Related papers: Are GRB shocks mediated by the Weibel instability?
The expansion of plasma with non-parallel temperature and density gradients, and the generation of magnetic field via the Biermann battery is modeled using particle-in-cell simulations that include collisional effects via Monte Carlo…
Highly variable gamma-ray pulses and X-ray flares in GRB light curves can result from external shocks rather than central engine activity under the assumption that the GRB blast-wave shell does not spread. Acceleration of cosmic rays to…
We examine with particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations how a parallel shock in pair plasma reacts to upstream waves, which are driven by escaping downstream particles. Initially, the shock is sustained in the two-dimensional simulation by a…
We study the chiral-imbalance and the Weibel instabilities in presence of the quantum anomaly using the Berry-curvature modified kinetic equation. We argue that in many realistic situations, e.g. relativistic heavy-ion collisions, both the…
Astrophysical sources of relativistic jets or outflows, such as gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), active galactic nuclei (AGN) or micro-quasars, often show strong time variability. Despite such impulsive behavior, most models of these sources assume…
Density filamentation has been observed in many beam-plasma simulations and experiments. Because current filamentation is a pure transverse mode, charge density filamentation cannot be produced directly by the current filamentation process.…
The standard model of GRB afterglows assumes that the radiation observed as a delayed emission is of synchrotron origin, which requires the shock magnetic field to be relatively homogeneous on small scales. An alternative mechanism --…
Recent hydrodynamical simulations have shown that differentially rotating neutron stars formed in core-collapse supernovae may develop global non-axisymmetric instabilities even when $T/|W|$ (the ratio of the rotational kinetic energy $T$…
Relativistic collisionless shocks in electron-ion plasma are thought to occur in the afterglow phase of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs), and in other environments where relativistic flows interact with the interstellar medium. A particular regime…
The role of turbulence in various astrophysical settings is reviewed. Among the differences to laboratory and atmospheric turbulence we highlight the ubiquitous presence of magnetic fields that are generally produced and maintained by…
Highly magnetized, rapidly rotating compact objects are widely argued as central energy sources of $\gamma$-ray bursts (GRBs). After the GRB, such a magnetar-like object may directly lose its rotational energy through some…
We investigate magnetic-field amplification driven by the nonresonant hybrid (NRH or Bell) instability and its impact on cosmic-ray (CR) acceleration at reverse shocks of ultrafast outflows (UFOs) from active galactic nuclei (AGN). Previous…
Shocks in relativistically hot plasmas are thought to exist in various high-energy astrophysical phenomena, but it is not clear how relativistic collisionless shocks are formed, whether particles are accelerated by the shock as in the case…
A direct numerical simulation of a strong relativistic collisionless shock propagating into an unmagnetized medium has been performed in two spatial dimensions. It is found that: (i) collisionless shock exists, (ii) particle acceleration is…
Rapidly rotating Neutron Stars in Low Mass X-ray Binaries (LMXBs) may be an interesting source of Gravitational Waves (GWs). In particular, several modes of stellar oscillation may be driven unstable by GW emission, and this can lead to a…
The non-resonant (Bell) streaming instability driven by energetic particles is crucial for producing amplified magnetic fields that are key to the acceleration of cosmic rays (CRs) in supernova remnants, around Galactic and extra-galactic…
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…
Collisionless shocks generated by two colliding relativistic electron-positron plasma shells are studied using particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. Shocks are mediated by the Weibel instability (WI), and the kinetic energy of the fastest…
Laser experiments are becoming established as a new tool for astronomical research that complements observations and theoretical modeling. Localized strong magnetic fields have been observed at a shock front of supernova explosions.…
We consider a model in which the ultra-relativistic jet in a gamma-ray burst (GRB) is cold and magnetically accelerated. We assume that the energy flux in the outflowing material is partially thermalized via internal shocks or a reverse…