Vlasov simulation of the interaction between the solar wind and a dielectric body

The global structure of wake field behind an unmagnetized object in the solar wind is studied by means of a 2.5-dimensional full-electromagnetic Vlasov simulation. The interaction of a plasma flow with an unmagnetized object is quite different from that with a magnetized object such as the Earth. Due to the absence of the global magnetic field, the unmagnetized object absorbs plasma particles that reach the surface, generating a plasma cavity called "wake" on the antisolar side of the object. For numerical simulations of electromagnetic structures around the wake, it is important to include the charging effect in global-scale simulations. The present study is one of the first attempts to study the formation of wake fields via a full-kinetic Vlasov simulation. It has been confirmed that the spatial structures of wake fields depend on the direction of interplanetary magnetic fields as well as the distance from the body.