First in Situ Estimates of the Sheath Resistance for the PSP/FIELD Antenna: Employing an Electron Shot Noise Model
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Authors
Zheng, X.
Martinović, M.M.
Klein, K.G.
Pierrard, V.
Liu, M.
Wang, Y.
Wu, T.
Ember, W.
Li, J.
Maruyama, N.
Chi, Y.
Yao, Y.
Yu, B.
Xue, X.
Discipline
Physical sciences
Subject
Space plasmas
Discrete radio sources
Solar wind
Radio spectroscopy
Audience
Scientific
Date
2026Metadata
Show full item recordDescription
Quasi-thermal noise is an important diagnostic tool for measuring electron density and temperature in space
plasmas, with its low-frequency range being dominated by electron shot noise. However, previous missions have
shown that conventional shot noise models often yield poor fits in the low frequency ( f < fp), limiting the
accurate characterization of electron parameters. To address this issue, we introduce an effective sheath resistance
into the previous model, thereby establishing a calibrated shot noise model that improves measurements of
electron parameters in the inner heliosphere. Methodologically, we applied the steep-descent and Levenberg–
Marquardt method algorithm to determine the electron density and temperature above the plasma frequency; we
then isolate the pure shot noise by subtracting other noise sources; and finally, we derive the antenna impedance
using measurements below the plasma frequency ( fp). Based on Parker Solar Probe (PSP) observations during
PSP Encounter 4 ∼ 8 (with unbiased antennas operating in the dipole regime), we obtain an effective antenna
capacitance of 8.30 ± 0.21pF and an effective resistance in the range of 0.5 ∼ 4MΩ, with their radial of the
capacitances and resistances of r 0.072 ± 0.001 and r2.57 ± 0.02, respectively.
Citation
Zheng, X.; Martinović, M.M.; Klein, K.G.; Pierrard, V.; Liu, M.; Wang, Y.; Wu, T.; Ember, W.; Li, J.; Maruyama, N.; Chi, Y.; Yao, Y.; Yu, B.; Xue, X. (2026). First in Situ Estimates of the Sheath Resistance for the PSP/FIELD Antenna: Employing an Electron Shot Noise Model. , The Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 997, Issue 2, A137, DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ae25e6.Identifiers
url:
Type
Article
Peer-Review
Yes
Language
eng
