Cosmic Ray Acceleration by E-Parallel Reconnection of Force-Free Fields

Stirling A. Colgate, Hui Li

Published 2005-09-02Version 1

We propose that nearly every accelerated CR was part of the parallel current that maintains all force-free (f-f) magnetic fields. Charged particles are accelerated by the E-parallel (to the magnetic filed B) produced by reconnection. The inferred total energy in extra-galactic cosmic rays is 10^(60) ergs per galaxy spacing volume, provided that acceleration mechanisms assumed do not preferentially only accelerate ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). This total energy is about 10^5 times the parent galactic CR or magnetic energy. The formation energy of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at galaxy centers, 10^(62) ergs, becomes the only feasible source. An efficient dynamo process converts gravitational free energy into magnetic energy in an accretion disk around a SMBH. Aided by Keplerian winding, this dynamo converts a poloidal seed field into f-f fields, which are transported into the general inter-galactic medium (IGM). This magnetic energy is also efficiently converted into particle energies, as evidenced by the radiation from energetic particles. CRs of the IGM are then the result of the continuing dissipation, in a Hubble time, of this magnetic energy, by acceleration within the f-f fields confined within the super-galactic walls and filaments of large scale structures. In addition, most UHECRs are diffusively lost to the galactic voids before the GZK attenuation time, 10^8 years and hence are lost from view. Similarly within the galaxy we expect that the winding by accretion are the sources of galactic CR acceleration. [edited]