We investigate the acceleration of charged particles in the framework of collisionless reconnection. A steady reconnection scenario is considered, with a two dimensional X-point magnetic field geometry having also a uniform field component transverse to the plane of the X-point field, and an inductive electric field generating an inflow of particles. Test particle trajectories are studied, and the energy spectra of the accelerated particles are determined.

In a recent paper, Balescu (1980) criticizes the self-similar solution in the problem of anomalous plasma resistivity (Vekstein, Ryutov & Sagdeev 1970) and comes to the conclusion that this solution is not correct. The aim of this comment is to show why Balescu's arguments are erroneous.

We consider here the simplest case of the one-dimensional collisionless plasma in the presence of an external electric field.

This paper considers single-particle trajectories in a planar sheared force-free magnetic field. A specific feature of this magnetic configuration is the absence of both gradient and curvature magnetic drifts, as well as a diamagnetic force along field lines. Therefore, in the framework of the drift approximation, the motion of the particle guiding centre does not feel the magnetic field's non-uniformity. Here we discuss how the latter affects actual particle trajectories, making them quite different from simple circular gyromotion even when the Larmor radius is small. It is also shown how magnetic confinement ceases to work when the Larmor radius becomes comparable to the spatial scale of the field variation.