Nonthermal filaments from the tidal destruction of clouds in the Galactic center

TL;DR

This paper proposes a model where nonthermal filaments in the Galactic center are formed by molecular cloud destruction, explaining their magnetic properties and relativistic electrons without requiring a strong dipolar magnetic field.

Contribution

It introduces a new model linking cloud destruction to filament formation, accounting for observed magnetic features and electron populations in NTFs.

Findings

Model predicts filament lengths of tens to hundreds of parsecs.

Magnetic fields aligned along filament axes are explained by cloud destruction.

Relativistic electrons are produced without a strong dipolar magnetic field.

Abstract

Synchrotron-emitting, nonthermal filaments (NTFs) have been observed near the Galactic center for nearly four decades, yet their physical origin remains unclear. Here we investigate the possibility that NTFs are produced by the destruction of molecular clouds by the gravitational potential of the Galactic center. We show that this model predicts the formation of a filamentary structure with length on the order of tens to hundreds of pc, a highly ordered magnetic field along the axis of the filament, and conditions conducive to magnetic reconnection that result in particle acceleration. This model therefore yields the observed magnetic properties of NTFs and a population of relativistic electrons, without the need to appeal to a dipolar, $\sim$ mG, Galactic magnetic field. As the clouds can be both completely or partially disrupted, this model provides a means of establishing the connection between filamentary structures and molecular clouds that is observed in some, but not all, cases.