UHECR acceleration at GRB internal shocks Globus, N; Allard, D; Mochkovitch, R ...
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society,
07/2015, Volume:
451, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Recent results from the Pierre Auger Observatory suggest that nuclei heavier than protons might be present in significant amounts among ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). It is therefore ...interesting to investigate the acceleration both protons and nuclei in relativistic jets. We calculate the acceleration of a mixed composition of cosmic rays at Gamma-ray burst (GRB) internal shocks, taking into account the relevant energy loss processes. 3D trajectories during the relativistic Fermi cycles are simulated following previous works by Niemiec & Ostrowski. We use the internal shock model of Daigne & Mochkovitch to derive the evolution of the relevant physical quantities (magnetic fields, baryon and photon densities, shock velocity). We consider different phenomenological hypotheses about the sharing of the dissipated energy between accelerated cosmic rays, electrons and the magnetic field. For various choices of the parameters, we calculate the spectrum of cosmic rays escaping from the GRB environment as well as secondary particles produced either during the acceleration or extragalactic propagation of UHECRs. Only models where (i) the prompt emission represents only a small fraction of the energy dissipated at internal shocks and (ii) most of this dissipated energy is communicated to cosmic rays, are able to reproduce the magnitude of the UHECR flux observed on Earth. For these models, however, the observed shape of the UHECR spectrum can be well reproduced above the ankle, with an evolution of the composition compatible with the trend suggested by Auger, and associated diffuse fluxes of secondary particles which do not violate current observational limits.
The collimation of a Poynting-flux dominated jet by a wind emanating from the surface of an accretion flow is computed using a semi-analytic model. The injection of the disc wind is treated as a ...boundary condition in the equatorial plane, and its evolution is followed by invoking a prescribed geometry of streamlines. Solutions are obtained for a wide range of disc wind parameters. It is found that jet collimation generally occurs when the total wind power exceeds about 10 percents of the jet power. For moderate wind powers, we find gradual collimation. For strong winds, we find rapid collimation followed by focusing of the jet, after which it remains narrow over many Alfvén crossing times before becoming conical. We estimate that in the later case, the jet's magnetic field may be dissipated by the current-driven kink instability over a distance of a few hundreds gravitational radii. We apply the model to M87 and show that the observed parabolic shape of the radio jet within the Bondi radius can be reproduced provided that the wind injection zone extends to several hundreds gravitational radii, and that its total power is about one-third of the jet power. The radio spectrum can be produced by synchrotron radiation of relativistically hot, thermal electrons in the sheath flow surrounding the inner jet.
Stationary features are occasionally observed in active galactic nucleus jets. A notable example is the HST-1 knot in M87. Such features are commonly interpreted as reconfinement shocks in ...hydrodynamic jets or focusing nozzles in Poynting jets. In this paper, we compute the structure and Lorentz factor of a highly magnetized jet confined by external pressure having a profile that flattens abruptly at some radius. We find the development of strong oscillations upon transition from the steeper to the flatter pressure profile medium. Analytic formula is derived for the location of the nodes of these oscillations. We apply the model to the M87 jet and show that if the jet remains magnetically dominated up to sub-kiloparsec scales, then focusing is expected. The location of the HST-1 knot can be reconciled with recent measurements of the pressure profile around the Bondi radius if the jet luminosity satisfies L sub( j) ... 10 super( 43) erg s super( -1). However, we find that magnetic domination at the collimation break implies a Lorentz factor in excess of 10 super( 2), atypical to Fanaroff-Riley type I sources. A much lower value of the asymptotic Lorentz factor would require substantial loading close to the black hole. In that case, HST-1 may be associated with a collimation nozzle of a hydrodynamic flow. (ProQuest: ... denotes formulae/symbols omitted.)
The dynamics of a dissipative Poynting-dominated flow subject to a radiation drag due to Compton scattering of ambient photons by relativistic electrons accelerated in reconnecting current sheets is ...studied. It is found that the efficiency at which magnetic energy is converted to radiation is limited to a maximum value of ϵc = 3l
dis σ0/4(σ0 + 1), where σ0 is the initial magnetization of the flow and l
dis ≤ 1 the fraction of initial Poynting flux that can dissipate. The asymptotic Lorentz factor satisfies Γ∞ ≥ Γ0(1 + l
dis σ0/4), where Γ0 is the initial Lorentz factor. This limit is approached in cases where the cooling time is shorter than the local dissipation time. A somewhat smaller radiative efficiency is expected if radiative losses are dominated by synchrotron and Synchrotron Self-Compton emissions. It is suggested that under certain conditions magnetic field dissipation may occur in two distinct phases: On small scales, asymmetric magnetic fields that are advected into the polar region and dragged out by the outflow dissipate to a more stable configuration. The dissipated energy is released predominantly as gamma rays. On much larger scales, the outflow encounters a flat density profile medium and re-collimates. This leads to further dissipation and wobbling of the jet head by the kink instability, as found recently in 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations. Within the framework of a model proposed recently to explain the dichotomy of radio loud active galactic nuclei (AGN), this scenario can account for the unification of gamma-ray blazars with Fanaroff–Riley type I and Fanaroff–Riley type II radio sources.
Abstract
Motivated by the ${\sim }7{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ dipole anisotropy in the distribution of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) above 8 EeV, we explore the anisotropy induced by the ...large-scale structure (LSS), using constrained simulations of the local Universe and taking into account the effect of magnetic fields. The value of the intergalactic magnetic field (IGMF) is critical as it determines the UHECR cosmic horizon. We calculate the UHECR sky maps for different values of the IGMF variance and show the effect of the UHECR horizon on the observed anisotropy. The footprint of the local (≲ 350 Mpc) Universe on the UHECR background, a small angular scale enhancement in the Northern hemisphere, is seen. At 11.5 EeV (the median value of the energy bin at which the dipole has been reported), the LSS-induced dipole amplitude is $A_1\sim 10{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$, for IGMF in the range 0.3–3 nG for protons, helium and nitrogen, compatible with the rms value derived from the cosmic power spectrum. However at these energies, the UHECRs are also influenced by the Galactic magnetic field and we discuss its effect on the LSS-induced anisotropy.
Abstract
We use a sample of 54 compact symmetric objects (CSOs) to confirm that there are two unrelated CSO classes: an edge-dimmed, low-luminosity class (CSO 1), and an edge-brightened, ...high-luminosity class (CSO 2). Using blind tests, we show that CSO 2s consist of three subclasses: CSO 2.0, having prominent hot spots at the leading edges of narrow jets and/or narrow lobes; CSO 2.2, without prominent hot spots and with broad jets and/or lobes; and CSO 2.1, which exhibit mixed properties. Most CSO 2s do not evolve into larger jetted active galactic nuclei (AGN), but spend their whole life cycle as CSOs of size ≲500 pc and age ≲5000 yr. The minimum energies needed to produce the radio luminosity and structure in CSO 2s range from ∼10
−4
M
⊙
c
2
to ∼7
M
⊙
c
2
. We show that the transient nature of most CSO 2s, and their birth rate, can be explained through ignition in the tidal disruption events of stars. We also consider possibilities of tapping the spin energy of the supermassive black hole, and tapping the energy of the accretion disk. Our results demonstrate that CSOs constitute a large family of AGN in which we have thus far studied only the brightest. More comprehensive CSO studies, with higher sensitivity, resolution, and dynamic range, will revolutionize our understanding of AGN and the central engines that power them.
We extend previous studies of mixed-composition extragalactic cosmic-ray source models, investigating the influence of a non-negligible extragalactic magnetic field on the propagated cosmic-ray ...spectrum and composition. We study the transport of charged particles in turbulent fields and the transition from a ballistic to a diffusive propagation regime. We introduce a method allowing a fast integration of the particle trajectories, which allows us to calculate extragalactic cosmic-ray spectra in the general case, without using either the diffusive or the rectilinear approximation. We find that the main features of the mixed-composition models – regarding the interpretation of the ankle and the non-monotonous evolution of the average cosmic-ray mass – remain essentially unchanged as long as the magnetic field intensity does not exceed a few nG.
Context. A large sample of T Tauri stars exhibits optical jets, approximately half of which rotate slowly, only at ten per cent of their breakup velocity. The disk-locking mechanism has been shown to ...be inefficient to explain this observational fact. Aims: We show that low mass accreting T Tauri stars may have a strong stellar jet component that can effectively brake the star to the observed rotation speed. Methods: By means of a nonlinear separation of the variables in the full set of the MHD equations we construct semi-analytical solutions describing the dynamics and topology of the stellar component of the jet that emerges from the corona of the star. Results: We analyze two typical solutions with the same mass loss rate but different magnetic lever arms and jet radii. The first solution with a long lever arm and a wide jet radius effectively brakes the star and can be applied to the visible jets of T Tauri stars such as RY Tau. The second solution with a shorter lever arm and a very narrow jet radius may explain why similar stars, either weak line T Tauri stars (WTTS) or classical T Tauri stars (CTTS) do not all have visible jets. For instance, RY Tau itself seems to have different phases that probably depend on the activity of the star. Conclusions: First, stellar jets seem to be able to brake pre-main sequence stars with a low mass accreting rate. Second, jets may be visible only part time owing to changes in their boundary conditions. We also suggest a possible scenario for explaining the dichotomy between CTTS and WTTS, which rotate faster and do not have visible jets.
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