Ultra-long simulations of collisionless relativistic shocks in front-comoving frame: evidence for a steady state and its properties

Abstract

We present a series of unprecedently long 2D3V PIC simulations of unmagnetized relativistic $e^{-}e^{+}$-pair shocks performed in a front-comoving frame. By implementing a moving-wall boundary condition in the downstream together with continuous injection at the upstream boundary, we maintain a fixed simulation domain size, opening the way to perform substantially longer simulations. Our longest runs extend beyond $100000\,ω_p^{-1}$, exceeding the duration of the previously published simulations by a factor of several. Across a diverse set of simulations -- varying upstream/downstream lengths, transverse sizes, and particle-per-cell counts -- we find strong evidence that the shock approaches an asymptotic, time-independent state. In the downstream region, the steady state depends only on the upstream temperature at the injection boundary and does not depend on a particular numerical realization. The upstream precursor evolves slower and retains a dependence on the simulation's upstream length, that may be of minor observational consequence, since radiation from astrophysical shocks predominantly originates from the downstream region. We also find that Fermi-type acceleration is limited in energy and a true power-law tail never forms. Another important finding is that the downstream magnetic field has a soliton-like structure, where individual magnetic domains evolve independently, each comprising a compact, highly magnetized core embedded within an extended, weakly magnetized region. The magnetic-field distribution around the centers of these spots has approximately Lorentzian profile.