Electromagnetic Burst Generation during Annihilation of Magnetic Field in Relativistic Laser-Plasma Interaction

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In this paper, we investigate the relativistic magnetic reconnection in collisionless plasmas with the 3-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. The work is motivated by the fact that an explanation of the narrow energy spectrum of gamma-ray flash observed in Crab Nebula is still not clear in astrophysics. The results on the mono-energetic electron bunch generation obtained in our work support the idea on the ultra-relativistic electron acceleration via the reconnection of the magnetic field lines. Our results contribute to research on the relativistic regimes of fast magnetic field dissipation, where the large-scale magnetic field energy is converted to the energy of collimated charged particle beams. It also provides a basis for the future experiments to connect the laser facilities with the astrophysical phenomenon.

The typical trajectories of the electrons accelerated from the reconnection region via the inductive electric field
Description
The typical trajectories of the electrons accelerated from the reconnection region via the inductive electric field (shown in the bottom plane). The so-called X-line structure is formed when the magnetic fields with opposite polarities merge (shown as the inset). The separatrix surface forms in the transverse cross-section an eight-like curve with a null line.