Related papers: Anomalous coupling in radiation mediated shocks}
We present a scenario that could explain non-thermal particle acceleration in relativistic quasi-perpendicular electron-positron shocks, such as the termination shock of pulsar wind nebulae. The shock produces a strong electromagnetic…
We consider the structure of mildly relativistic shocks in dense media, taking into account the radiation and pair loading, and diffusive radiation energy transfer within the flow. For increasing shock velocity (increasing post-shock…
Stimulated Raman scattering of an ultra-intense laser pulse in plasmas is studied by perturbatively including the leading order term of the Landau-Lifshitz radiation reaction force in the equation of motion for plasma electrons. In this…
In continuation of previous work, numerical results are presented, concerning relativistically counter-streaming plasmas. Here, the relativistic mixed mode instability evolves through, and beyond, the linear saturation -- well into the…
In this article I review the dominant physical mechanisms in the extended emission line regions (EELR) of powerful radio galaxies at low redshifts and, in particular, the balance between jet-induced shocks and AGN photoionization. I…
The excitation of nonlinear electrostatic waves, such as shock and solitons, by ultraintense laser interaction with overdense plasmas and related ion acceleration are investigated by numerical simulations. Stability of solitons and…
Gamma-ray bursts are often the brightest objects in the sky during their short life. Particle acceleration in trans-relativistic shocks, internal to the main blastwave, may explain the early intensity peaks, and particle acceleration in the…
Magnetospheres of neutron stars can be perturbed by star quakes, interaction in a binary system, or sudden collapse of the star. The perturbations are typically in the kHz band and excite magnetohydrodynamic waves. We show that compressive…
We investigate the acceleration of light particles in perpendicular shocks for plasmas consisting of a mixture of leptonic and hadronic particles. Starting from the full set of conservation equations for the mixed plasma constituents, we…
The friction force on a test particle traveling through a plasma that is both strongly coupled and strongly magnetized is studied using molecular dynamics simulations. In addition to the usual stopping power component aligned antiparallel…
Collisionless shocks are ubiquitous in the Universe and are held responsible for the production of non-thermal particles and high-energy radiation. In the absence of particle collisions in the system, theoretical works show that the…
We perform 2D and 3D kinetic simulations of reconnection-mediated turbulent flares in a magnetized electron-positron plasma, with weak and strong radiative cooling. Such flares can be generated around neutron stars and accreting black…
According to the standard scenario of plasma emission, escaping radiations are generated by the nonlinear development of the kinetic bump-on-tail instability driven by a single beam of energetic electrons interacting with plasmas. Here we…
Magnetic-field generation by a relativistic ion beam propagating through an electron-ion plasma along a homogeneous magnetic field is investigated with 2.5D high-resolution particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. The studies test predictions of…
The light curves of some luminous supernovae are suspected to be powered by the spindown energy of a rapidly rotating magnetar. Here we describe a possible signature of the central engine: a burst of shock breakout emission occurring…
Relativistic shocks are usually thought to occur in violent astrophysical explosions. These collisionless shocks are mediated by a plasma kinetic streaming instability, often loosely referred to as the Weibel instability, which generates…
We investigate the theoretical and observational implications of the acceleration of protons and heavier nuclei in supernova remnants (SNRs). By adopting a semi-analytical technique, we study the non-linear interplay among particle…
A nonresonant cosmic-ray-current-driven instability may operate in the shock precursors of young supernova remnants and be responsible for magnetic-field amplification, plasma heating and turbulence. Earlier simulations demonstrated…
Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., Buneman, Weibel and other two-stream instabilities) created in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle…
Relativistic electrons colliding with intense counterpropagating laser pulses are expected to lose energy through radiation reaction. However, we reveal a counterintuitive regime where reflected leptons (including incident electrons,…