Related papers: Super-Fermi Acceleration in Multiscale MHD Reconne…
Fermi-type shear particle acceleration is a promising mechanism for sustaining ultra-relativistic particles along the kilo-parsec scale jets in Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs). We explore the possibility of synchrotron-limited electron…
Increases of ion fluxes in the keV-MeV range are sometimes observed near the heliospheric current sheet (HCS) during periods when other sources are absent. These resemble solar energetic particle (SEP) events, but the events are weaker and…
We derive the maximum accelerated particle energy from first-order and second-order Fermi acceleration at nonrelativistic and relativistic shocks for explosions taking place in a uniform surrounding medium. Second-order stochastic processes…
We present evidence that relativistic shocks propagating in unmagnetized plasmas can self-consistently accelerate particles. We use long-term two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations to study the well-developed shock structure in…
In addition to the ponderomotive acceleration of highly relativistic electrons at interaction of very short and very intense laser pulses, a further acceleration is derived from the interaction of these electron beams with the spontaneous…
We present large scale 3D particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations to examine particle energization in magnetic reconnection of relativistic electron-positron (pair) plasmas. The initial configuration is set up as a relativistic Harris…
Particle acceleration in magnetized relativistic jets still puzzles theorists, specially when one tries to explain the highly variable emission observed in blazar jets or gamma-ray bursts putting severe constraints on current models. In…
A box model is used to study first order Fermi acceleration driven by magnetic reconnection. It is shown, at least in this simple model, that the spectral index of the accelerated particles is related to the total compression in the same…
It is shown that Fermi acceleration at an ultra-relativistic shock wave cannot operate on a particle for more than 1 1/2 Fermi cycle (i.e., u -> d -> u -> d) if the particle Larmor radius is much smaller than the coherence length of the…
The important characteristic of turbulent reconnection is that it combines large scale magnetic disturbances $(\delta B/B \sim 1)$ with randomly distributed Unstable Current Sheets (UCSs). Many well known non linear MHD structures (strong…
Relativistic sources, e.g. gamma-ray bursts, pulsar wind nebulae and powerful active galactic nuclei produce relativistic outflows that lead to the formation of collisionless shock waves, where particle acceleration is thought to take…
Minute-timescale TeV flares have been observed in several blazars. The fast flaring requires compact regions in the jet that boost their emission towards the observer at an extreme Doppler factor of delta>50. For TeV photons to avoid…
We present a first-principles model of pitch-angle and energy distribution function evolution as particles are sequentially accelerated by multiple flare magnetic islands. Data from magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of an eruptive…
Magnetic reconnection can power spectacular high-energy astrophysical phenomena by producing non-thermal energy distributions in highly magnetized regions around compact objects. By means of two-dimensional fully kinetic particle-in-cell…
Direct numerical simulations of 3D compressible MHD turbulence were performed in order to study the relation between waves modes and coherent structures and the consequent energization of test particles. Moreover, the question of which is…
We investigate the effects of pitch-angle scattering on the efficiency of particle heating and acceleration by MHD turbulence using phenomenological estimates and simulations of non-relativistic test particles interacting with strong,…
The energy dependence of the relaxation rate of hot electrons due to interaction with the Fermi sea is studied. We consider 2D and 3D systems, quasi-1D quantum wires with multiple transverse bands, as well as single-channel 1D wires. Our…
We study the compression driven magnetic reconnection in the relativistic electron-positron plasma. Making use of a 2.5D particle-in-cell code, we simulated compression of a magnetized plasma layer containing a current sheet within it. We…
In this paper we provide a detailed investigation of the energisation processes in two-dimensional, two and a half-dimensional and three-dimensional collapsing magnetic trap models. Using kinematic magnetohydrodynamic models of collapsing…
Energetic electrons of up to tens of MeV are created during explosive phenomena in the solar corona. While many theoretical models consider magnetic reconnection as a possible way of generating energetic electrons, the precise roles of…