HR: 14:25h
AN: NG33A-04    [Abstracts]
TI: Theory, Simulations, and Laboratory Experiments of Auroral Kilometric Radiation
AU: * Bingham, R
EM: r.bingham@rl.ac.uk
AF: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Space Science & Technology Department, Chilton, Didcot, OX11 0QX, United Kingdom
AU: * Bingham, R
EM: r.bingham@rl.ac.uk
AF: School of Mathematics & Statistics, University of StAndrews, StAndrews, KY169SS, United Kingdom
AU: * Bingham, R
EM: r.bingham@rl.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: Vorgul, I
EM: iv4@st-andrews.ac.uk
AF: School of Mathematics & Statistics, University of StAndrews, StAndrews, KY169SS, United Kingdom
AU: Cairns, R A
EM: rac@st-andrews.ac.uk
AF: School of Mathematics & Statistics, University of StAndrews, StAndrews, KY169SS, United Kingdom
AU: Ronald, K
EM: k.ronald@strath.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: McConville, S L
EM: sandra.l.mcconville@strath.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: Gillespie, K M
EM: karen.gillespie@strath.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: Speirs, D C
EM: david.c.speirs@strath.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: Phelps, A D
EM: a.d.r.phelps@strath.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AU: Kellett, B J
EM: b.j.kellett@rl.ac.uk
AF: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Space Science & Technology Department, Chilton, Didcot, OX11 0QX, United Kingdom
AU: Graffagnino, V
EM: v.graffagnino@rl.ac.uk
AF: Department of Physics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G40NG, United Kingdom
AB: Auroral kilometric radiation (AKR) is generated when electron beams are accelerated along the Earth's magnetic field lines into the auroral region. The mechanism is thought to be due to a cyclotron maser-type instability. There are two branches of this instability – the first is a beam instability and the second is a kinetic instability. In the Earth's case, the electrons moving into a stronger field region form a horseshoe-shaped velocity distribution and the radiation is generated by the kinetic branch of the instability. The beam instability is difficult to arrange in a natural plasma and is therefore unlikely to occur. A laboratory experiment reproducing AKR is used to investigate the process of radiation generation due to an energetic electron beam moving into a region with stronger magnetic field. Theory and simulations demonstrate that the kinetic instability is the one that generates AKR. We investigate a number of issues associated with the generation of AKR, namely the ratio of plasma to cyclotron frequency, the saturation state and the propagating mode.
DE: 2704 Auroral phenomena (2407)
DE: 6050 Plasma and MHD instabilities (2149, 2752, 7836)
DE: 6964 Radio wave propagation
DE: 7829 Kinetic waves and instabilities
DE: 7847 Radiation processes
SC: Nonlinear Geophysics [NG]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting