Electron and Ion Dynamics in Reconnection Diffusion Regions
Abstract Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental plasma process responsible for the sometimes explosive release of magnetic energy in space and laboratory plasmas. Inside the diffusion regions of magnetic reconnection, the plasma becomes demagnetized and decouples from the magnetic field, enabling the change in magnetic topology necessary to power the energy release over larger scales. Since it was launched in 2015, the Magnetospheric MultiScale (MMS) mission has significantly advanced the understanding of the particle dynamics key to magnetic reconnection by providing high-resolution, in-situ measurements able to resolve ion and electron kinetic scales, i.e. a fraction of a gyroradius, that have confirmed theoretical predictions, revealed new phenomena, and refined existing models. These breakthroughs are critical for understanding not only space plasmas but also laboratory and astrophysical plasmas where magnetic reconnection occurs. In this work, we review the ion and electron dynamics occurring within the diffusion regions, in the inflow, along the separatrices, and downstream of the diffusion regions, in different reconnection configurations: symmetric, asymmetric, antiparallel, and guide field reconnection.
Authors
- M. R. Argall (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6315-1613)
- Naoki Bessho (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5431-174X)
- J. R. Shuster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9425-2281)
- J. P. Eastwood (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4733-8319)
- B. Lavraud (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6807-8494)
- D. B. Graham (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1046-746X)
- M. Hesse (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0377-9673)
- Sergio Toledo‐Redondo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4459-8783)
- Hiroshi Hasegawa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1172-021X)
- Yi‐Hsin Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5880-2645)
- Y. V. Khotyaintsev (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5550-3113)
- Li‐Jen Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4768-189X)
- C. Norgren (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6561-2337)
- J. Egedal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7753-1529)
- Louis Richard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3446-7322)
- J. C. Holmes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5414-8604)
Institutions
- Dartmouth College (US)
- Ames Research Center (US)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Goddard Space Flight Center (US)
- Swedish Institute of Space Physics (SE)
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- Université de Bordeaux (FR)
- University of New Hampshire (US)
- Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (FR)
- Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (JP)
- University of Bergen (NO)
- Imperial College London (GB)
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- Universidad de Murcia (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Space Science Reviews
- Published
- 2025-08-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-025-01197-z
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 4.62
Funders
- Swedish National Space Agency
- Knut och Alice Wallenbergs Stiftelse
- Norges Forskningsråd