Excellence in Research: PIC Simulations of Relativistic Jets with Toroidal Magnetic Fields

卓越的研究：环形磁场相对论射流的 PIC 模拟

• 批准号: 2302075
• 负责人: Athina Meli
• 金额: $ 48.78万
• 依托单位: North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-07-01 至 2026-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2302075&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Excellence; Research; PIC; Simulations; Relativistic

This award supports a computational study of astrophysical jets. An astrophysical jet is a high-speed, highly collimated stream of ionized gas, a plasma, that emanates from astronomical objects such as supermassive black holes in the heart of vast galaxies. These jets can travel over great distances in space and are powered by the intense magnetic fields associated with the astronomical object they originate from. The high relativistic velocity and energy of these astrophysical jets make them important features of the astrophysical landscape, as they can carry large amounts of energy and matter but also accelerate particles to the highest energies known. Studying astrophysical relativistic jets by complementing observations with supercomputer simulations enables understanding of the physical processes that drive these extremely energetic phenomena. It also allows to better understand the role they play in shaping the evolution of vast galaxies and other mysterious astronomical objects. With the help of the supercomputer facilities of the Texas Advanced Computing Center, this project will use an innovative technique to perform large-scale, kinetic plasma three-dimensional Particle-in-Cell (PIC) simulations of relativistic jets, applicable to the black hole jet environments. In particular, the project will investigate the role of kinetic instabilities to understand the important acceleration mechanism, shocks and magnetic reconnection, in simulated cylindrical jets with helical magnetic fields. This study will advance our knowledge of these highly energetic phenomena, which cannot currently be investigated using the traditional single-fluid relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations. By performing a study of high energy particle acceleration mechanisms within electromagnetically observed sources, this project addresses goals of NSF's "Windows on the Universe: The Era of Multi-Messenger Astrophysics" program.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该奖项支持天体物理喷流的计算研究。 天体物理射流是一种高速、高度准直的电离气体流（等离子体），从天体（例如巨大星系中心的超大质量黑洞）发出。这些喷气式飞机可以在太空中飞行很长的距离，并由与其起源的天体相关的强磁场提供动力。这些天体物理喷流的高相对论速度和能量使其成为天体物理景观的重要特征，因为它们可以携带大量的能量和物质，但也可以将粒子加速到已知的最高能量。通过用超级计算机模拟补充观测来研究天体物理相对论性喷流，可以理解驱动这些极其活跃的现象的物理过程。它还可以让我们更好地了解它们在塑造巨大星系和其他神秘天体演化过程中所扮演的角色。 在德克萨斯州高级计算中心的超级计算机设施的帮助下，该项目将使用创新技术对相对论性喷流进行大规模动态等离子体三维颗粒细胞（PIC）模拟，适用于黑洞喷气环境。特别是，该项目将研究动力学不稳定性的作用，以了解具有螺旋磁场的模拟圆柱形射流中的重要加速机制、冲击和磁重联。这项研究将增进我们对这些高能现象的了解，目前无法使用传统的单流体相对论磁流体动力学模拟来研究这些现象。 通过对电磁观测源内的高能粒子加速机制进行研究，该项目实现了 NSF“宇宙之窗：多信使天体物理学时代”计划的目标。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并被认为值得支持通过使用基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估。