Spatial Distribution of Energetic Electrons during Magnetic Reconnection

Electron acceleration by the inductive electric field near the X point in magnetic reconnection is an important generation mechanism for energetic electrons. Particle simulations have revealed that most of energetic electrons reside in the magnetic field line pileup region, and a depletion of energetic electrons can be found near the centre of the diffusion region Phys. Plasmas, 13 (2006) 012309. We report direct measurement of energetic electron in and around the ion diffusion region in near-Earth tail by the cluster, and our observations confirm the above predictions: a depletion of the high-energy electron fluxes is detected near the centre of the diffusion region. At the same time, the plasma temperature has a similar profile in the diffusion region.
.