The radiative signature of Fermi acceleration at relativistic shocks

Journal article

The first-order Fermi process at relativistic shocks requires the generation of strong turbulence in the vicinity of the shock front. Recent particle in cell simulations have demonstrated that this mechanism can be studied self-consistently at weakly magnetised shocks. In this case, strong electromagnetic fields are generated on length-scales comparable to the plasma skin-depth. The resulting diffusion and radiation spectrum in this short-wavelength turbulence can differ significantly from the standard picture. A connection between these two processes can be found which predicts an upper limit to the maximum photon energy that can be produced via synchrotron type radiation at a relativistic shock.

Authors: Reville, B; Kirk, J

• Journal: 37th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics 2010, EPS 2010
• Volume: 1
• Pages: 221-224
• Publication date: 2010-01-01
• Language: English