分野別セミナー

In my talk I will discuss 3 separate topics in the theory of
magnetic reconnection.

1. Energetics of spontaneous (via resistive MHD instability)
and forced (due to external deformation of the MHD stable
configuration) reconnections. In the latter case even a weak
external perturbation can trigger a substantial internal
magnetic relaxation of the system. This effect may have
important implications in plasma astrophysics.

2. Formation of plasmoids (magnetic islands) in the resistive
MHD reconnection. Classical models of magnetic reconnection
under a very large Lundquist number, such as the Sweet–Parker
model, predict highly elongated reconnective current sheets
and, hence, a slow pace of reconnection. However, it has been
pointed out recently, that such current sheets are unstable
and break down into a chain of magnetic islands, which can
increase the rate of reconnection.

3. Collisionless magnetic reconnection: electron inertia
versus non-scalar thermal pressure tensor.