Related papers: Return Currents in Collisionless Shocks
Energetic positrons have been observed in the interstellar medium, and high-energy positrons with relativistic energies up to approximately 1 TeV have been detected in Galactic cosmic rays. We conducted a study on the acceleration of…
In this second paper of a series, we discuss the dynamics of a plasma entering the precursor of an unmagnetized, relativistic collisionless pair shock. We discuss how this background plasma is decelerated and heated through its interaction…
We investigate the acceleration of charged particles (both electrons and protons) at collisionless shocks predicted to exist in the vicinity of solar flares. The existence of standing termination shocks has been examined by flare models and…
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…
We present three-dimensional hybrid simulations of collisionless shocks that propagate parallel to the background magnetic field to study the acceleration of protons that forms a high-energy tail on the distribution. We focus on the initial…
Shock waves propagating in collisionless heliospheric and astrophysical plasmas have been studied extensively over the decades. One prime motivation is to understand the nonthermal particle acceleration at shocks. Although the theory of…
We study diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) of electrons in non-relativistic quasi-perpendicular shocks using self-consistent one-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. By exploring the parameter space of sonic and Alfv\'{e}nic…
Intense laser-plasma interactions are an essential tool for the laboratory study of ion acceleration at a collisionless shock. With two-dimensional particle-in-cell calculations of a multicomponent plasma we observe two electrostatic…
A simplified model of particle transport at a quasiparallel one-dimensional collisionless shock is suggested. In this model the MHD-turbulence behind the shock is dominated by a circularly polarized, large amplitude Alfv\'en wave originated…
Relativistic collisionless shocks are believed to be efficient particle accelerators. Nonlinear outcome of the interaction of accelerated particles that run ahead of the shock, the so-called "precursor", with the unperturbed plasma of the…
Understanding the conditions conducive to particle acceleration at collisionless, non-relativistic shocks is important for the origin of cosmic rays. We use hybrid (kinetic ions -- fluid electrons) kinetic simulations to investigate…
The formation, development and impact of slow shocks in the upstream region of reconnecting current layers are explored. Slow shocks have been documented in the upstream region of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of magnetic…
We perform particle-in-cell simulations of perpendicular nonrelativistic collisionless shocks to study electron heating and pre-acceleration for parameters that permit extrapolation to the conditions at young supernova remnants. Our…
Nonrelativistic electrostatic unmagnetized shocks are frequently observed in laboratory plasmas and they are likely to exist in astrophysical plasmas. Their maximum speed, expressed in units of the ion acoustic speed far upstream of the…
Relativistic collisionless shocks are associated with efficient particle acceleration when propagating into weakly magnetized homogeneous media; as the magnetization increases, particle acceleration becomes suppressed. We demonstrate that…
We study the physics of electron acceleration at collisionless shocks that move through a plasma containing large-scale magnetic fluctuations. We numerically integrate the trajectories of a large number of electrons, which are treated as…
Collisionless shocks occur in various fields of physics. In the context of space and astrophysics they have been investigated for many decades. However, a thorough understanding of shock formation and particle acceleration is still missing.…
In this review we discuss some observational aspects and theoretical models of astrophysical collisionless shocks in partly ionized plasma with the presence of non-thermal components. A specific feature of fast strong collisionless shocks…
A case of two interpenetrating, cold and quasi-neutral ion-electron plasmas is investigated with the multi-fluid approach. We consider that one plasma flows quasi-parallel to the lines of a background magnetic field embedded in another…
Laser-ablated high-energy-density (HED) plasmas offer a promising route to study astrophysically relevant processes underlying collisionless shock formation, magnetic field amplification, and particle acceleration in the laboratory. Using…