HR: 09:40h
AN: SH31B-07    [Abstracts]
TI: On the kinetic theory of solar-wind turbulence
AU: * Yoon, P H
EM: phy20723@yahoo.com
AF: MTL, Massachusetts Technological Laboratory, Belmont, MA 02478, United States
AU: * Yoon, P H
EM: phy20723@yahoo.com
AF: UMD, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20723, United States
AB: The present state of knowledge regarding the plasma turbulence is rather incomplete. Standard microscopic (i.e., kinetic) plasma turbulence theory available in the literature was developed largely by the scientists in the former Soviet Union in the 1960s. However, it is applicable only for unmagnetized plasmas. As such, the customary theory is applied largely to Langmuir turbulence problem only. Of course, real plasmas in nature and laboratory are immersed in magnetic fields. At present, the only turbulence theories applicable to magnetized plasmas are macroscopic theories based upon MHD or drift-wave turbulence models. However, macroscopic theories such as MHD models, are not applicable for small spatial and fast time scale structures associated with the turbulence. In short, there is a need for a "kinetic" or microscopic treatment of turbulence theory for magnetized plasmas. The present paper discusses a first step in the formulation of kinetic theory for magnetized plasmas that may be applicable to solar wind and heliospheric turbulence at any dynamical scales. For the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that turbulent fluctuations predominantly propagate along the direction of ambient magnetic field vector, and that the characteristic frequency associated with the fluctuations is much lower than the electron gyrofrequency (but can be as high as or higher than the ion cyclotron frequency), i.e., hydromagnetic turbulence. The basic theoretical formalism outlined in the present paper may have important ramifications for a number of space and astrophysical problems including coronal heating, solar wind acceleration, etc. Research supported by AFOSR
DE: 2159 Plasma waves and turbulence
DE: 4490 Turbulence (3379, 4568, 7863)
DE: 7863 Turbulence (4490)
DE: 7867 Wave/particle interactions (2483, 6984)
DE: 7868 Wave/wave interactions
SC: SPA-Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting