We present a generic mechanism for the thermal damping of compressive waves in the interstellar medium (ISM), occurring due to radiative cooling. We solve for the dispersion relation of magnetosonic waves in a two-fluid (ion-neutral) system in which density- and temperature-dependent heating and cooling mechanisms are present. We use this dispersion relation, in addition to an analytic approximation for the nonlinear turbulent cascade, to model dissipation of weak magnetosonic turbulence. We show that in some ISM conditions, the cutoff wavelength for magnetosonic turbulence becomes tens to hundreds of times larger when the thermal damping is added to the regular ion-neutral damping. We also run numerical simulations which confirm that this effect has a dramatic impact on cascade of compressive wave modes.
Context. State of the art simulations of astrospheres are modelled using three-dimensional (3D) magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). An astrospheric interaction of a stellar wind (SW) with its surrounding interstellar medium (ISM) can only generate a bow shock if the speed of the interstellar inflow is higher than the fast magnetosonic speed. Aims. The differences of astrospheres at differing speeds of the ISM inflow are investigated, and the necessity of the third dimension in modelling is evaluated. Methods. The model astrosphere of the runaway O-star $λ$ Cephei is computed in both two- and three-dim…
Magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence is ubiquitous and a fundamental ingredient underlying many astrophysical phenomena. The multiphase nature of interstellar medium and diversity of driving mechanisms give rise to spatial variation of turbulence properties, particularly their plasma properties. There has been no observational diagnosis of the plasma modes so far beyond the solar system. Here we report the identification of different plasma modes in various Galactic environments, including active star forming zones and supernova remnants, based on our synchrotron polarization analysis. The ob…
Most phases of the interstellar medium contain neutral atoms in addition to ions and electrons. This introduces differences in plasma physics processes in those media relative to the solar corona and the solar wind at a heliocentric distance of 1 astronomical unit. In this paper, we consider two well-diagnosed, partially-ionized interstellar plasmas. The first is the Diffuse Ionized Gas (DIG) which is probably the extensive phase in terms of volume. The second is the gas that makes up the Local Clouds of the Very Local Interstellar Medium (VLISM). Ion-neutral interactions seem to be important …
We study the streaming instability of GeV$-100~$GeV cosmic rays (CRs) and its damping in the turbulent interstellar medium (ISM). We find that the damping of streaming instability is dominated by ion-neutral collisional damping in weakly ionized molecular clouds, turbulent damping in the highly ionized warm medium, and nonlinear Landau damping in the Galactic halo. Only in the Galactic halo, is the streaming speed of CRs close to the Alfvén speed. Alfvénic turbulence plays an important role in both suppressing the streaming instability and regulating the diffusion of streaming CRs via magnetic…
The forms of electron density structures in kinetic Alfven wave turbulence are studied in connection with scintillation. The focus is on small scales $L \sim 10^8-10^{10}$ cm where the Kinetic Alfvén wave (KAW) regime is active in the interstellar medium. MHD turbulence converts to a KAW cascade, starting at 10 times the ion gyroradius and continuing to smaller scales. These scales are inferred to dominate scintillation in the theory of Boldyrev et al. From numerical solutions of a decaying kinetic Alfvén wave turbulence model, structure morphology reveals two types of localized structures, fi…
The cascade of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence is subject to ion-neutral collisional damping and neutral viscous damping in the partially ionized interstellar medium. By examining the damping effects in the warm and partially ionized local interstellar medium, we find that the interstellar turbulence is damped by neutral viscosity at $\sim 261$ au and cannot account for the turbulent magnetic fluctuations detected by Voyager 1 and 2. The MHD turbulence measured by Voyager in the very local interstellar medium (VLISM) should be locally injected in the regime where ions are decoupled from n…
Theoretical and observational studies on the turbulence of the interstellar medium developed fast in the past decades. The theory of supersonic magnetized turbulence, as well as the understanding of projection effects of observed quantities, are still in progress. In this work we explore the characterization of the turbulent cascade and its damping from observational spectral line profiles. We address the difference of ion and neutral velocities by clarifying the nature of the turbulence damping in the partially ionized. We provide theoretical arguments in favor of the explanation of the large…
We explore the physics of the gyro-resonant cosmic ray streaming instability (CRSI) including the effects of ion-neutral (IN) damping. This is the main damping mechanism in (partially-ionized) atomic and molecular gas, which are the primary components of the interstellar medium (ISM) by mass. Limitation of CRSI by IN damping is important in setting the amplitude of Alfvén waves that scatter cosmic rays and control galactic-scale transport. Our study employs the MHD-PIC hybrid fluid-kinetic numerical technique to follow linear growth as well as post-linear and saturation phases. During the line…
The small-scale turbulent dynamo is an important process contributing to the cosmic magnetization. In partially ionized astrophysical plasmas, the dynamo growth of magnetic energy strongly depends on the coupling state between ions and neutrals and the ion-neutral collisional damping effect. A new damping stage of turbulent dynamo in a weakly ionized medium was theoretically predicted by Xu \& Lazarian (2016). By carrying out a 3D two-fluid dynamo simulation, here we for the first time numerically confirmed the physical conditions and the linear-in-time growth of magnetic field strength of the…
As a fundamental astrophysical process, the scattering of particles by turbulent magnetic fields has its physical foundation laid by the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence theory. In the framework of the modern theory of MHD turbulence, we derive a generalized broadened resonance function by taking into account both the magnetic fluctuations and nonlinear decorrelation of turbulent magnetic fields arising in MHD turbulence, and we specify the energy range of particles for the dominance of different broadening mechanisms. The broadened resonance allows for scattering of particles beyond the e…
The impact of nonlinear Landau damping on cosmic ray streaming and the role of external turbulence
University of Wisconsin-Madison（威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校）；Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics（perimeter理论物理研究所）；University of Waterloo（滑铁卢大学）；Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam (AIP)（波茨坦阿斯特rophysik莱布尼茨研究所）
The bulk propagation speed of GeV-energy cosmic rays is limited by frequent scattering off hydromagnetic waves. Most galaxy evolution simulations that account for this confinement assume the gas is fully ionized and cosmic rays are well-coupled to Alfvén waves; however, multiphase density inhomogeneities, frequently under-resolved in galaxy evolution simulations, induce cosmic ray collisions and ionization-dependent transport driven by cosmic ray decoupling and elevated streaming speeds in partially neutral gas. How do cosmic rays navigate and influence such a medium, and can we constrain this…
On the Origin of the Ly$α$ Damping Wing in Galaxies at $8\le z \le 10$: Explorations using the NINJA Simulations
Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica – Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste（意大利国家天体物理研究所的的里雅斯特天文台）；IUCAA（印度大学天体物理学与宇宙学中心）；School of Physical Sciences, National Institute of Science Education and Research（国家科学教育研究学院物理科学学院）；Homi Bhabha National Institute（霍米·巴巴国立研究所）
We study the acceleration of charged grains by magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) turbulence in the interstellar medium (ISM). We begin with revisiting gyroresonance acceleration by taking into account the fluctuations of grain guiding center along a uniform magnetic field (i.e. nonlinear theory--NLT). We calculate grain velocities due to gyroresonance by fast MHD modes using the NLT for different phases of the ISM, and compare with results obtained using quasi-linear theory (QLT). We find for the parameters applicable to the typical ISM phases that the fluctuations of grain guiding center reduce grai…
