Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Galaxy Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2010-09-27
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Galaxy Astrophysics
Accepted for publication in "Astrophysical Journal"
Scientific paper
We develop a general theory of buoyancy instabilities in the electron-ion plasma with the electron heat flux based not upon MHD equations, but using a multicomponent plasma approach in which the momentum equation is solved for each species. We investigate the geometry in which the background magnetic field is perpendicular to the gravity and stratification. General expressions for the perturbed velocities are given without any simplifications. Collisions between electrons and ions are taken into account in the momentum equations in a general form, permitting us to consider both weakly and strongly collisional objects. However, the electron heat flux is assumed to be directed along the magnetic field that implies a weakly collisional case. Using simplifications justified for an investigation of buoyancy instabilities with the electron thermal flux, we derive simple dispersion relations both for collisionless and collisional cases for arbitrary directions of the wave vector. The collisionless dispersion relation considerably differs from that obtained in the MHD framework and is similar to the Schwarzschild's criterion. This difference is connected with simplified assumptions used in the MHD analysis of buoyancy instabilities and with the role of the longitudinal electric field perturbation which is not captured by the ideal MHD equations. The results obtained can be applied to clusters of galaxies and other astrophysical objects.
Nekrasov Anatoly K.
Shadmehri Mohsen
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