Magnetic neutral points and electric lines of force in strong gravity of a rotating black hole

Abstract

Magnetic field can be amplified and twisted near a supermassive black hole residing in a galactic nucleus. At the same time magnetic null points develop near the horizon. We examine a large-scale oblique magnetic field near a rotating (Kerr) black hole as an origin of magnetic layers, where the field direction changes abruptly in the ergosphere region. In consequence of this, magnetic null points can develop by purely geometrical effects of the strong gravitational field and the frame-dragging mechanism. We identify magnetic nulls as possible sites of magnetic reconnection and suggest that particles may be accelerated efficiently by the electric component. The situation we discuss is relevant for starving nuclei of some galaxies which exhibit episodic accretion events, namely, Sagittarius A* black hole in our Galaxy.

13 pages, 5 figures, International Journal of Astronomy and Astrophysics, accepted

References in corpus (6)

• The Galactic Center Massive Black Hole and Nuclear Star Cluster
• Magnetic acceleration of relativistic AGN jets
• Production of TeV gamma-radiation in the vicinity of the supermassive black hole in the giant radiogalaxy M87
• A Catalog of Diffuse X-ray-Emitting Features within 20 pc of Sgr A*: Twenty Pulsar Wind Nebulae?
• A Possible Link Between the Galactic Center HESS Source and Sgr A*
• Influence of frame-dragging on magnetic null points near rotating black hole

Cited by in corpus (5)

• Oblique magnetic fields and the role of frame dragging near rotating black hole
• Resonance crossing of a charged body in a magnetized Kerr background: an analogue of extreme mass ratio inspiral
• On Innermost Stable Spherical Orbits near a rotating black hole: A numerical study of the particle motion near the plunging region
• Electromagnetic signatures of strong-field gravity from accreting black holes
• The Galactic Center Black Hole Laboratory