Letter to the Editor

Decayless oscillations in 3D coronal loops excited by a power-law driver

Centre for mathematical Plasma Astrophysics, Department of Mathematics, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200B, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
e-mail: kostas.karampelas@kuleuven.be

Received: 3 October 2023
Accepted: 6 December 2023

Abstract

Aims. We studied the manifestation of decayless oscillations in 3D simulations of coronal loops, driven by random motions.

Methods. Using the PLUTO code, we ran magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of a straight gravitationally stratified flux tube, with its footpoints embedded in chromospheric plasma. We consider transverse waves drivers with a horizontally polarised red noise power-law spectrum.

Results. Our broadband drivers lead to the excitation of standing waves with frequencies equal to the fundamental standing kink mode and its harmonics. These standing kink oscillations have non-decaying amplitudes, and spectra that depend on the characteristics of the loops, with the latter amplifying the resonant frequencies from the drivers. We thus report for the first time in 3D simulations the manifestation of decayless oscillations from broadband drivers. The spatial and temporal evolution of our oscillation spectra reveals the manifestation of a half harmonic, which exhibits half the frequency of the identified fundamental mode with a similar spatial profile. Our results suggest that this mode is related to the presence of the transition region in our model and could be interpreted as being the equivalent to the fundamental mode of standing sound waves driven on pipes closed at one end.

Conclusions. The potential existence of this half harmonic has important implications for coronal seismology, since misinterpreting it for the fundamental mode of the system can lead to false estimations of the average kink speed profile along oscillating loops. Finally, its detection could potentially give us a tool for distinguishing between different excitation and driving mechanisms of decayless oscillations in observations.