Kink Oscillations in Solar Coronal Loops with Elliptical Cross Sections. I. The Linear Regime

The cross sections of solar coronal loops are suggested to be rarely circular. We examine linear kink oscillations in straight, density-enhanced, magnetic cylinders with elliptical cross sections by solving the three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic equations from an initial-value-problem perspective. Motivated by relevant eigenmode analyses, we distinguish between two independent polarizations, one along the major axis (the M-modes) and the other along the minor one (the m-modes). We find that, as happens for coronal loops with circular cross sections, the apparent damping of the transverse displacement of the loop axis is accompanied by the accumulation of transverse Alfvenic motions and the consequent development of small scales therein, suggesting the robustness of the concepts of resonant absorption and phase mixing. In addition, two stages can in general be told apart in the temporal evolution of the loop displacement: a Gaussian time dependence precedes an exponential one. For the two examined density ratios between loops and their surroundings, the periods of the M-modes (m-modes) tend to increase (decrease) with the major-to-minor-half-axis ratio, and the damping times in the exponential stage for the M-modes tend to exceed their m-mode counterparts. This is true for the two transverse profiles we examine. However, the relative magnitudes of the damping times in the exponential stage for different polarizations depend on the specification of the transverse profile or the density contrast. The applications of our numerical findings are discussed in the context of coronal seismology.