Turbulence and particle heating in advection-dominated accretion flows

Eliot Quataert, Andrei Gruzinov

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

176 Scopus citations

Abstract

We extend and reconcile recent work on turbulence and particle heating in advection-dominated accretion flows. For approximately equipartition magnetic fields, the turbulence primarily heats the electrons. For weaker magnetic fields, the protons are primarily heated. The division between electron and proton heating occurs between β ∼ 5 and β ∼ 100 (β is the ratio of gas to magnetic pressure), depending on unknown details of how Alfvén waves are converted into whistlers on scales of the proton Larmor radius. We also discuss the possibility that magnetic reconnection could be a significant source of electron heating.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)248-255
Number of pages8
JournalAstrophysical Journal
Volume520
Issue number1 PART 1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 20 1999
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

Keywords

  • Accretion
  • Accretion disks
  • MHD
  • Plasmas
  • Turbulence

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