Theoretical astrophysics and plasma physics at RPC

Abstract:

We present two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of a magnetised, collisionless, relativistic pair plasma subjected to combined velocity and magnetic field shear, a scenario typical at intermittent structures in plasma turbulence. We create conditions where only the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability (KHI) and drift–kink instability (DKI) can develop, while tearing modes are forbidden. The interaction of DKI and KHI generates qualitatively new structures, marked by a thickened shear layer with very weak electromagnetic field, modulated by KH vortices. Over a range of moderately strong velocity shears explored, the interaction of DKI and KHI results in a significant enhancement of dissipation over cases with only velocity shear or only magnetic shear. Moreover, we observe a new and efficient way of particle acceleration where particles are stochastically accelerated by the motional electric field exterior to the shear layer as they meander in an S-shaped pattern in and out of it. This process takes advantage of the bent geometry of the shear layer caused by the DKI–KHI interaction and is responsible for most of the highest-energy particles produced in our simulations. These results further our understanding of dissipation and particle acceleration at intermittent structures, which are present in plasma turbulence across a wide range of astrophysical contexts such as in active galactic nucleus jet sheaths, potentially relevant to limb-brightened emission, etc., and highlight the sensitivity of dissipation to multiple interacting instabilities, thus providing a strong motivation for further studies of their nonlinear interaction at the kinetic level.

Abstract:

Strongly driven ion-scale turbulence in tokamak plasmas is shown to be regulated by a new propagating zonal flow mode, the toroidal secondary mode, which is nonlinearly supported by the turbulence. The mode grows and propagates due to the combined effects of zonal flow shearing and advection by the magnetic drift. Above a threshold in the turbulence level, small-scale toroidal secondary modes become unstable and shear apart turbulent eddies, forcing the turbulence level to remain near the threshold. This threshold condition is used to derive scaling laws for the turbulent heat flux, fluctuation spectra, and zonal flow amplitude, which are validated in nonlinear gyrokinetic simulations and explain previous experimental observations.

Abstract:

We present a novel method for classifying two-dimensional orbits in rotating bar potentials based on an empirical proxy for the second integral of motion, calibrated angular momentum (CAM), which is defined as the ratio of the time-averaged angular momentum ( Lz¯ ) to its temporal dispersion ( σLz ) in the corotating frame. We show that CAM is determined by the ratio of the azimuthal to radial actions ( Jϕ′/Jr′ ) in the analytical Freeman bar model. We then construct a new parameter space defined by CAM versus the rms radius (Rrms) and apply this framework to orbits in several representative rotating bar potentials. In the CAM–Rrms plane, periodic orbits generate well-defined branches separating distinct regions corresponding to different orbital families. Several of these branches enclose isolated areas that can be associated with specific orbital families, such as the x2 orbital family. We further validate the method using orbits from test-particle simulations, which show a well-ordered and nonoverlapping distribution of orbital families in the CAM–Rrms plane. Since CAM is fundamentally linked to intrinsic orbital properties and readily applied to three-dimensional orbits in N-body simulations, our results establish the CAM–Rrms plane as a robust and efficient framework for orbit classification in rotating bars that complements conventional methods.

Abstract:

Relativistic magnetic reconnection has been proposed as an important non-thermal particle acceleration (NTPA) mechanism that generates power-law spectra and high-energy emissions. Power-law particle spectra are in general characterised by three parameters: the power-law index, the high-energy cutoff and the low-energy cutoff (i.e. the injection energy). Particle injection into the non-thermal power law, despite also being a critical step in the NTPA chain, has received considerably less attention than the subsequent acceleration to high energies. Open questions on particle injection that are important for both physical understanding and astronomical observations include how the upstream magnetisation influences the injection energy and the contributions of the known injection mechanisms (i.e. direct acceleration by the reconnection electric field, Fermi kicks and pickup acceleration) to the injected particle population. Using fully kinetic particle-in-cell simulations, we uncover these relationships by systematically measuring the injection energy and calculating the contributions of each acceleration mechanism to the total injected particle population. We also present a theoretical model to explain these results. Additionally, we compare two- and three-dimensional simulations to assess the impact of the flux-rope kink and drift-kink instability on particle injection. We conclude with comparisons with previous work and outlook for future work.

Abstract:

Supermassive black hole (SMBH) binary systems are an unavoidable outcome of galaxy mergers. Their dynamics encode valuable information about their formation and growth, the composition of their host galactic nuclei, the evolution of galaxies, and the nature of gravity. Many SMBH binaries with separations pc-kpc have been found, but closer (subparsec) binaries remain to be confirmed. Identifying these systems may elucidate how binaries evolve past the “final parsec” until gravitational radiation drives them to coalescence. Methods to discover and characterize SMBH binaries can shed light on these important questions and potentially open new multimessenger channels. Here we show that SMBH binaries in nonactive galactic nuclei can be identified and characterized by the gravitational lensing of individual bright stars, located behind them in the host galaxy. The rotation of “caustics”—regions where sources are hugely magnified due to the SMBH binary’s orbit and inspiral—leads to quasiperiodic lensing of starlight (QPLS). The extreme lensing magnification of individual bright stars produces a significant variation in the host galaxies’ luminosity; their lightcurve traces the orbit of the SMBH binary and its evolution, analogous to the waveforms recorded by gravitational-wave (GW) detectors. QPLS probes the population of sources observable by pulsar timing arrays and space detectors (LISA, TianQin), offering advance warning triggers for merging SMBHs for coincident or follow-up GW detections. SMBH population models predict 1–50 $[190–5000](n_{\star }/{\mathrm{pc}}^{-3})$ QPLS binaries with period less than 10[40] yr with comparable masses and redshift $z<0.3$ , where $n_{\star }$ is the stellar number density. Additionally, stellar and orbital motion will lead to frequent instances of single or double flares caused by SMBHBs with longer periods. This novel signature can be searched for in a wealth of existing and upcoming time-domain photometric data: identifying quasiperiodic variability in galactic lightcurves will reveal an ensemble of binary systems and illuminate outstanding questions around them.