Solar chromosphere heating and generation of plasma outflows by impulsively generated two fluid Alfven waves

TL;DR

This study uses numerical simulations to show that impulsively generated two-fluid Alfvén waves can significantly heat the solar chromosphere and drive plasma outflows, with larger pulses producing more heating and faster flows.

Contribution

The paper demonstrates through simulations that large-amplitude two-fluid Alfvén waves play a significant role in chromosphere heating and plasma outflow generation, highlighting their importance in solar physics.

Findings

Small-amplitude waves slightly increase temperature and cause slow flows.

Large-amplitude waves significantly heat the plasma and accelerate outflows.

Maximum heating occurs with pulses launched from the central photosphere.

Abstract

Context. We address the heating of the solar chromosphere and the related generation of plasma inflows and outflows. Aims. We attempt to detect variations in ion temperature and vertical plasma flows, which are driven by impulsively excited two-fluid Alfv\'en waves. We aim to investigate the possible contribution of these waves to solar chromosphere heating and plasma outflows. Methods. We performed numerical simulations of the generation and evolution of Alfv\'en waves with the use of the JOANNA code, which solves the two-fluid equations for ions+electrons and neutrals, coupled by collision terms. Results. We confirm that the damping of impulsively generated small-amplitude Alfv\'en waves slightly affects the temperature of the chromosphere and generates slow plasma flows. In contrast, the Alfv\'en waves generated by large-amplitude pulses increase the chromospheric plasma temperature more significantly and result in faster plasma outflows. The maximum heating occurs when the pulse is launched from the central photosphere, and the magnitude of the related plasma flows grows with the amplitude of the pulse. Conclusions. Large-amplitude two-fluid Alfv\'en waves can contribute significantly to the heating of the solar chromosphere and to the generation of plasma outflows.