Double-Adiabatic Equations of State for Relativistic Plasmas

Abstract

The adiabatic equation of state $P \propto n^{\Gamma}$ describes the pressure evolution of highly collisional, isotropic plasmas in terms of their density, providing a possible closure of the fluid moment hierarchy in the absence of heat fluxes and dissipation. An analogous closure exists for collisionless, magnetised plasmas, whose pressure tensor is anisotropic with respect to the magnetic field, and the closure is therefore double-adiabatic, prescribing the evolution of the parallel and perpendicular pressures in terms of the magnetic-field strength and density. Here, we present a general first-principle formalism to derive adiabatic laws using the symmetries of the system. With this theory we recover the adiabatic equation of state $P \propto n^{\Gamma}$ for isotropic plasmas and the double-adiabatic equations of state for collisionless, magnetised plasmas. We extend the latter to the relativistic regime, finding that their exact functional form depends on the pressure anisotropy and is not a simple power law. Our double-adiabatic equations of state describe simple geometries, like magnetic mirrors or compressed homogeneous plasmas, as well as complex high-energy astrophysical processes, such as the evolution of plasmoid structures formed during magnetic reconnection.