Kinetic cascade in solar-wind turbulence: 3D3V hybrid-kinetic simulations with electron inertia

Understanding the nature of the turbulent fluctuations below the ion gyroradius in solar-wind (SW) turbulence is a great challenge. Recent studies have been mostly in favor of kinetic Alfvén wave (KAW)-type fluctuations, but other kinds of fluctuations with characteristics typical of magnetosonic, whistler, and ion-Bernstein modes could also play a role depending on the plasma parameters. Here, we investigate the properties of the subproton-scale cascade with high-resolution hybrid-kinetic simulations of freely decaying turbulence in 3D3V phase space, including electron inertia effects. Two proton plasma beta are explored: the "intermediate" β p = 1 and "low" β p = 0.2 regimes, both typically observed in the SW and corona. The magnetic energy spectum exhibits and power laws at β p = 1, while they are slightly steeper at β p = 0.2. Nevertheless, both regimes develop a spectral anisotropy consistent with K∥ ∼ K⊥2/3at K⊥ pp and pronounced small-scale intermittency. In this context, we find that the kinetic-scale cascade is dominated by KAW-like fluctuations at β p = 1, whereas the low-β case presents a more complex scenario suggesting the simultaneous presence of different types of fluctuations. In both regimes, however, a possible role of the ion-Bernstein-type fluctuations at the smallest scales cannot be excluded.