Simulating Magnetic Reconnection using the PETSc Particle-In-Cell Framework

Numerical solutions to the Vlasov-Maxwell equations have important applications in solar and magnetospheric physics. At the microscale, electrons and ions capture energy released from powerful magnetic events, such as reconnection, and in-turn play a role in driving the macroscopic systems. Advancements in plasma modelling provide important insights used to design the next generation of solar imagers and other instruments. The goal of this research is to extend the existing electrostatic, Vlasov-Poisson, PETSc Particle-in-Cell (PETSc-PIC) framework to self-consistent electromagnetic systems. In the Vlasov-Maxwell PETSc-PIC framework, Maxwell's equations are solved using the finite element method while the Vlasov equation is solved with conservative, explicit basic symplectic time integrators. Collisions may be added to the formulation by means of a particle-basis Landau collision operator. With an electromagnetic, Vlasov-Maxwell, PETSc-PIC model, we may study the kinetic-scale transfer of magnetic energy to particles in reconnection systems, such as Harris current sheets.