Analysis of Observations near the Fourth Electron Gyrofrequency Heating Experiment in EISCAT

Abstract

We present the observations of the artificial ionospheric heating experiment of EISCAT (European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association) on 22 February 2012 in Tromsø, Norway. When the pump is operating near the fourth electron gyrofrequency, the UHF radar observation shows some strong enhancements in electron temperature, electron density, ion line, and the outshifted plasma lines. Based on some existing theories, we find the following: first, Langmuir waves scattering off lower hybrid density fluctuations and strong Langmuir turbulence (SLT) in the Zakharov model cannot completely explain the outshifted plasma lines, but the data suggest that this phenomenon is related to the cascade of the pump wave and should be researched further; second, the spatiotemporal consistency between the enhancement in electron density/electron temperature reaches up to three to four times that of the undisturbed state and HF-enhanced ion lines (HFILs) suggest that SLT excited by parametric instability plays a significant role in superthermal electron formation and electron acceleration; third, some enhancements in HFILs and HF-induced plasma lines (HFPLs) are generated by parametric decay instability (PDI) during underdense heating in the third cycle, we suggest that this is due to the existence of a second cut-off in the upper hybrid dispersion relation as derived from a kinetic description.

Keywords

• heating ionosphere
• plasma line
• electron temperature
• electron density