Shock Heating of Directly Transmitted Ions

Abstract

Abstract Collisionless shock heats ions very efficiently. Ion heating is a nonadiabatic process and the downstream temperature is not proportional to the upstream temperature. Ion distributions just behind the shock transition are gyrophase dependent and gradually gyrotropize. With the increase of the Mach number the contribution of reflected ions into ion heating gradually increases. Yet, directly transmitted ions may remain responsible for most of the downstream temperature. Direct transmission allows analytical treatment within the approximation of a narrow shock. We determine the gyrophase-dependent distribution just behind the magnetic jump, the gyrotropic distribution farther behind the shock, and establish the relation with the magnetic compression and the maximum overshoot magnetic field.