Self-Similar Cosmic-Ray Transport in High-Resolution Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence

TL;DR

This study uses high-resolution MHD turbulence simulations to analyze cosmic-ray transport, revealing self-similar scattering behaviors and implications for observed cosmic-ray spectra and anisotropies.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed analysis of cosmic-ray propagation in high-resolution MHD turbulence, highlighting the role of magnetic field bends and self-similar scattering processes.

Findings

Sharp magnetic bends mediate particle transport.

Diffusion shows weak energy dependence over two decades.

Collision times follow a broad power-law distribution.

Abstract

We study the propagation of cosmic rays (CRs) through a simulation of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence at unprecedented resolution of $10{,}240^3$. We drive turbulence that is subsonic and super-Alfv\'enic, characterized by $\delta B_{\rm rms}/B_0=2$. The high resolution enables an extended inertial range such that the Alfv\'en scale $l_A$, where $\delta B (l_A)\approx B_0$, is well resolved. This allows us to properly capture how the cascade transitions from large amplitudes on large scales to small amplitudes on small scales. We find that sharp bends in the magnetic field are key mediators of particle transport even on small scales via resonant curvature scattering. We further find that particle scattering in the turbulence shows strong hints of self-similarity: (1) the diffusion has weak energy dependence over almost two decades in particle energy and (2) the particles' random walk exhibits a broad power-law distribution of collision times such that the diffusion is dominated by the rarest, long-distance excursions. Our results suggest that large-amplitude MHD turbulence can provide efficient scattering over a wide range of CR energies and may help explain many CR observations above a $\sim$TeV: the flattening of the B/C spectrum, the hardening of CR primary spectra and the weak dependence of arrival anisotropy on CR energy.