First-principles Simulations of Black-hole Plasmas: State of the Art and Recent Advances

We present recent advances in first-principles simulations of compact-object plasmas. Using localized approaches, we perform simulations of plasma in black-hole accretion disks and coronae, where collisionless reconnection, turbulence, angular-momentum transport, and nonthermal particle acceleration are captured self-consistently. Our simulations focus on i) the nonlinear development of the magnetorotational instability, which feeds off the central object's gravitational energy and provides a powerful driver for disk turbulence, and ii) on magnetized coronal reconnection and turbulence, which can act as accelerator for energetic particles. These results have important implications for global modeling using, e.g., magnetohydrodynamics with subgrid-heating prescriptions, and for the transport and acceleration of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays.