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Abstract In this second paper in a series dedicated to characterizing shear layers via 2D hybrid (kinetic ions–fluid electrons) simulations, we study the dynamical role of nonthermal particles (cosmic rays, CRs), either spontaneously generated or preexisting. We initialize Kolmogorov-type sinusoidal velocity shear flows unstable to the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability, which evolve nonlinearly into turbulence. Particles with large gyroradii act as long-range messengers that promote momentum exchange between layers, hence introducing a form of CR viscosity. Even when not energetically dominant, increasing the CR energy density generally enhances momentum transfer, provided that their gyroradii are smaller than the shear length scale. We consider flows ranging from subsonic to supersonic and assess the rate of shear dissipation, the partition of the initial kinetic energy among heating, thermal ion acceleration, CR reacceleration, magnetic-field amplification, and the maximum energy attained by accelerated particles. 

Abstract We study the application of deep learning techniques to the analysis and classification of ions accelerated at collisionless shocks in hybrid (kinetic ions-fluid electrons) simulations.Ions were classified as thermal, suprathermal, or non-thermal, depending on the energy they achieved and the acceleration regime they fell under. These classifications were used to train deep learning models to predict which particles are injected into the acceleration process with high accuracy (>90%), using only time series ofthe localmagnetic or electric field they experienced during their initial interaction with the shock.An autoencoder architecture was also tested, for which time series of various parameters were reconstructed from encoded representations.This study shows the potential of applying machine learning techniques to extract physical insights from kinetic plasma simulations and sets the groundwork for future applications, including the construction of sub-grid models in fluid approaches. 

Abstract Supersonic flows are ubiquitous in warm and cool media; their dissipation leads to heating, generation of nonthermal particles, and amplification of background magnetic fields. We present 2D hybrid (kinetic ions–fluid electrons) simulations of decaying shear flows across the subsonic-to-supersonic transition, finding that the canonical Kelvin–Helmholtz instability in subsonic cases gives way to the formation of shocklets in supersonic shears, where dissipation is faster and nonthermal particles are produced. We discuss the dependence on the flow Mach number of particle acceleration, the viscosity induced by kinetic effects, and the production of magnetic turbulence. We outline the potential impact of these findings for turbulence in the warm interstellar medium, for molecular clouds, and for accretion disks, leaving to a companion paper the discussion of the effects on the shear of self-generated and preexisting energetic particles. 

Abstract Collisionless, turbulent plasmas surround the Earth, from the magnetosphere to the intergalactic medium, and the fluctuations within them affect nearly every field in the space sciences, from space weather forecasts to theories of galaxy formation. Where turbulent motions become supersonic, their interactions can lead to the formation of shocks, which are known to efficiently energize ions to cosmic-ray energies. We present 2.5-dimensional hybrid-kinetic simulations of decaying, supersonic, nonrelativistic turbulence in a collisionless plasma using the codedHybridR. The ions are initially cold ( ${\beta }_i\simeq \frac{1}{16}$ ), although they heat rapidly at the onset of turbulence. Turbulence within these simulations is highly compressible; after accounting for this compression by taking the omnidirectional power spectrum of thedensity-weightedvelocity field, we find turbulent spectra with power-law slopes of $\alpha \approx -\frac{5}{3}$ for low Mach numbers, in the inertial range, andα ≈ −2 for high Mach numbers. Ions embedded in the highly supersonic simulations are accelerated to high energies at efficiencies similar to those seen in shocks, despite being in a nonrelativistic regime and lacking the large-scale structure of a shock. We observe that particles are accelerated into a power-law spectrum, with a slope ofq ≈ 2.5 in (nonrelativistic) energy. We compare these results to those obtained from the theory and simulations of diffusive shock acceleration and discuss the astrophysical implications of this theoretical work. 

Abstract Galactic supernova remnants (SNRs) are thought to accelerate cosmic rays (CRs) to several PeV energies, but this has yet to be confirmed as general behavior. Although several sources show ∼100 TeVγ-rays, their hadronic origin is uncertain; a matching neutrino signal would provide definitive evidence. Using insight from the theory of diffusive shock acceleration, we evaluate the spectra and environments of the sample of Galactic SNRs to identify those most likely to be hadronic, categorizing them into a tiered catalog, depending on their likelihood to produce neutrinos detectable in the TeV–PeV range. We then calculate the estimated stacked sensitivity of IceCube for each tier using IceCube’s 10-year public data. Our results suggest that this strategy of stacking SNRs and carefully excluding leptonic sources by using theoretical arguments may allow for a detection of this source class that would otherwise be impossible. A follow-up analysis of these catalogs using TeV–PeV sensitive neutrino data from IceCube (or similar telescopes like KM3NeT/ARCA) offers the most decisive, near-future test for the hadronic nature of these SNRs and the maximum energies of their CR spectra. 

Abstract We demonstrate a novel setup for hybrid particle-in-cell simulations designed to isolate the physics of the shock precursor over long time periods for significantly lower computational cost than previous methods. This is achieved using a “faux-shock” or shock-like boundary condition on one edge of our simulation domain such that particles that interact with the boundary either pass through it or are reflected off of it with a change in momentum that mimics scattering in the downstream. We show that our faux-shock setup reproduces the same fluid quantities and phase spaces as traditional shock simulations, including those which could otherwise only be done in 3D, with higher particle resolution and for reduced computational cost. While the method involves an assumed boundary condition, it nonetheless captures the essential physics of interest, establishing it as a reliable and efficient tool for future self-consistent studies of instabilities driven by cosmic rays in a shock upstream medium. 

Abstract Merging galaxy clusters exhibit strong observational evidence for efficient particle acceleration in the intracluster medium (ICM), particularly in the form of synchrotron-emitting radio relics and halos. Cosmic-ray (CR) electrons are likely accelerated (or reaccelerated) at merger and accretion shocks via diffusive shock acceleration. However, in the presence of the large diffusion coefficients, one would naively expect in the rarefied, relatively unmagnetized ICM, this acceleration—in particular, the maximum proton energy ( $E_{\max }$ )—is limited by long acceleration times. On the other hand, recent work on CR transport suggests that the diffusion coefficient can be suppressed in ICM-like environments. In this picture, deviations from local thermodynamic equilibrium can trigger the mirror instability, creating plasma-scale magnetic structures, or “micromirrors,” that efficiently scatter CRs. In this paper, we investigate the implications of micromirror confinement for shock acceleration in the ICM. We demonstrate that micromirrors enforce a minimum value of $E_{\max }\gtrsim 100$ GeV that does not rely on CR-driven magnetic field amplification. We also discuss micromirror confinement in the context of cosmological simulations andγ-ray observations, and present a simulation of a Coma-like merging cluster that self-consistently includes CR acceleration at shocks, with an effective diffusion coefficient set by micromirrors. We show that the introduction of micromirrors yields simulated galaxy clusters that remain consistent withγ-ray observations. 

Abstract Collisionless plasma shocks are a common feature of many space and astrophysical systems. They are sources of high-energy particles and nonthermal emission, channeling as much as 20% of the shock’s energy into nonthermal particles. The generation and acceleration of these nonthermal particles have been previously studied and shown to affect shock hydrodynamics to the zeroth order. In this work, we use self-consistent hybrid particle-in-cell simulations to examine the effect of self-generated nonthermal ion populations on the nature of collisionless, quasi-parallel shocks. Accelerated nonthermal particles downstream of the shock diffuse into the upstream region, taking energy away from the shock, which increases the compression ratio, slows the shock down, and flattens the nonthermal population’s spectral index for lower-Mach-number shocks. We show that this enhances shock compressibility when the heat flux is included in the Rankine–Hugoniot jump conditions, results that are roughly consistent with previous theories of “cosmic-ray-modified shocks.” Additionally, the simulation data show that heat flux and enthalpy flux cancels out in the upstream region, yielding a relatively simple, alternative closure for the jump conditions which accurately predict for the shock speed and compression ratio. The results have the potential to explain discrepancies between predictions and observations in a wide range of systems, such as inaccuracies in predictions of the arrival times of coronal mass ejections and the conflicting radio and X-ray observations of intracluster shocks. These effects will likely need to be included in fluid modeling to predict shock evolution accurately. 

Abstract We investigate the process of diffusive shock acceleration of particles with mass number to charge number ratiosA/Q > 1, e.g., partially ionized heavy ions. To this end, we introduce helium- and carbon-like ions at solar abundances into two-dimensional hybrid (kinetic ions–fluid electrons) simulations of nonrelativistic collisionless shocks. This study yields three main results: (1) Heavy ions are preferentially accelerated compared to hydrogen. For typical solar abundances, the energy transferred to accelerated helium ions is comparable to, or even exceeds, that of hydrogen, thereby enhancing the overall shock acceleration efficiency. (2) Accelerated helium ions contribute to magnetic field amplification, which increases the maximum attainable particle energy and steepens the spectra of accelerated particles. (3) The efficient acceleration of helium significantly enhances the production of hadronicγ-rays and neutrinos, likely dominating the one due to hydrogen. These effects should be taken into account, especially when modeling strong space and astrophysical shocks. 

ABSTRACT The light curves of radioactive transients, such as supernovae and kilonovae, are powered by the decay of radioisotopes, which release high-energy leptons through $$\beta ^+$$ and $$\beta ^-$$ decays. These leptons deposit energy into the expanding ejecta. As the ejecta density decreases during expansion, the plasma becomes collisionless, with particle motion governed by electromagnetic forces. In such environments, strong or turbulent magnetic fields are thought to confine particles, though the origin of these fields and the confinement mechanism have remained unclear. Using fully kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we demonstrate that plasma instabilities can naturally confine high-energy leptons. These leptons generate magnetic fields through plasma streaming instabilities, even in the absence of pre-existing fields. The self-generated magnetic fields slow lepton diffusion, enabling confinement, and transferring energy to thermal electrons and ions. Our results naturally explain the positron trapping inferred from late-time observations of thermonuclear and core-collapse supernovae. Furthermore, they suggest potential implications for electron dynamics in the ejecta of kilonovae. We also estimate synchrotron radio luminosities from positrons for Type Ia supernovae and find that such emission could only be detectable with next-generation radio observatories from a Galactic or local-group supernova in an environment without any circumstellar material.