6,349 research outputs found
Formation and dynamics of self-sustained neutron haloes in disk accreting sources
It has been recognized long ago that the presence of hot plasma in the inner
accretion disks around black holes could lead to the neutron production via
dissociation of helium nuclei. We show that, for a broad range of accretion
parameters, neutrons effectively decouple from protons and pile up in the inner
disk leading to the formation of self-sustained halo. This means that new
neutrons in the halo are supplied mainly by the splitting of helium nuclei in
their collisions with existing neutrons. Once formed, such a halo can exist
even if the proton temperature is much lower than the energy threshold of
helium dissociation. We show that neutron haloes can be the natural source of
relativistic electrons and positrons, providing characteristic comptonization
spectra and hard spectral tails observed in many black hole candidates, and
also giving rise to relativistic outflows. Deuterium gamma-ray line at 2.2 MeV
resulting from neutron capture is also expected at a level detectable by future
INTEGRAL mission. Furthermore, the presence of a neutron halo strongly affects
the dynamics of accretion and leads to the rich variety of transient dynamical
regimes.Comment: 10 pages, submitted to Astronomy and Astrophysic
Magnetically Arrested Disk: An Energetically Efficient Accretion Flow
We consider an accretion flow model originally proposed by Bisnovatyi-Kogan &
Ruzmaikin (1974), which has been confirmed in recent 3D MHD simulations. In the
model, the accreting gas drags in a strong poloidal magnetic field to the
center such that the accumulated field disrupts the axisymmetric accretion flow
at a relatively large radius. Inside the disruption radius, the gas accretes as
discrete blobs or streams with a velocity much less than the free-fall
velocity. Almost the entire rest mass energy of the gas is released as heat,
radiation and mechanical/magnetic energy. Even for a non-rotating black hole,
the efficiency of converting mass to energy is of order 50% or higher. The
model is thus a practical analog of an idealized engine proposed by Geroch and
Bekenstein.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure, new refs added, in print in PAS
Multiferroic Quantum Criticality
The zero-temperature limit of a continuous phase transition is marked by a
quantum critical point, which can generate exotic physics that extends to
elevated temperatures. Magnetic quantum criticality is now well known, and has
been explored in systems ranging from heavy fermion metals to quantum Ising
materials. Ferroelectric quantum critical behaviour has also been recently
established, motivating a flurry of research investigating its consequences.
Here, we introduce the concept of multiferroic quantum criticality, in which
both magnetic and ferroelectric quantum criticality occur in the same system.
We develop the phenomenology of multiferroic quantum critical behaviour,
describe the associated experimental signatures, and propose material systems
and schemes to realize it.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Green-Kubo formula for heat conduction in open systems
We obtain an exact Green-Kubo type linear response result for the heat
current in an open system. The result is derived for classical Hamiltonian
systems coupled to heat baths. Both lattice models and fluid systems are
studied and several commonly used implementations of heat baths, stochastic as
well as deterministic, are considered. The results are valid in arbitrary
dimensions and for any system sizes. Our results are useful for obtaining the
linear response transport properties of mesoscopic systems. Also we point out
that for systems with anomalous heat transport, as is the case in
low-dimensional systems, the use of the standard Green-Kubo formula is
problematic and the open system formula should be used.Comment: 4 page
Self-Similar Accretion Flows with Convection
We consider height-integrated equations of an advection-dominated accretion
flow (ADAF), assuming that there is no mass outflow. We include convection
through a mixing length formalism. We seek self-similar solutions in which the
rotational velocity and sound speed scale as R^{-1/2}, where R is the radius,
and consider two limiting prescriptions for the transport of angular momentum
by convection. In one limit, the transport occurs down the angular velocity
gradient, so convection moves angular momentum outward. In the other, the
transport is down the specific angular momentum gradient, so convection moves
angular momentum inward. We also consider general prescriptions which lie in
between the two limits.
When convection moves angular momentum outward, we recover the usual
self-similar solution for ADAFs in which the mass density scales as rho ~
R^{-3/2}. When convection moves angular momentum inward, the result depends on
the viscosity coefficient alpha. If alpha>alpha_{crit1} ~ 0.05, we once again
find the standard ADAF solution. For alpha<alpha_{crit}, however, we find a
non-accreting solution in which rho ~ R^{-1/2}. We refer to this as a
"convective envelope" solution or a "convection-dominated accretion flow".
Two-dimensional numerical simulations of ADAFs with values of alpha<0.03 have
been reported by several authors. The simulated ADAFs exhibit convection. By
virtue of their axisymmetry, convection in these simulations moves angular
momentum inward, as we confirm by computing the Reynolds stress. The
simulations give rho ~ R^{-1/2}, in good agreement with the convective envelope
solution. The R^{-1/2} density profile is not a consequence of mass outflow.Comment: 22 pages, 4 figures, final version accepted for publication in ApJ, a
new appendix was added and 3 figs were modifie
The Magnetohydrodynamics of Convection-Dominated Accretion Flows
Radiatively inefficient accretion flows onto black holes are unstable due to
both an outwardly decreasing entropy (`convection') and an outwardly decreasing
rotation rate (the `magnetorotational instability'; MRI). Using a linear
magnetohydrodynamic stability analysis, we show that long-wavelength modes are
primarily destabilized by the entropy gradient and that such `convective' modes
transport angular momentum inwards. Moreover, the stability criteria for the
convective modes are the standard Hoiland criteria of hydrodynamics. By
contrast, shorter wavelength modes are primarily destabilized by magnetic
tension and differential rotation. These `MRI' modes transport angular momentum
outwards. The convection-dominated accretion flow (CDAF) model, which has been
proposed for radiatively inefficient accretion onto a black hole, posits that
inward angular momentum transport and outward energy transport by
long-wavelength convective fluctuations are crucial for determining the
structure of the accretion flow. Our analysis suggests that the CDAF model is
applicable to a magnetohydrodynamic accretion flow provided the magnetic field
saturates at a sufficiently sub-equipartition value (plasma beta >> 1), so that
long-wavelength convective fluctuations can fit inside the accretion disk.
Numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations are required to determine whether
such a sub-equipartition field is in fact obtained.Comment: 17 pages including 3 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ. New
appendix and figure were added; some changes of the text were made in
response to the referee
Thermal Conduction in Clusters of Galaxies
We estimate the thermal conductivity of a weakly collisional magnetized
plasma with chaotic magnetic field fluctuations. When the fluctuation spectrum
extends over two or more decades in wave-vector, we find that thermal
conduction is very efficient; the conduction coefficient is only a factor ~5
below the classical Spitzer estimate. We suggest that conduction could play a
significant role in cooling flows in clusters of galaxies.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Pulsar Radio Emission Altitude from Curvature Radiation
We assume that the relativistic sources moving along the dipolar magnetic
field lines emit curvature radiation. The beamed emission occurs in the
direction of tangents to the field lines, and to receive it, the sight line
must align with the tangent within the beaming angle 1/gamma, where gamma is
the particle Lorentz factor. By solving the viewing geometry in an inclined and
rotating dipole magnetic field, we show that, at any given pulse phase,
observer tends to receive radiation only from the specific heights allowed by
the geometry. We find outer conal components are emitted at higher altitudes
compared to inner components including the core. At any pulse phase, low
frequency emission comes from higher altitudes than high frequency emission. We
have modeled the emission heights of pulse components of PSR B0329+54, and
estimated field line curvature radii and particle Lorentz factors in the
emission regions.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for Astrophysical Journal, 200
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