Abstract
In the study of relativistic jets one of the key open questions is their interaction with the environment on the microscopic level. Here, we study the initial evolution of both electron$-$proton ($e^{-}-p^{+}$) and electron$-$positron ($e^{\pm}$) relativistic jets containing helical magnetic fields, focusing on their interaction with an ambient plasma. We have performed simulations of "global" jets containing helical magnetic fields in order to examine how helical magnetic fields affect kinetic instabilities such as the Weibel instability, the kinetic Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (kKHI) and the Mushroom instability (MI). In our initial simulation study these kinetic instabilities are suppressed and new types of instabilities can grow. In the $e^{-}-p^{+}$ jet simulation a recollimation-like instability occurs and jet electrons are strongly perturbed. In the $e^{\pm}$ jet simulation a recollimation-like instability occurs at early times followed by a kinetic instability and the general structure is similar to a simulation without helical magnetic field. Simulations using much larger systems are required in order to thoroughly follow the evolution of global jets containing helical magnetic fields.
Highlights
Relativistic jets are collimated plasma outflows associated with active galactic nuclei (AGNs), gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), and pulsars
The key issue we investigate is how the helical magnetic fields affect the growth of the kinetic Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (kKHI), the Mushroom instability (MI), and the Weibel instability
Preliminary results indicate that the presence of helical fields suppresses the growth of the kinetic instabilities, such as the Weibel instability, kKHI, and MI
Summary
Relativistic jets are collimated plasma outflows associated with active galactic nuclei (AGNs), gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), and pulsars. Jet outflows are commonly thought to be dynamically hot (relativistic) magnetized plasma flows launched, accelerated, and collimated in regions where Poynting flux dominates over particle (matter) flux [2,3]. This scenario involves a helical large-scale magnetic field structure in some AGN jets, which provides a unique signature in the form of observed asymmetries across the jet width, in the polarization [4,5,6]. We report preliminary results of our new studies of global relativistic jets containing helical magnetic fields
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