Authors: Rui Huang (University of Iowa), Gregory Howes (University of Iowa), Collin Brown (Naval Research Laboratory), Luca Comisso (Columbia University)

Recent 3D fully kinetic Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulations by Comisso & Sironi (2022) show that turbulence in low-beta plasmas can efficiently accelerate ions and electrons to nonthermal energies, even in non-relativistic regimes.

To investigate the underlying energization mechanisms, we apply the field-particle correlation (FPC) technique to these datasets. FPC, originally introduced by Klein & Howes (2016), identifies energy transfer between electromagnetic fields and plasma particles using single-point measurements by revealing distinct velocity-space signatures associated with different physical mechanisms. This technique has matured significantly over the past decade. A direct connection has been established between FPC and the temporal evolution of the distribution function. Multiple velocity-space signatures are now recognized for key processes including Landau damping, transit-time damping, cyclotron damping, magnetic reconnection, and collisionless shocks.

Utilizing these developments, we aim to determine what mechanisms govern the turbulent energy transfer and drive the observed particle acceleration in Comisso & Sironi’s simulations. This analysis will provide new insights into how turbulent dissipation operates in weakly collisional plasmas and contribute to the broader goal of building predictive models for plasma heating in space and astrophysical systems.