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Magnetorotational instability in cool cores of galaxy clusters

Part of: Focus on Plasma Astrophysics Complex Plasma Phenomena

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2015

Carlo Nipoti ,
L. Posti ,
S. Ettori  and
M. Bianconi
Carlo Nipoti*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Bologna, viale Berti-Pichat 6/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy
L. Posti
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Bologna, viale Berti-Pichat 6/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy
S. Ettori
Affiliation:
INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Bologna, via Ranzani 1, 40127 Bologna, Italy INFN, Sezione di Bologna, viale Berti-Pichat 6/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy
M. Bianconi
Affiliation:
Institute of Astro and Particle Physics, University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
*
†Email address for correspondence: [email protected]
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Abstract

Clusters of galaxies are embedded in halos of optically thin, gravitationally stratified, weakly magnetized plasma at the system’s virial temperature. Owing to radiative cooling and anisotropic heat conduction, such intracluster medium (ICM) is subject to local instabilities, which are combinations of the thermal, magnetothermal and heat-flux-driven buoyancy instabilities. If the ICM rotates significantly, its stability properties are substantially modified and, in particular, also the magnetorotational instability (MRI) can play an important role. We study simple models of rotating cool-core clusters and we demonstrate that the MRI can be the dominant instability over significant portions of the clusters, with possible implications for the dynamics and evolution of the cool cores. Our results give further motivation for measuring the rotation of the ICM with future X-ray missions such as ASTRO-H and ATHENA.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Plasma Physics , Volume 81 , Issue 5 , October 2015 , 495810508
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2015 

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