Electron bulk heating in magnetic reconnection at Earth's magnetopause: Dependence on the inflow Alfvén speed and magnetic shear

Abstract

We surveyed 79 magnetopause reconnection exhausts detected by the THEMIS spacecraft to investigate how the amount and anisotropy of electron bulk heating produced by reconnection depend on the inflow boundary conditions. We find that the amount of heating, ΔTe, is correlated with the asymmetric Alfvén speed, VAL,asym, based on the reconnecting magnetic field and the plasma density measured in both the high-density magnetosheath and low-density magnetospheric inflow regions. Best fit to the data produces the empirical relation ΔTe = 0.017 miV AL,asym2, indicating that the amount of heating is proportional to the inflowing magnetic energy per proton-electron pair, with ∼1.7% of the energy being converted into electron heating. This finding, generalized to symmetric reconnection, could account for the lack of electron heating in typical solar wind exhausts at 1 AU, as well as strong heating to keV energies common in magnetotail exhausts. We also find that the guide field suppresses perpendicular heating. Key Points Electron bulk heating controlling factors revealed Heating depends on the total incoming magnetic energy per particle 1.7% of magnetic energy is converted into electron bulk heating ©2013. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.