The influence of collisions between neutrals and ions on the energy flux of Alfvén-type waves in partially ionized plasma based on the three-fluid equations is considered. It has been shown that amplitudes of Alfvén waves that are generated or propagating in the solar photosphere do not depend on the ionization ratio, if the wave periods are much larger than 10 −4 s. This contradicts results of Vranjes et al. (Astron. Astrophys. 478, 553, 2008) and is explained by the strong coupling due to ion-neutral collisions. Alfvén waves can be effectively excited in the photosphere of the Sun by convective motions, providing the required energy for coronal heating.
Within the framework of ideal magnetohydrodynamics the excitation of the ballooning instability in a toroidal coronal loop with a radius of cross section a and a radius of curvature R is analyzed by using the energy method. Kink oscillations are able to excite the ballooning instability when the plasma beta parameter β > 2a/R. It has been suggested that this can result in the formation of cusp-shaped coronal loops. Modulation of gyrosynchrotron emission caused by kink oscillations is considered. The intensity of gyrosynchrotron emission for optically thin sources is the most sensitive to Alfvén disturbances. The obtained theoretical results are discussed in the light of Yohkoh, SOHO, TRACE, RHESSI, and Nobeyama observations.
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