Probing the large-scale topology of the heliospheric magnetic field using Jovian electrons

Jupiter’s magnetosphere acts as a point source of near-relativistic electrons within the heliosphere. In this study, three solar cycles of Jovian electron data in near-Earth space are examined. Jovian electron intensity is found to peak for an ideal Parker spiral connection, but with considerable spread about this point. Assuming the peak in Jovian electron counts indicates the best magnetic connection to Jupiter, we find a clear trend for fast and slow solar wind to be over- and under-wound with respect to the ideal Parker spiral, respectively. This is shown to be well explained in terms of solar wind stream interactions. Thus, modulation of Jovian electrons by corotating interaction regions (CIRs) may primarily be the result of changing magnetic connection, rather than CIRs acting as barriers to cross-field diffusion. By using Jovian electrons to remote sensing magnetic connectivity with Jupiter’s magnetosphere, we suggest that they provide a means to validate solar wind models between 1 and 5 AU, even when suitable in situ solar wind observations are not available. Furthermore, using Jovian electron observations as probes of heliospheric magnetic topology could provide insight into heliospheric magnetic field braiding and turbulence, as well as any systematic under-winding of the heliospheric magnetic field relative to the Parker spiral from footpoint motion of the magnetic field.

The expected imprint of flux rope geometry on suprathermal electrons in magnetic clouds

Magnetic clouds are a subset of interplanetary coronal mass ejections characterized by a smooth rotation in the magnetic field direction, which is interpreted as a signature of a magnetic flux rope. Suprathermal electron observations indicate that one or both ends of a magnetic cloud typically remain connected to the Sun as it moves out through the heliosphere. With distance from the axis of the flux rope, out toward its edge, the magnetic field winds more tightly about the axis and electrons must traverse longer magnetic field lines to reach the same heliocentric distance. This increased time of flight allows greater pitch-angle scattering to occur, meaning suprathermal electron pitch-angle distributions should be systematically broader at the edges of the flux rope than at the axis. We model this effect with an analytical magnetic flux rope model and a numerical scheme for suprathermal electron pitch-angle scattering and find that the signature of a magnetic flux rope should be observable with the typical pitch-angle resolution of suprathermal electron data provided ACE's SWEPAM instrument. Evidence of this signature in the observations, however, is weak, possibly because reconnection of magnetic fields within the flux rope acts to intermix flux tubes.

Suprathermal electron evolution in a Parker spiral magnetic field

Suprathermal electrons (>70 eV) form a small fraction of the total solar wind electron density but serve as valuable tracers of heliospheric magnetic field topology. Their usefulness as tracers of magnetic loops with both feet rooted on the Sun, however, most likely fades as the loops expand beyond some distance owing to scattering. As a first step toward quantifying that distance, we construct an observationally constrained model for the evolution of the suprathermal electron pitch-angle distributions on open field lines. We begin with a near-Sun isotropic distribution moving antisunward along a Parker spiral magnetic field while conserving magnetic moment, resulting in a field-aligned strahl within a few solar radii. Past this point, the distribution undergoes little evolution with heliocentric distance. We then add constant (with heliocentric distance, energy, and pitch angle) ad-hoc pitch-angle scattering. Close to the Sun, pitch-angle focusing still dominates, again resulting in a narrow strahl. Farther from the Sun, however, pitch-angle scattering dominates because focusing is effectively weakened by the increasing angle between the magnetic field direction and intensity gradient, a result of the spiral field. We determine the amount of scattering required to match Ulysses observations of strahl width in the fast solar wind, providing an important tool for inferring the large-scale properties and topologies of field lines in the interplanetary medium. Although the pitch-angle scattering term is independent of energy, time-of-flight effects in the spiral geometry result in an energy dependence of the strahl width that is in the observed sense although weaker in magnitude.

Reconciling the electron counterstreaming and dropout occurrence rates with the heliospheric flux budget

Counterstreaming electrons (CSEs) are treated as signatures of closed magnetic flux, i.e., loops connected to the Sun at both ends. However, CSEs at 1 AU likely fade as the apex of a closed loop passes beyond some distance R, owing to scattering of the sunward beam along its continually increasing path length. The remaining antisunward beam at 1 AU would then give a false signature of open flux. Subsequent opening of a loop at the Sun by interchange reconnection with an open field line would produce an electron dropout (ED) at 1 AU, as if two open field lines were reconnecting to completely disconnect from the Sun. Thus EDs can be signatures of interchange reconnection as well as the commonly attributed disconnection. We incorporate CSE fadeout into a model that matches time-varying closed flux from interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) to the solar cycle variation in heliospheric flux. Using the observed occurrence rate of CSEs at solar maximum, the model estimates R ∼ 8–10 AU. Hence we demonstrate that EDs should be much rarer than CSEs at 1 AU, as EDs can only be detected when the juncture points of reconnected field lines lie sunward of the detector, whereas CSEs continue to be detected in the legs of all loops that have expanded beyond the detector, out to R. We also demonstrate that if closed flux added to the heliosphere by ICMEs is instead balanced by disconnection elsewhere, then ED occurrence at 1 AU would still be rare, contrary to earlier expectations.

Understanding electron heat flux signatures in the solar wind

Suprathermal electrons (E > 80 eV) carry heat flux away from the Sun. Processes controlling the heat flux are not well understood. To gain insight into these processes, we model heat flux as a linear dependence on two independent parameters: electron number flux and electron pitch angle anisotropy. Pitch angle anisotropy is further modeled as a linear dependence on two solar wind components: magnetic field strength and plasma density. These components show no correlation with number flux, reinforcing its independence from pitch angle anisotropy. Multiple linear regression applied to 2 years of Wind data shows good correspondence between modeled and observed heat flux and anisotropy. The results suggest that the interplay of solar wind parameters and electron number flux results in distinctive heat flux dropouts at heliospheric features like plasma sheets but that these parameters continuously modify heat flux. This is inconsistent with magnetic disconnection as the primary cause of heat flux dropouts. Analysis of fast and slow solar wind regimes separately shows that electron number flux and pitch angle anisotropy are equally correlated with heat flux in slow wind but that number flux is the dominant correlative in fast wind. Also, magnetic field strength correlates better with pitch angle anisotropy in slow wind than in fast wind. The energy dependence of the model fits suggests different scattering processes in fast and slow wind.

Intermittent release of transients in the slow solar wind: 2. In situ evidence

In paper 1, we showed that the Heliospheric Imager (HI) instruments on the pair of NASA STEREO spacecraft can be used to image the streamer belt and, in particular, the variability of the slow solar wind which originates near helmet streamers. The observation of intense intermittent transient outflow by HI implies that the corresponding in situ observations of the slow solar wind and corotating interaction regions (CIRs) should contain many signatures of transients. In the present paper, we compare the HI observations with in situ measurements from the STEREO and ACE spacecraft. Analysis of the solar wind ion, magnetic field, and suprathermal electron flux measurements from the STEREO spacecraft reveals the presence of both closed and partially disconnected interplanetary magnetic field lines permeating the slow solar wind. We predict that one of the transients embedded within the second CIR (CIR‐D in paper 1) should impact the near‐Earth ACE spacecraft. ACE measurements confirm the presence of a transient at the time of CIR passage; the transient signature includes helical magnetic fields and bidirectional suprathermal electrons. On the same day, a strahl electron dropout is observed at STEREO‐B, correlated with the passage of a high plasma beta structure. Unlike ACE, STEREO‐B observes the transient a few hours ahead of the CIR. STEREO‐A, STEREO‐B, and ACE spacecraft observe very different slow solar wind properties ahead of and during the CIR analyzed in this paper, which we associate with the intermittent release of transients.

A solar storm observed from the Sun to Venus using the STEREO, Venus Express, and MESSENGER spacecraft

The suite of SECCHI optical imaging instruments on the STEREO-A spacecraft is used to track a solar storm, consisting of several coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and other coronal loops, as it propagates from the Sun into the heliosphere during May 2007. The 3-D propagation path of the largest interplanetary CME (ICME) is determined from the observations made by the SECCHI Heliospheric Imager (HI) on STEREO-A (HI-1/2A). Two parts of the CME are tracked through the SECCHI images, a bright loop and a V-shaped feature located at the rear of the event. We show that these two structures could be the result of line-of-sight integration of the light scattered by electrons located on a single flux rope. In addition to being imaged by HI, the CME is observed simultaneously by the plasma and magnetic field experiments on the Venus Express and MESSENGER spacecraft. The imaged loop and V-shaped structure bound, as expected, the flux rope observed in situ. The SECCHI images reveal that the leading loop-like structure propagated faster than the V-shaped structure, and a decrease in in situ CME speed occurred during the passage of the flux rope.We interpret this as the result of the continuous radial expansion of the flux rope as it progressed outward through the interplanetary medium. An expansion speed in the radial direction of ~30 km s-1 is obtained directly from the SECCHI-HI images and is in agreement with the difference in speed of the two structures observed in situ. This paper shows that the flux rope location can be determined from white light images, which could have important space weather applications.

A multispacecraft analysis of a small-scale transient entrained by solar wind streams

The images taken by the Heliospheric Imagers (HIs), part of the SECCHI imaging package onboard the pair of STEREO spacecraft, provide information on the radial and latitudinal evolution of the plasma compressed inside corotating interaction regions (CIRs). A plasma density wave imaged by the HI instrument onboard STEREO-B was found to propagate towards STEREO-A, enabling a comparison between simultaneous remotesensing and in situ observations of its structure to be performed. In situ measurements made by STEREO-A show that the plasma density wave is associated with the passage of a CIR. The magnetic field compressed after the CIR stream interface (SI) is found to have a planar distribution. Minimum variance analysis of the magnetic field vectors shows that the SI is inclined at 54° to the orbital plane of the STEREO-A spacecraft. This inclination of the CIR SI is comparable to the inclination of the associated plasma density wave observed by HI. A small-scale magnetic cloud with a flux rope topology and radial extent of 0.08 AU is also embedded prior to the SI. The pitch-angle distribution of suprathermal electrons measured by the STEREO-A SWEA instrument shows that an open magnetic field topology in the cloud replaced the heliospheric current sheet locally. These observations confirm that HI observes CIRs in difference images when a small-scale transient is caught up in the compression region.

An optical study of multiple NEIAL events driven by low energy electron precipitation

Optical data are compared with EISCAT radar observations of multiple Naturally Enhanced Ion-Acoustic Line (NEIAL) events in the dayside cusp. This study uses narrow field of view cameras to observe small-scale, short-lived auroral features. Using multiple-wavelength optical observations, a direct link between NEIAL occurrences and low energy (about 100 eV) optical emissions is shown. This is consistent with the Langmuir wave decay interpretation of NEIALs being driven by streams of low-energy electrons. Modelling work connected with this study shows that, for the measured ionospheric conditions and precipitation characteristics, growth of unstable Langmuir (electron plasma) waves can occur, which decay into ion-acoustic wave modes. The link with low energy optical emissions shown here, will enable future studies of the shape, extent, lifetime, grouping and motions of NEIALs.

A rotating disc voltammetry study of the 1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone mediated reduction of colloidal indigo

Colloidal indigo is reduced to an aqueous solution of leuco-indigo in a mediated two-electron process converting the water-insoluble dye into the water-soluble leuco form. The colloidal dye does not interact directly with the electrode surface, and to employ an electrochemical process for this reduction, the redox mediator 1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone (1,8-DHAQ) is used to transfer electrons from the electrode to the dye. The mediated reduction process is investigated at a (500-kHz ultrasound-assisted) rotating disc electrode, and the quantitative analysis of voltammetric data is attempted employing the Digisim numerical simulation software package. At the most effective temperature, 353 K, the diffusion coefficient for 1,8-DHAQ is (0.84 +/- 0.08)x10(-9) m(2) s(-1), and it is shown that an apparently kinetically controlled reaction between the reduced form of the mediator and the colloidal indigo occurs within the diffusion layer at the electrode surface. The apparent bimolecular rate constant k (app)=3 mol m(-3) s(-1) for the rate law d[leuco-indigo]/dt = k(app) x [mediator] x [indigo] is determined and attributed to a mediator diffusion controlled dissolution of the colloid particles. The average particle size and the number of molecules per particles are estimated from the apparent bimolecular rate constant and confirmed by scanning electron microscopy.

Molecular structures of trimethylchlorogermane, (CH3)(3)GeCl, and trimethylbromogermane, (CH3)(3)GeBr, obtained by gas-phase electron diffraction and theoretical calculations

The structures of trimethylchlorogermane ((CH3)(3)GeCl) and trimethylbromogermane ((CH3)(3)GeBr) have been determined by gas-phase electron diffraction (GED), augmented by the results from ab initio calculations employing second-order Moller-Plesset (MP2) level of theory and the 6-311+G(d) basis set. All the electrons were included in the correlation calculation. The results from the ab initio calculations indicated that these molecules have C-3v symmetry, and models with this symmetry were used in the electron diffraction analysis. The results for the principal distances (r(g)) and angles (angle(alpha)) from the combined GED/ab initio study of trimethylchlorogermane (with estimated 2sigma uncertainties) are: r(Ge-C) = 1.950(4) Angstrom, r(Ge-Cl) = 2.173(4) Angstrom, r(C-H) = 1.090(9) Angstrom, angleCGeC = 112.7(7)degrees, angleCGeCl = 106.0(8)degrees, angleGeCH = 107.8(12)degrees. The results for the principal distances (r(g)) and angles (angle(alpha)) from the combined GED/ab initio study of trimethylbromogermane (with estimated 2sigma uncertainties) are: r(Ge-C) = 1.952(7) Angstrom, r(Ge-Br) = 2.325(4) Angstrom, r(C-H) = 1. 140(28) Angstrom, angleCGeC = 114.2(11)degrees, angleCGeBr = 104.2(13)degrees, angleGeCH 106.9(43)degrees. Local C-3v symmetry and staggered conformation were assumed for the methyl groups.

The role of Ti3+ interstitials in TiO2(110) reduction and oxidation

Here we describe results which teach us much about the mechanism of the reduction and oxidation of TiO2(110) by the application of scanning tunnelling microscopy imaging at high temperatures. Titania reduces at high temperature by thermal oxygen loss to leave localized (i.e. Ti3+) and delocalized electrons on the lattice Ti, and a reduced titania interstitial that diffuses into the bulk of the crystal. The interstitial titania can be recalled to the surface by treatment in very low pressures of oxygen, occurring at a significant rate even at 573 K. This re-oxidation occurs by re-growth of titania layers in a Volmer-Weber manner, by a repeating sequence in which in-growth of extra titania within the cross-linked (1 x 2) structure completes the (1 x 1) bulk termination. The next layer then initiates with the nucleation of points and strings which extend to form islands of cross-linked (1 x 2), which once again grow and fill in to reform the (1 x 1). This process continues in a cyclical manner to form many new layers of well-ordered titania. The details of the mechanism and kinetics of the process are considered.

A variational method for the calculation of spin-rovibronic energy levels of any triatomic molecule in an electronic triplet state

The triatomic spin-rovibronic variational code RVIB3 has been extended to include the effect of two uncoupled electrons, for both (3)Sigma(-) and (3)Pi (Renner-Teller) electronic states. The spin-orbital-rotational kinetic energy is included in the usual way, via terms (J+L+S). The phenomenological terms AL.S and lambda 2/3(3S(z)(2)) are introduced to reproduce the 3 spin-orbit and spin-spin splittings, respectively. Calculations are performed to evaluate the spin-rovibronic energy levels of CCO (X) over tilde (3) Sigma(-) and CCO (A) over tilde (3) Pi for which the Born-Oppenheimer potentials are derived from high-accuracy ab initio calculations.

Tuning of redox potential and visible absorption band of ruthenium(II) complexes of (benzimidazolyl) derivatives: synthesis, characterization, spectroscopic and redox properties, X-ray structures and DFT calculations

Six ruthenium(II) complexes have been prepared using the tridentate ligands 2,6-bis(benzimidazolyl) pyridine and bis(2-benzimidazolyl methyl) amine and having 2,2'-bipyridine, 2,2':6',2 ''-terpyridine, PPh3, MeCN and chloride as coligands. The crystal structures of three of the complexes trans-[Ru(bbpH(2))(PPh3)(2)(CH3CN)I(ClO4)(2) center dot 2H(2)O (2), [Ru(bbpH(2))(bpy)Cl]ClO4 (3) and [Ru(bbpH(2))(terpy)](ClO4)(2) (4) are also reported. The complexes show visible region absorption at 402-517 nm, indicating that it is possible to tune the visible region absorption by varying the ancillary ligand. Luminescence behavior of the complexes has been studied both at RT and at liquid nitrogen temperature (LNT). Luminescence of the complexes is found to be insensitive to the presence of dioxygen. Two of the complexes [Ru(bbpH(2))(bpy)Cl]ClO4 (3) and [Ru(bbpH(2))(terpy]ClO4)(2) (4) show RT emission in the NIR region, having lifetime, quantum yield and radiative constant values suitable for their application as NIR emitter in the solid state devices. The DFT calculations on these two complexes indicate that the metal t(2g) electrons are appreciably delocalized over the ligand backbone. (C) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.