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Free keywords:
Physics, Fluid Dynamics, physics.flu-dyn, Astrophysics, High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, astro-ph.HE,General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology, gr-qc
Abstract:
With the aim of determining the statistical properties of relativistic
turbulence and unveiling novel and non-classical features, we present the
results of direct numerical simulations of driven turbulence in an
ultrarelativistic hot plasma using high-order numerical schemes. We study the
statistical properties of flows with average Mach number ranging from $\sim
0.4$ to $\sim 1.7$ and with average Lorentz factors up to $\sim 1.7$. We find
that flow quantities, such as the energy density or the local Lorentz factor,
show large spatial variance even in the subsonic case as compressibility is
enhanced by relativistic effects. The velocity field is highly intermittent,
but its power-spectrum is found to be in good agreement with the predictions of
the classical theory of Kolmogorov.
