Related papers: Particle acceleration at ultrarelativistic shocks:…
We adapt and modify the eigenfunction method of computing the power-law spectrum of particles accelerated at a relativistic shock front via the first-order Fermi process (Kirk, J.G., Schneider, P., Astrophysical Journal 315, 425 (1987)) to…
We examine the problem of particle acceleration at a relativistic shocks assuming pitch-angle scattering and using a Hartree-Fock method to approximate the associated eigenfunctions. This leads to a simple transcendental equation…
We study the acceleration of charged particles by ultra-relativistic shocks using test-particle Monte-Carlo simulations. Two field configurations are considered: (i) shocks with uniform upstream magnetic field in the plane of the shock, and…
We consider the acceleration of charged particles near ultra-relativistic shocks, with Lorentz factor Gamma_s >> 1. We present simulations of the acceleration process and compare these with results from semi-analytical calculations. We show…
Using an eigenfunction expansion to solve the transport equation, complemented by Monte-Carlo simulations, we show that ultrarelativistic shocks can be effective particle accelerators even when they fail to produce large amplitude…
Monte Carlo techniques are used to model nonlinear particle acceleration in parallel collisionless shocks of various speeds, including mildly relativistic ones. When the acceleration is efficient, the backreaction of accelerated particles…
Particle acceleration in relativistic shocks of electron-positron plasmas with proton admixture is investigated through two-dimensional (2D) particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. The upstream plasma, with a bulk Lorentz factor of $10$ and a…
Particle acceleration in relativistic shocks is studied analytically in the test-particle, small-angle scattering limit, for an arbitrary velocity-angle diffusion function D. Accurate analytic expressions for the spectral index s are…
The first-order cosmic ray acceleration at ultrarelativistic shocks is investigated using the Monte Carlo method. We apply a method of discrete particle momentum scattering as a model of particle pitch angle diffusion to reproduce highly…
We use large hybrid (kinetic protons-fluid electrons) simulations to investigate the transport of energetic particles in self-consistent electromagnetic configurations of collisionless shocks. In previous papers of this series, we showed…
Particle acceleration at magnetized purely perpendicular relativistic shocks in electron-ion plasmas are studied by means of two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Magnetized shocks with the upstream bulk Lorentz factor $\gamma_1 \gg…
We discuss a semi-analytical solution of the transport equation for electrons at a non-relativistic shock in the presence of synchrotron energy losses. We calculate the spectrum of accelerated (test) particles at any point upstream and…
We analytically study diffusive particle acceleration in relativistic, collisionless shocks. We find a simple relation between the spectral index s and the anisotropy of the momentum distribution along the shock front. Based on this…
We report the results of 1D particle-in-cell simulations of ultrarelativistic shock waves in proton-electron-positron plasmas. We consider magnetized shock waves, in which the upstream medium carries a large scale magnetic field, directed…
The spectral index $s$ of particles diffusively accelerated in a relativistic shock depends on the unknown angular diffusion function $\mathcal{D}$, which itself depends on the particle distribution function $f$ if acceleration is…
Power-law distributions are a near universal feature of energetic particle spectra in the heliosphere. Anomalous Cosmic Rays (ACRs), super-Alfv\'enic ions in the solar wind and the hardest energetic electron spectra in flares all have…
Monte-Carlo computations for highly relativistic parallel shock particle acceleration are presented for upstream flow gamma factors, $\Gamma=(1-V_{1}^{2}/c^{2})^{-0.5}$ with values between 5 and $10^{3}$. The results show that the spectral…
Estimating the cosmic-ray acceleration efficiency $ \epsilon $ in supernova remnants (SNRs) through observations is a challenging task in general. Based on the Rankine-Hugoniot shock conditions, we find an anticorrelation between $ \epsilon…
We derive a relativistically covariant (although not manifestly so) equation for the distribution function of particles accelerated at shocks, which applies also to extremely relativistic shocks, and arbitrarily anisotropic particle…
We investigate shock structure and particle acceleration in relativistic magnetized collisionless electron-ion shocks by means of 2.5D particle-in-cell simulations with ion-to-electron mass ratios (m_i/m_e) ranging from 16 to 1000. We…