Detrapping of Energetic Electrons from Curved Shock Front

Abstract

The effect of the curvature of a shock front on electron trapping is investigated by means of a two-dimensional, fully kinetic, relativistic, electromagnetic particle code. Electron trapping and acceleration are observed even in a cylindrical shock wave in an external magnetic field B 0 . Furthermore, unlike that in the case of planar shock waves in a uniform B 0 , a significant fraction of trapped electrons can escape from the wave maintaining their ultrarelativistic energies. Such detrapping is due to the curvature of the shock front, i.e., the angle between the wave normal and B 0 varies along the trajectory of a trapped particle. The detrapping in a planar shock wave in a nonuniform magnetic field is also shown with one-dimensional simulations.