Special Universe Talk: Jets from compact objects: formation, content, and destruction

by Nick Kylafis (University of Crete, Greece)

Wednesday 17 May 2017, 11:00 → 12:00 Europe/Berlin

seminar room, basement (Universe Cluster, Boltzmannstr. 2, Garching)

Abstract: Jets have been observed from both neutron-star and black-hole X-ray binaries. There are many similarities between the two and a few differences. Nick Kylafis will offer a physical explanation of the formation and destruction of jets from compact objects. The basic concept in the physical explanation is the Cosmic Battery, the mechanism that creates the required magnetic field for the jet ejection. The Cosmic Battery operates efficiently in accretion flows consisting of an inner hot flow and an outer thin accretion disk independently of the nature of the compact object. It is therefore natural to always expect a jet in the right side of a spectral hardness – luminosity diagram and to never expect a jet in the left side. As a consequence, most of the phenomenology of an outburst can be explained with only one parameter, the mass accretion rate. In the end, Nick Kylafis will discuss the energy distribution of the electrons in the jet. Contrary to common belief, it is not necessary to assume a power-law distribution of electron energies. A thermal jet produces similar radio spectra.