Colloquium
Mode conversion of MHD waves and shocks in the Solar atmosphere

Abstract

MHD waves – slow, Alfvén and fast – lose their distinctiveness in certain regions of a stratified plasma, such as solar or stellar atmospheres. We discuss all three mode conversion processes, fast/slow, fast/Alfvén and slow/Alfvén and how they are affected by atmospheric structure, magnetic field orientation, and partial ionization. We also present some simulations of fast/slow coupling in shock waves.