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arXiv · 1706.08435

Electron crescent distributions as a manifestation of diamagnetic drift in an electron scale current sheet

A. C. Rager·J. C. Dorelli·D. J. Gershman·V. Uritsky·L. A. Avanov·R. B. Torbert·J. L. Burch·R. E. Ergun·J. Egedal·C. Schiff·J. R. Shuster·B. L. Giles·W. R. Paterson·C. J. Pollock·R. J. Strangeway·C. T. Russell·B. Lavraud·V. N Coffey·Y. Saito
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Abstract

We report Magnetospheric Multiscale observations of electron pressure gradient electric fields near a magnetic reconnection diffusion region using a new technique for extracting 7.5 ms electron moments from the Fast Plasma Investigation. We find that the deviation of the perpendicular electron bulk velocity from $E \times B$ drift in the interval where the out-of-plane current density is increasing can be explained by the diamagnetic drift. In the interval where the out-of-plane current is transitioning to in-plane current, the electron momentum equation is not satisfied at 7.5 ms resolution.

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A. C. Rager, J. C. Dorelli, D. J. Gershman, V. Uritsky, L. A. Avanov, R. B. Torbert, J. L. Burch, R. E. Ergun, J. Egedal, C. Schiff, J. R. Shuster, B. L. Giles, W. R. Paterson, C. J. Pollock, R. J. Strangeway, C. T. Russell, B. Lavraud, V. N Coffey, Y. Saito. 2017-06-26. Electron crescent distributions as a manifestation of diamagnetic drift in an electron scale current sheet. https://doi.org/10.1002/2017gl076260

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