Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
197,768 studies31 sourcesUpdated 17 min ago
PreprintCC BY 4.0arXiv

Two-Phase Structure of Synchrotron-Cooling-Unstable Relativistic Plasma

  • Agnieszka Wierzchucka
  • Pablo J. Bilbao
  • Robert J. Ewart
  • Dmitri A. Uzdensky
  • Alexander A. Schekochihin
Open at sourcePDFDOICite

Abstract

Using analytic theory, radiative particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, and fluid simulations, we show that relativistic, synchrotron-cooling, collisionless, high-β pair plasmas filament into a two-phase medium. This process occurs through the interplay of the synchrotron cooling instability (SCI) with the synchrotron firehose instability (SFHI). One phase has high plasma~β and is infested with small-scale firehose fluctuations, which scatter particles and pin the pressure anisotropy to the firehose-marginal level. The other phase has much lower~β, causing the suppression of firehose modes and thus allowing large pressure anisotropies. We propose a fluid model for this two-phase plasma, which we use to study the linear and nonlinear evolution of the SCI and SFHI, and to predict the emergence time of the two-phase structure.

Related

  1. Radiative relativistic reconnection powering the hard-state emission of X-ray binaries: synchrotron-driven pair loading, MeV tail, and seed photons
    Valeriia Rohoza, Maria Petropoulou, Hayk Hakobyan +2
    arXivPreprintarXiv licenceFull textHigh-energy astrophysicsarXiv
  2. Discovery of a New Electron Spectrum Produced by Fast Cooling of Relativistic Electrons
    Z. Lucas Uhm
    arXivPreprintarXiv licenceFull textHigh-energy astrophysicsarXiv
  3. Solar Soft X-ray Coronal Dimming in a Failed Eruption Associated with Plasma Cooling
    Xinyue Wang, Astrid M. Veronig, Hechao Chen +1
    arXivPreprintCC BY 4.0Full textSolar & stellar physicsarXiv
  4. Solar Soft X-Ray Coronal Dimming in a Failed Eruption Associated with Plasma Cooling
    Xinyue Wang, Astrid M. Veronig, Hechao Chen +1
    The Astrophysical Journal LettersPeer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Full textSolar & stellar physicsCrossref
  5. The propagation-induced circular polarization of fast radio bursts in relativistic plasma
    Zhao Z. Y., Wang F. Y.
    Astronomy & AstrophysicsPeer-reviewedCC BYFull textHigh-energy astrophysicsDOAJ

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@misc{wierzchucka2026twophase,
  title = {{Two-Phase Structure of Synchrotron-Cooling-Unstable Relativistic Plasma}},
  author = {Agnieszka Wierzchucka and Pablo J. Bilbao and Robert J. Ewart and Dmitri A. Uzdensky and Alexander A. Schekochihin},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.07793},
  eprint = {2609.07793},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.07793},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - UNPB
TI  - Two-Phase Structure of Synchrotron-Cooling-Unstable Relativistic Plasma
AU  - Agnieszka Wierzchucka
AU  - Pablo J. Bilbao
AU  - Robert J. Ewart
AU  - Dmitri A. Uzdensky
AU  - Alexander A. Schekochihin
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/07
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.07793
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.07793
AB  - Using analytic theory, radiative particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, and fluid simulations, we show that relativistic, synchrotron-cooling, collisionless, high-β pair plasmas filament into a two-phase medium. This process occurs through the interplay of the synchrotron cooling instability (SCI) with the synchrotron firehose instability (SFHI). One phase has high plasma~β and is infested with small-scale firehose fluctuations, which scatter particles and pin the pressure anisotropy to the firehose-marginal level. The other phase has much lower~β, causing the suppression of firehose modes and thus allowing large pressure anisotropies. We propose a fluid model for this two-phase plasma, which we use to study the linear and nonlinear evolution of the SCI and SFHI, and to predict the emergence time of the two-phase structure.
ER  -