puzzle of particle acceleration by reconnection.15 May 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive 15 May 2024Published in ESS Open Archive