Properties of Lower Hybrid Drift Waves and Energy Transfer Near and
Inside the Electron Diffusion Regions
Abstract
We investigate properties of lower hybrid drift waves (LHDWs) near and
inside the electron diffusion regions in 17 magnetopause and 9
magnetotail reconnection events using Magnetospheric MultiScale (MMS)
mission observations. Our analysis show that LHDW type depend on the
electron beta, as electron beta increases LHDWs become more
electromagnetic in nature. The energy transfer from electromagnetic
fields to particles is higher in electrostatic LHDWs and it is largely
in parallel direction. Linear dispersion analysis shows that
electrostatic LHDWs are perpendicular propagating while electromagnetic
waves propagate in oblique directions and the normalized wavenumber of
all LHDW types falls within 0.5 to 0.8 range. A simple estimate on the
LHDW nonlinear saturation suggests possibly important roles played by
these waves in supporting reconnection electric field.