Lepton Acceleration by Relativistic Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection

D. A. Larrabee; R. V. E. Lovelace; M. M. Romanova

doi:10.1086/367640

paper

Lepton Acceleration by Relativistic Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection

arXiv:astro-ph/0210045 · doi:10.1086/367640

Abstract

We have calculated self-consistent equilibria of a collisionless relativistic electron-positron gas in the vicinity of a magnetic $X -$ point. For the considered conditions, pertinent to extra-galactic jets, we find that leptons are accelerated up to Lorentz factors $Γ_{0} = κ e B_{0} L E^{2} / m c^{2} ≫ 1$ , where $B_{0}$ is the typical magnetic field strength, $E \equiv E_{0} / B_{0}$ , with $E_{0}$ the reconnection electric field, $L$ is the length scale of the magnetic field, and $κ \approx 12$ . The acceleration is due to the dominance of the electric field over the magnetic field in a region around the $X -$ point. The distribution function of the accelerated leptons is found to be approximately $d n / d γ \propto γ^{- 1}$ for $γ ≲ Γ_{0}$ . The apparent distribution function may be steeper than $γ^{- 1}$ due to the distribution of $Γ_{0}$ values and/or the radiative losses. Self-consistent equilibria are found only for plasma inflow rates to the $X -$ point less than a critical value.

submitted to ApJ; 6 figures

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The Generation of Nonthermal Particles in the Relativistic Magnetic Reconnection of Pair Plasmas

Lepton Acceleration by Relativistic Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection

Abstract

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