Work

Radiative cooling effects on plasmoid formation in black hole accretion flows with multiple magnetic loops

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Context. We investigated the physics of black hole accretion flows, particularly focusing on phenomena like magnetic reconnection and plasmoid formation, which are believed to be responsible for energetic events such as flares observed from astrophysical black holes. Aims. We aim to understand the influence of radiative cooling on plasmoid formation within black hole accretion flows that are threaded by multi-loop magnetic field configurations. Methods. We conducted 2D and 3D two-temperature general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations. By varying the magnetic loop sizes and the mass accretion rate, we explored how radiative cooling alters the accretion dynamics, disk structure, and properties of reconnection-driven plasmoid chains. Results. Our results demonstrate that radiative cooling suppresses the transition to the magnetically arrested disk state by reducing magnetic flux accumulation near the horizon. It significantly modifies the disk morphology by lowering the electron temperature and compressing the disk, which leads to increased density at the equatorial plane and decreased magnetization. Within the current sheets, radiative cooling triggers layer compression and the collapse of plasmoids, shortening their lifetime and reducing their size, while the frequency of plasmoid events increases. Moreover, we observe enhanced negative energy-at-infinity density in plasmoids near the ergosphere, with its peaks corresponding to plasmoid formation events. Conclusions. Radiative cooling plays a critical role in shaping both macroscopic accretion flow properties and microscopic reconnection phenomena near black holes. This suggests that radiative cooling modulates black hole energy extraction through reconnection-driven Penrose processes, highlighting its importance in models of astrophysical black holes.

Source: Astronomy and Astrophysics

DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/202557948

Authors: Jing-Ze Xia, Hong-Xuan Jiang, Yosuke Mizuno, Antonios Nathanail, Christian M. Fromm