In order to understand certain aspects of the plasma sheet dynamics, a numerical study of the nonadiabatic behavior of particles in a model field geometry is performed. The particle's magnetic moment as a function of time is calculated for various initial parameters, corresponding to various particle energies and degrees of field curvature. It is shown that the magnetic moment changes as the particle passes through the plasma sheet and that the magnitude of the change is related to the curvature of the field at the middle of the plasma sheet. The relation of the magnitude of the change in magnetic moment to the particle's pitch and phase angles as it passes through the sheet is numerically resolved. The nature of the change may be considered as a mechanism for pitch angle diffusion, and the diffusion coefficient is calculated. This scattering mechanism is significant for plasma sheet ions (1--10 keV) as well as energetic electrons (>100 keV). |