FIP Fractionation: Theory

In this review, the main models of ion-neutral frationation leading to an enhancement of the low FIP to high FIP abundance ratio in the corona or in the solar wind, are presented. Models based on diffusion parallel to the magnetic field are discussed; they are highly dependent on the boundary conditions. The magnetic field, that naturally separates ions from neutrals moving perpendicular to the field lines direction, when the ion-neutral frequency becomes lower than the ion gyrofrequency, is expected to play an active role in the ion-neutral separation. It is then suggested that ion-neutral fractionation is linked to the formation of the solar chromosphere, i.e. in magnetic flux-tubes at a temperature between 4000 and 6000 K. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.