Hybrid-Vlasov 3D3V Turbulence
In this work, we performed 3D3V hybrid-Vlasov simulations, with kinetic ions and fluid electrons, of plasma turbulence driven near ion scales under magnetosheath-like conditions. The objective was to understand how sub-ion-scale energy injection controls ion and electron heating, and how electron-only reconnection emerges in this regime. Summary of the 3D3V hybrid-Vlasov results. Top: ion-to-electron heating ratio as a function of β_i, compared with simulations and MMS observations. Bottom: turbulent magnetic structure and a representative electron-only reconnection event.The simulations show a β-dependent partition of dissipated energy between ions and electrons, with heating ratios consistent with MMS measurements. At small scales, the cascade transitions toward electron-dominated dynamics, providing a useful framework to interpret when turbulence enters a whistler-mediated regime.Within this turbulent environment, thin electron diffusion regions, fast electron jets, and weak ion response arise self-consistently, producing electron-only reconnection events similar to those observed in the magnetosheath.More broadly, this work connects in-situ observations, reduced plasma descriptions, and kinetic simulations, and clarifies how sub-ion-scale turbulence controls both heating and reconnection in space plasmas.
