2017/01/31 by Maxim Lyutikov, Lyutikov, Maxim
Physics and Astronomy · Earth and Planetary Sciences · Engineering · #Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics #Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research #Spacecraft and Cryogenic Technologies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1701.09153
We can probe observationally and reproduce theoretically intricate properties of the Crab Nebula nearest to the pulsar - The Inner Knot. The tiny knot is indeed a bright spot on the surface of a quasi-stationary magnetic relativistic shock that accelerates particles. It is required that the part of the wind that produces the Inner Knot has low magnetization; thus, it is not a site of gamma-ray flares. We develop a model of particle acceleration during explosive reconnection events in relativistic highly magnetized plasma and apply the model to explain the Crab gamma-ray flares. Particles are efficiently accelerated by charge-starved DC-type electric fields during initial stages of magnetic flux merges. By implication, the magnetic reconnection is an important, and possibly dominant process of particle acceleration in high energy astrophysical sources.