Dependence of the Sweep Rate of Whistler-mode Chorus Emissions on the Plasma Density

Whistler-mode chorus consists of intense electromagnetic wave packets generated by a nonlinear mechanism involving wave-particle interactions. Chorus wave packets are discrete frequency-time structures in a frequency range from a few hundreds of Hz to several kHz changing their frequency on a time scale from a few tenths of seconds to a few seconds. The source region of chorus emissions is localised close to the geomagnetic equatorial plane. Our investigation is based on multipoint measurements of the wideband (WBD) plasma wave instruments on board the four Cluster spacecraft. We investigate the sweep rate of the chorus frequency as a function of the cold plasma density in the equatorial plane and then we compare it with theoretical and simulation results. A theoretical model, numerical simulations and also our preliminary results from the measurements predict an increasing sweep rate with decreasing cold plasma density.