Temporal changes of physical conditions in the photospheric layers of a solar flare

An M4.1/1B solar flare on November 5, 2004, is investigated. The Stokes I ± V profiles of nine photospheric Fe I, Fe II, Sc II, and Cr II lines are studied for three instants of this flare (11 ^h 35 ^m , 11 ^h 39 ^m , and 11 ^h 45 ^m UT). The magnetic fields in the flare were measured in two ways: using the center-of-gravity method and by comparing the observed profiles with the theoretical ones computed with Baranovsky’s code. Analysis of the profiles reveals that the magnetic field strength peaked in the upper photosphere (logτ₅₀₀ = ?2.7) at the flare maximum (11 ^h 35 ^m ); this peak was smeared and shifted into the deeper photospheric layers as the flare evolved. The semiempirical model of the flare has two layers with an enhanced temperature: in the upper and middle photosphere. These layers also shifted deep into the photosphere as the flare evolved. The turbulent velocities at the distribution maximum increased by almost a factor of 5 compared to those in the undisturbed photosphere, while the plasma density both increased and decreased by a factor of 3–6.