Related papers: Non-ideal fields solve the injection problem in re…
Electron and proton acceleration in three-dimensional electric and magnetic fields is studied through test particle simulations. The fields are obtained by a three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation of magnetic reconnection in slab…
We undertake an investigation of particle acceleration in the context of non-linear electrodynamics. We deduce the maximum energy that an electron can gain in a non-linear density wave in a magnetised plasma, and we show that an electron…
Magnetized collisionless shocks drive particle acceleration broadly in space and astrophysics. We perform the first large-scale particle-in-cell simulations with realistic laboratory parameters (density, temperature, and velocity) to…
The rate of magnetic reconnection is of the utmost importance in a variety of processes because it controls, for example, the rate energy is released in solar flares, the speed of the Dungey convection cycle in Earth's magnetosphere, and…
Regardless of how small non-ideal effects may be, phenomena associated with changes in magnetic field line connections are frequently observed to occur on an Alfv\'enic time scale. Since it is mathematically impossible for magnetic field…
Collisionless shocks are ubiquitous structures throughout the universe. Shock waves in space and astrophysical plasmas convert the energy of a fast-flowing plasma to other forms of energy, including thermal and magnetic energies. Plasma…
The prompt emissions of gamma-ray bursts are seeded by radiating ultrarelativistic electrons. Internal shocks propagating through a jet launched by a stellar implosion, are expected to amplify the magnetic field & accelerate electrons. We…
The first-order, infinite-component field equations we proposed before for non-relativistic anyons (identified with particles in the plane with noncommuting coordinates) are generalized to accommodate arbitrary background electromagnetic…
Pulsar wind nebulae are efficient particle accelerators, and yet the processes at work remain elusive. Self-generated, microturbulence is too weak in relativistic magnetized shocks to accelerate particles over a wide energy range,…
Using fully kinetic simulations, we demonstrate that magnetic reconnection in relativistic plasmas is highly efficient at accelerating particles through a first-order Fermi process resulting from the curvature drift of particles in the…
By means of a particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation, we study the interaction between a uniform magnetized ambient electron-proton plasma at rest and an unmagnetized pair plasma, which we inject at one simulation boundary with a mildly…
We develop a first-principles model for the relativistic magnetic reconnection rate in strongly magnetized pair plasmas. By considering the energy budget and required current density near the x-line, we analytically show that in the…
This research was motivated by the recent observations indicating very strong magnetic fields at some supernova remnant shocks, which suggests in-situ generation of magnetic turbulence. The dissertation presents a numerical model of…
We investigate the saturation of particle acceleration in relativistic reconnection using two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations at various magnetizations \sigma. We find that the particle energy spectrum produced in reconnection…
The operation of ITER will require reliable simulations in order to avoid major damage to the device from disruptions. Disruptions are the sudden breakup of magnetic surfaces across the plasma volume -- a fast magnetic reconnection. This…
The appearance of eruptive space plasma processes, e.g., in eruptive flares as observed in the solar atmosphere, is usually assumed to be caused by magnetic reconnection. The process of magnetic reconnection is often connected with singular…
Fast particles diffusing along magnetic field lines in a turbulent plasma can diffuse through and then return to the same eddy many times before the eddy is randomized in the turbulent flow. This leads to an enhancement of particle…
By means of fully kinetic simulations, we investigate electron acceleration during magnetic reconnection in a nonrelativistic proton--electron plasma with conditions similar to solar corona and flares. We demonstrate that reconnection leads…
We investigate shock structure and particle acceleration in relativistic magnetized collisionless pair shocks by means of 2.5D and 3D particle-in-cell simulations. We explore a range of inclination angles between the pre-shock magnetic…
We consider quasi-stationary two-dimensional magnetic reconnection in a partially ionized incompressible plasma. We find that when the plasma is weakly ionized and the collisions between the ions and the neutral particles are significant,…