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Magnetically Induced Rotating Rayleigh-Taylor Instability
Published on: March 3, 2017
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Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations of Self-Consistent Rotating Neutron Stars with Mixed Poloidal and Toroidal Magnetic
Antonios Tsokaros1, Milton Ruiz1, Stuart L Shapiro1,2
1Department of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|February 25, 2022
Summary
Magnetar simulations reveal spontaneous differential rotation and ejecta, potentially causing kilonova events. However, no gamma-ray burst jets formed in these neutron star models.
Area of Science:
- Astrophysics
- Computational Physics
- Plasma Physics
Background:
- Neutron stars (NSs) possess complex magnetic fields.
- Magnetars are NSs with extremely strong magnetic fields.
- Understanding NS magnetic field dynamics is crucial for astrophysics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To perform the first general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of rotating neutron stars with ultrastrong mixed magnetic fields.
- To investigate the stability and evolution of these magnetar models.
- To explore potential observable signatures, such as ejecta and jets.
Main Methods:
- Full general relativity magnetohydrodynamic simulations.
- Self-consistent, uniformly rotating neutron star models.
- Initial models with mixed poloidal and toroidal magnetic fields, assuming perfect conductivity, stationarity, and axisymmetry.
Main Results:
- All simulated magnetar models eventually developed instabilities, regardless of initial field geometry.
- Spontaneous differential rotation occurred in the cores, later reverting to uniform rotation.
- Significant ejecta were produced, consistent with transient kilonova signatures.
- No highly collimated jets or helical magnetic fields were observed at the poles.
Conclusions:
- Neutron stars with ultrastrong mixed magnetic fields are unstable.
- Simulated ejecta support the kilonova hypothesis for transient events.
- The simulations did not produce conditions necessary for gamma-ray bursts.
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