Medium-energy electrons and heavy ions in Jupiter's magnetosphere - Effects of lower hybrid wave-particle interactions

A theory of medium-energy (about keV) electrons and heavy ions in Jupiter's magnetosphere is presented. Lower hybrid waves are generated by the combined effects of a ring instability of neutral wind pickup ions and the modified two-stream instability associated with transport of cool Iogenic plasma. The quasi-linear energy diffusion coefficient for lower hybrid wave-particle interactions is evaluated, and several solutions to the diffusion equation are given. Calculations based on measured wave properties show that the noise substantially modifies the particle distribution functions. The effects are to accelerate superthermal ions and electrons to keV energies and to thermalize the pickup ions on time scales comparable to the particle residence time. The S(2+)/S(+) ratio at medium energies is a measure of the relative contribution from Iogenic thermal plasma and neutral wind ions, and this important quantity should be determined from future measurements. The theory also predicts a preferential acceleration of heavy ions with an accleration time that scales inversely with the root of the ion mass. Electrons accelerated by the process contribute to further reionization of the neutral wind by electron impact, thus providing a possible confirmation of Alfven's critical velocity effect in the Jovian magnetosphere.