Beltrami–Bernoulli equilibria in plasmas with degenerate electrons

Abstract

A new class of Double Beltrami-Bernoulli equilibria, sustained by electron degeneracy pressure, are investigated. It is shown that due to electron degeneracy, a nontrivial Beltrami-Bernoulli equilibrium state is possible even for a zero temperature plasma. These states are, conceptually, studied to show the existence of new energy transformation pathways converting, for instance, the degeneracy energy into fluid kinetic energy. Such states may be of relevance to compact astrophysical objects like white dwarfs, neutron stars etc.

Nonlinear coupling of electromagnetic and electron acoustic waves in multi-species degenerate astrophysical plasma

“…The general expression for enthalpy w d for arbitrary density and temperature (for a plasma described by local Dirac-Juttner equilibrium distribution function) can be found in [37]. For a fully (strongly) degenerate electron plasma, however, this very tedious expression smoothly transfers to the one with just density dependence: w d ≡ w d (n) [3]. In fact w d /n d m e c 2 = 1 + (…”

On the relaxed states in the mixture of degenerate and non-degenerate hot plasmas of astrophysical objects

“…to the degenerate electrons. The electron dynamics for both components will be described by the appropriate relativistic fluid equations [ (Pino et al 2010), (Berezhiani et al 2015a), (Berezhiani et al 2015b)]: the continuity…”

“…The general expression for enthalpy w d for arbitrary density and temperature (for a plasma described by local Dirac-Juttner equilibrium distribution function) can be found in (Cercignani & Kremer 2002). For a fully (strongly) degenerate electron plasma, however, this very tedious expression smoothly transfers to the one with just density dependence: w d ≡ w d (n) (Berezhiani et al 2015a). In fact w d /n d m e c 2 = 1 + (R d ) 2 1/2 , where R d [= (n d /n c ) 1/3 with n c = 5.9 × 10 29 cm −3 being the critical number-density].…”

“…Consequently, the degeneracy pressure may easily dominate the thermal one [see e.g. (Shapiro & Teukolsky 1973), (Michel 1982;Berezhiani et al 2015a), (Berezhiani et al 2015b;Shatashvili et al 2016) and references therein]. Relativistic outflows/jets, often, come out of these compact objects.…”

“…Recently it was shown that accreting WD atmospheres may support degenerate plasma relaxed states (Berezhiani et al 2015a) that have associated fast super-Alfvénic up-flows with dramatically reduced densities (Barnaveli & Shatashvili 2017). It is expected that this combination -a bulk degenerate plasma contaminated by small fraction of a non-degenerate highly relativistic plasma -will also pertain during the relativistic jet formation from accretion-induced collapsing White Dwarfs to Black Holes (Begelman et al 1984;Krivdyk 1999;Kryvdik & Agapitov 2007).…”