ASYMMETRIC SOLAR WIND ELECTRON DISTRIBUTIONS

Abstract

The present paper provides a possible explanation for the solar wind electron velocity distribution functions possessing asymmetric energetic tails. By numerically solving the electrostatic weak turbulence equations that involve nonlinear interactions among electrons, Langmuir waves, and ion-sound waves, it is shown that different ratios of ion-to-electron temperatures lead to the generation of varying degrees of asymmetric tails. The present finding may be applicable to observations in the solar wind near 1 AU and in other regions of the heliosphere and interplanetary space.