Gravitomagnetic vorticity generation in black hole accretion discs: a potential spatial constraint on plasma flow stability

ABSTRACT We calculate the vorticity generation rate in the accretion disc near a slowly rotating black hole in the low-velocity, weak-field limit of general relativity. Specifically, we find that the frame-dragging effect due to the black hole’s rotation – manifested through the gravitomagnetic fiel...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inMonthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Vol. 508; no. 1; pp. 414 - 420
Main Authors Bhattacharjee, Chinmoy, Stark, David J
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Oxford University Press 01.11.2021
Subjects
accretion
accretion discs
ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
gravitation
magnetic fields
plasmas
turbulence
magnetic fields
plasmas
gravitation
turbulence
accretion, accretion discs
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Summary:ABSTRACT We calculate the vorticity generation rate in the accretion disc near a slowly rotating black hole in the low-velocity, weak-field limit of general relativity. Specifically, we find that the frame-dragging effect due to the black hole’s rotation – manifested through the gravitomagnetic field – can generate vorticity in a moving plasma in the accretion disc. The mechanism remains operational as long as the accretion disc has non-negligible vertical height and is independent of the exact thermodynamical profile of the disc. The enstrophy density generation rate, as a measure of turbulence and dissipation, is presented, which indicates that the frame-dragging effect can disrupt the stability of the disc away from the z = 0 plane.
Bibliography:89233218CNA000001
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
LA-UR-21-28722
ISSN:0035-8711
1365-2966
DOI:10.1093/mnras/stab2478