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Abstract

Astrophysical and space plasmas are inherently multi-scale in nature. Identifying the mechanisms responsible for transporting energy across different physical scales is an essential step in modeling the dynamics of these plasmas and their associated astrophysical and space systems. Traditionally, these mechanisms are examined within an electron-single ion framework, even in the presence of multiple ion species. This simplification is justified by the dominance of a single ion species in most observations. In this work, we present measurements from the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission in Earth’s magnetosphere that challenge this paradigm. Data analysis reveals that hydrogen and helium ions, which commonly coexist, behave differently in ion-scale waves, with hydrogen ions responding more like electrons and helium ions behaving more like ions. These differential responses then induce interactions between the two ion species, exciting lower-hybrid electrostatic waves and consequently driving energy cascading from the ion scale down to the lower-hybrid scale. This process remains efficient even when helium ions are present in very minor quantities. Our observations, therefore, provide direct experimental evidence for cross-scale energy transfer processes in plasmas through multiple-ion interactions.

Data availability

The magnetic field data from the Fluxgate Magnetometers (FGM) instruments, the electric field data from the Electric Field Double Probe (EDP) instruments, and the ion data from the Fast Plasma Investigation-Dual Ion Spectrometers (FPI-DIS) instruments are available in the MMS Science Data Center under accession code https://lasp.colorado.edu/mms/sdc/public/. The time interval of interest is December 29, 2020 18:17:48-18:18:18 UT. Source data are provided with this paper.

Code availability

MMS data have been loaded, analyzed, and plotted using the SPEDAS software (Space Physics Environment Data Analysis Software). The SPEDAS software can be downloaded via the http://spedas.org/blog/ Downloads and Installation page. The dispersion relation solver BO is available from ref. 44, as provided by its authors.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China 42230202 (Q.G.Z), the Major Project of Chinese National Programs for Fundamental Research and Development 2021YFA0718600 (Q.G.Z.), the Science and Technology Development Fund, Macau SAR (File no. 0176/2023/RIA3, 0008/2024/AKP). Z.Y.L. acknowledges the support of CNES for his work at IRAP. We are grateful to the MMS team for providing the fields and plasma data. Z.Y.L. acknowledges Jing-Huan Li at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics, Uppsala, for valuable discussions.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Institute of Space Physics and Applied Technology, Peking University, Beijing, China

Z.-Y. Liu, Q.-G. Zong, S. Wang, X.-Z. Zhou & Chao Yue 1.

Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie (IRAP), CNRS-Université Toulouse-CNES, Toulouse, France

Z.-Y. Liu 1.

State Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, China

Q.-G. Zong

Authors

1. Z.-Y. Liu
2. Q.-G. Zong
3. S. Wang
4. X.-Z. Zhou
5. Chao Yue

Contributions

Z.Y.L. conceived the project, performed data analysis, and wrote the manuscript with contributions from all co-authors. Q.G.Z. supervised the project and contributed to concept development and data analysis. S.W., X.Z.Z. and Y.C. contributed to data analysis.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Q.-G. Zong.

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Nature Communications thanks Ondrej Santolik, and the other, anonymous, reviewers for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.

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Liu, ZY., Zong, QG., Wang, S. et al. Direct observations of cross-scale energy transfer driven by multiple-ion interactions in space plasmas. Nat Commun (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-66374-8

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Received: 25 October 2024

Accepted: 05 November 2025

Published: 13 December 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-66374-8