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Observations of Electron Vorticity and Phase Space Holes in the Magnetopause Reconnection Separatrix
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  • Narges Ahmadi,
  • Stefan Eriksson,
  • David L. Newman,
  • Laila Andersson,
  • Robert E Ergun,
  • Frederick Wilder
Narges Ahmadi
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Stefan Eriksson
University of Colorado Boulder
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David L. Newman
University of Colorado Boulder
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Laila Andersson
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)
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Robert E Ergun
Univeristy of Colorado
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Frederick Wilder
Unknown
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Abstract

We report Magnetospheric MultiScale (MMS) observations of two electron vortices with a roughly 10 km or 2-3 electron skin depths cross-section across the magnetospheric separatrix of a dayside magnetopause reconnection. The enhanced electron vorticity, which is caused by a significant velocity shear in the electron flows streaming in opposite directions along northward-directed magnetic field lines, leads to perturbations perpendicular to the reconnecting magnetic field on the order of 1-2 nT. The high electron vorticity periods are also associated with electron phase space holes having the largest bipolar parallel electric field amplitudes $\sim$ 25 mV/m observed across this exhaust. Less intense $\sim$ 10 mV/m electron phase space holes propagate along a northward magnetic field away from the X-line within a northward reconnection exhaust. The electron phase space holes with the largest bipolar parallel electric fields are observed to propagate toward the X-line within discrete channels of southward and super-Alfv\’{e}nic 1500 km/s electron flows in the magnetospheric separatrix layer.