Decay-less kink oscillations in coronal loops^⋆

¹ Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics, 664033 Irkutsk, Russia
e-mail: anfinogentov@iszf.irk.ru
² Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics, Department of Physics, University of Warwick, CV4 7AL, UK
e-mail: g.nistico@warwick.ac.uk
³ School of Space Research, Kyung Hee University, 446-701 Yongin, Gyeonggi, Korea
⁴ Central Astronomical Observatory at Pulkovo of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 196140 St Petersburg, Russia

Received: 17 June 2013
Accepted: 2 August 2013

Abstract

Context. Kink oscillations of coronal loops in an off-limb active region are detected with the Imaging Assembly Array (AIA) instruments of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) at 171 Å.

Aims. We aim to measure periods and amplitudes of kink oscillations of different loops and to determinate the evolution of the oscillation phase along the oscillating loop.

Methods. Oscillating coronal loops were visually identified in the field of view of SDO/AIA and STEREO/EUVI-A: the loop length was derived by three-dimensional analysis. Several slits were taken along the loops to assemble time-distance maps. We identified oscillatory patterns and retrieved periods and amplitudes of the oscillations. We applied the cross-correlation technique to estimate the phase shift between oscillations at different segments of oscillating loops.

Results. We found that all analysed loops show low-amplitude undamped transverse oscillations. Oscillation periods of loops in the same active region range from 2.5 to 11 min, and are different for different loops. The displacement amplitude is lower than 1 Mm. The oscillation phase is constant along each analysed loop. The spatial structure of the phase of the oscillations corresponds to the fundamental standing kink mode. We conclude that the observed behaviour is consistent with the empirical model in terms of a damped harmonic resonator affected by a non-resonant continuously operating external force.