Related papers: Electron Surfing Acceleration in Magnetic Reconnec…
lasma instabilities excited in collisionless shocks are responsible for particle acceleration. We have investigated the particle acceleration and shock structure associated with an unmagnetized relativistic electron-positron jet propagating…
Particle acceleration and heating at mildly relativistic magnetized shocks in electron-ion plasma are investigated with unprecedentedly high-resolution two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations that include ion-scale shock rippling.…
Hybrid-Vlasov-Maxwell simulations of magnetized plasma turbulence including non-linear electron-inertia effects in a generalized Ohm's law are presented. When fluctuation energy is injected on scales sufficiently close to ion-kinetic…
Observational aspects of solar flares relevant to the acceleration process of electrons and protons are reviewed and it is shown that most of these observations can be explained by the interaction with flare plasma of a power law energy…
We suggest a new spin orientation mechanism for localized electrons: $dynamic~electron~spin~polarization~provided~by~nuclear~spin~fluctuations$. The angular momentum for the electrons is gained from the nuclear spin system via the hyperfine…
We have investigated particle acceleration and shock structure associated with an unmagnetized relativistic jet propagating into an unmagnetized plasma. Strong magnetic fields generated in the trailing jet shock lead to transverse…
Stochastic acceleration of electrons and protons by waves propagating parallel to the large scale magnetic fields of magnetized plasmas is studied with emphasis on the feasibility of accelerating particles from a thermal background to…
We demonstrate that electrons can be efficiently accelerated to high energy in spatially non-uniform, intense laser fields. Laser non-uniformities occur when a perfect plane wave reflects off a randomly perturbed surface. By solving for…
Three dimensional, particle-in-cell, fully electromagnetic simulations of electron plasma wake field acceleration applicable to solar atmosphere are presented. It is established that injecting driving and trailing electron bunches into…
Magnetic reconnection in strongly magnetized (low-beta), weakly collisional plasmas is investigated using a novel fluid-kinetic model [Zocco & Schekochihin, Phys. Plasmas 18, 102309 (2011)] which retains non-isothermal electron kinetics. It…
During major megnetic storms, enhanced flux of relativistic electrons in the inner magnetosphere have been observed to correleated with ULF waves. The enhancements can take place over a period of several hours. In order to account for such…
Particle acceleration consequences from fluctuating electric fields superposed on an X-type magnetic field in collisionless solar plasma are studied. Such a system is chosen to mimic generic features of dynamic reconnection, or the…
A laser-driven azimuthal plasma magnetic field is known to facilitate electron energy gain from the irradiating laser pulse. The enhancement is due to changes in the orientation between the laser electric field and electron velocity caused…
Electron bulk heating during magnetic reconnection with symmetric inflow conditions is examined using kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. The degree of electron heating is well correlated with the inflowing Alfv\'en speed $c_{Ar}$…
Solar flares are explosive releases of magnetic energy stored in the solar corona, driven by magnetic reconnection. These events accelerate electrons, generating hard X-ray emissions and often display Quasi Periodic Pulsations (QPPs) across…
Context. Converging flows with strong magnetic fields of different polarity can accelerate particles through magnetic reconnection. If the particle mean free path is longer than the reconnection layer is thick, but much shorter than the…
The Earth's magnetotail, located on the night side of the magnetosphere, is a dynamic region where magnetic field energy is released and converted into plasma heating, particle acceleration, and kinetic energy through magnetic reconnection.…
The acceleration of solar flare ions during magnetic reconnection is explored via particle-in-cell simulations that self-consistently follow the motions of both protons and $\alpha$ particles. We demonstrate that the dominant ion heating…
Using a three dimensional relativistic particle-in-cell code we have performed numerical experiments of plasma shells colliding at relativistic velocities. Such scenarios are found in many astrophysical objects e.g. the relativistic outflow…
This dissertation explores the interaction between high-intensity lasers and plasmas to accelerate electrons and produce radiation via experimental and computational efforts. The laser pulses used in this dissertation have ultrashort…