Small-scale solar magnetic fields

TL;DR

This paper reviews the current understanding of small-scale magnetic fields on the Sun, emphasizing recent observational advances and their implications for solar magnetism, dynamo processes, and atmospheric heating.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of small-scale solar magnetic fields, highlighting recent instrumental findings and discussing future research directions.

Findings

Evidence for local dynamo action in the quiet Sun

Insights into chromospheric heating mechanisms

Advances in high-resolution solar magnetic field measurements

Abstract

As we resolve ever smaller structures in the solar atmosphere, it has become clear that magnetism is an important component of those small structures. Small-scale magnetism holds the key to many poorly understood facets of solar magnetism on all scales, such as the existence of a local dynamo, chromospheric heating, and flux emergence, to name a few. Here, we review our knowledge of small-scale photospheric fields, with particular emphasis on quiet-sun field, and discuss the implications of several results obtained recently using new instruments, as well as future prospects in this field of research.