PLUS
Activities

Seminar by Oreste Pezzi
Zoom - November 23, 2023 - 15.00 WEBINAR LINK

Title: The role of large-scale plasma turbulence in influencing particle transport and energization in astrophysical contexts.

Abstract: Populations of energetic particles, ranging from solar energetic particles to incredibly high-energy cosmic rays, are ubiquitous in space and astrophysical plasmas. Several intertwined phenomena, including shocks, magnetic reconnection, and turbulence, are responsible for the efficient acceleration of particles and for determining their transport properties for efficient particle energization. Plasma turbulence produces patchy coherent structures, such as reconnecting current sheets, plasmoids, and vortices across a vast range of spatial scales. Under some circumstances, these structures can entrap particles, thus providing fast energization through, for example, drift acceleration. In this talk, I will review some of these mechanisms and outline recent numerical efforts aimed at investigating how the large-scale complexity of the turbulent magnetic field influences particle transport and how large-scale coherent structures impact particle energization. I will also comment on the applicability of these results in space and astrophysical contexts.
Slides -- Related works: [1]; [2]