Convection in the polar cap after the interplanetary magnetic field becomes northward

As shown by Iwasaki (1971); Maezawa (1976); Kuznetsov and Troshichev (1977) and other investigators, the electric field and the plasma convection in the polar cap change their direction after an appearance of a significant northward component of the interplanetary magnetic field. Two possible mechanisms of this phenomenon may be suggested: (i) the direct penetration of the dusk-to-dawn electric field from the solar wind into the magnetosphere, and (ii) the generation of the observed electric field and convection in a process of the decay of the three-dimensional current system which existed before the appearance of the northward interplanetary field. The latter mechanism implies that the value of the electric field generated in the polar cap will decrease with time after the appearance of the northward interplanetary magnetic field. The results of the experimental investigation show such a decrease which favours the second mechanism.