Katherine Blundell OBE

Abstract:

We examine limits to the energy to which cosmic rays can be accelerated by relativistic shocks, showing that acceleration of light ions as high as 100 EeV is unlikely. The implication of our estimates is that if ultra-high energy cosmic rays are accelerated by shocks, then those shocks are probably not relativistic.

Abstract:

We present a low-frequency view of the Perseus cluster with new observations from the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (JVLA) at 230-470 MHz. The data reveal a multitude of new structures associated with the mini-halo. The mini-halo seems to be influenced both by the AGN activity as well as by the sloshing motion of the cool core cluster's gas. In addition, it has a filamentary structure similar to that seen in radio relics found in merging clusters. We present a detailed description of the data reduction and imaging process of the dataset. The depth and resolution of the observations allow us to conduct for the first time a detailed comparison of the mini-halo structure with the X-ray structure as seen in the Chandra X-ray images. The resulting image shows very clearly that the mini-halo emission is mostly contained behind the cold fronts, similar to that predicted by simulations of gas sloshing in galaxy clusters. However, due to the proximity of the Perseus cluster, as well as the quality of the data at low radio frequencies and at X-ray wavelengths, we also find evidence of fine structure. This structure includes several radial radio filaments extending in different directions, a concave radio structure associated with the southern X-ray bay and sharp edges that correlate with X-ray edges. Mini-halos are therefore not simply diffuse, uniform radio sources, but are rather filled with a rich variety of complex structures. These results illustrate the high-quality images that can be obtained with the new JVLA at low radio-frequencies, as well as the necessity to obtain deeper, higher-fidelity radio images of mini-halos and halos in clusters to further understand their origin.

Abstract:

Cosmic ray (CR) currents through magnetized plasma drive strong instabilities producing amplification of the magnetic field. This amplification helps explain the CR energy spectrum as well as observations of supernova remnants and radio galaxy hotspots. Using magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we study the behaviour of the non-resonant hybrid (NRH) instability (also known as the Bell instability) in the case of CR currents perpendicular and parallel to the initial magnetic field. We demonstrate that extending simulations of the perpendicular case to 3D reveals a different character to the turbulence from that observed in 2D. Despite these differences, in 3D the perpendicular NRH instability still grows exponentially far into the non-linear regime with a similar growth rate to both the 2D perpendicular and 3D parallel situations. We introduce some simple analytical models to elucidate the physical behaviour, using them to demonstrate that the transition to the non-linear regime is governed by the growth of thermal pressure inside dense filaments at the edges of the expanding loops. We discuss our results in the context of supernova remnants and jets in radio galaxies. Our work shows that the NRH instability can amplify magnetic fields to many times their initial value in parallel and perpendicular shocks.