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  • Intense Electric Fields and...
    Stawarz, J. E.; Eastwood, J. P.; Genestreti, K. J.; Nakamura, R.; Ergun, R. E.; Burgess, D.; Burch, J. L.; Fuselier, S. A.; Gershman, D. J.; Giles, Barbara L.; Contel, O. Le; Lindqvist, P.-A.; Russell, C. T.; Torbert, R. B.

    Geophysical research letters, 16 September 2018, Letnik: 45, Številka: 17
    Journal Article

    Three flux ropes associated with near-Earth magnetotail reconnection are analyzed using Magnetospheric Multiscale observations. The flux ropes are Earthward propagating with sizes from ∼3 to 11 ion inertial lengths. Significantly different axial orientations are observed, suggesting spatiotemporal variability in the reconnection and/or flux rope dynamics. An electron-scale vortex, associated with one of the most intense electric fields (E) in the event, is observed within one of the flux ropes. This E is predominantly perpendicular to the magnetic field (B); the electron vortex is frozen-in with E × B drifting electrons carrying perpendicular current and causing a small-scale magnetic enhancement. The vortex is ∼16 electron gyroradii in size perpendicular to B and potentially elongated parallel to B. The need to decouple the frozen-in vortical motion from the surrounding plasma implies a parallel E at the structure's ends. The formation of frozen-in electron vortices within reconnection-generated flux ropes may have implications for particle acceleration.