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Magnetic turbulence in clusters of galaxies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2010

T. A. Enßlin
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics, Karl-Schwarzschild-Str.1, 85741 Garching, Germany. [email protected]
T. Clarke
Affiliation:
Interferometrics Inc., Naval Research Lab., 4555 Overlook Ave. SW, Washington, DC USA.
C. Vogt
Affiliation:
Stichting ASTRON, P.O.Box 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands.
A. Waelkens
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics, Karl-Schwarzschild-Str.1, 85741 Garching, Germany. [email protected]
A. A. Schekochihin
Affiliation:
Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford, 1 Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3NP, UK
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Abstract

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Galaxy clusters are large laboratories for magnetic plasma turbulence and therefore permit us to confront our theoretical concepts of magnetogenesis with detailed observations. Magnetic turbulence in clusters can be studied via the radio-synchrotron emission from the intra-cluster medium in the form of cluster radio relics and halos. The power spectrum of turbulent magnetic fields can be examined via Faraday rotation analysis of extended radio sources. In case of the Hydra A cool core, the observed magnetic spectrum can be understood in terms of a turbulence-mediated feedback loop between gas cooling and the jet activity of the central galaxy. Finally, methods to measure higher-order statistics of the magnetic field using Stokes-parameter correlations are discussed, which permit us to determine the power spectrum of the magnetic tension force. This fourth-order statistical quantity offers a way to discriminate between different magnetic turbulence scenarios and different field structures using radio polarimetric observations.

Type
Contributed Papers
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2010

References

Clarke, T. E. & Enßlin, T. A. 2006, AJ, 131, 2900CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schekochihin, A. A., Cowley, S. C., Taylor et al. 2004, ApJ, 612, 276CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vogt, C. & Enßlin, T. A. 2005, A&A, 434, 67Google Scholar
Waelkens, A., Schekochihin, A. A., & Enßlin, T. A. 2009, MNRAS 398, 1970CrossRefGoogle Scholar