Full analytical ultrarelativistic 1D solutions of a planar working surface

TL;DR

This paper provides an exact analytical solution for the ultrarelativistic shock-tube problem with a working surface, aiding understanding of energy dissipation in relativistic jets.

Contribution

It introduces a novel analytical method for solving the ultrarelativistic shock-tube problem with a working surface using Taub conditions and Lorentz transformations.

Findings

Analytical solutions for ultrarelativistic shock waves with a contact discontinuity.

Explicit calculation of energy dissipation within the working surface.

Application to modeling light curves in relativistic astrophysical jets.

Abstract

We show that the 1D planar ultrarelativistic shock-tube problem with an ultrarelativistic polytropic equation of state can be solved analytically for the case of a working surface, i.e. for the case when an initial discontinuity on the hydrodynamical quantities of the problem form two shock waves separating from a contact discontinuity. The procedure is based on the extensive use of the Taub jump conditions for relativistic shock waves, the Taub adiabatic and performing Lorentz transformations to present the solution in a system of reference adequate for an external observer at rest. The solutions are found using a set of very useful theorems related to the Lorentz factors when transforming between systems of reference. The energy dissipated inside the working surface is relevant for studies of light curves observed in relativistic astrophysical jets and so, we provide a full analytical solution for this phenomenon assuming an ultrarelativistic periodic velocity injected at the base of the jet.