Particle acceleration in three-dimensional separator reconnection

Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process in astrophysical and space plasmas which is responsible for particle acceleration, in particular, in solar flares. Separator reconnection is one type of steady-state three-dimensional magnetic reconnection. In this paper, by considering static electric and magnetic fields associated with separator reconnection, we investigate first the acceleration features of a test-particle and then discuss acceleration of a randomly injected large population of protons and electrons in the vicinity of reconnection site with input parameters for the solar corona. It is shown that protons and electrons can be accelerated up to tens of MeV and even higher kinetic energies. The variation of energy spectra for different strengths of electric field amplitude is also discussed. (c) 2023 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.