Study of Weak Astrophysical Shock Waves using a PIC Code

Shock waves are ubiquitous in astrophysical environments. In particular, shocks formed by merger of subclumps, infall of matter and internal flow motion in intracluster media (ICMs) and cluster outskirts are relatively weak with Mach number M ${\lesssim}$ a few. At such weak shocks, it has been believed that the diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) of cosmic rays is rather inefficient. Yet, the presence of nonthermal phenomena, such as radio halos and relics, suggests that contrary to the expectation, DSA as well as magnetic field amplification should operate at weak shocks in cluster environments. We recently initiated a study of weak, collisionless, astrophysical shocks using a PIC(Particle-in-Cell) code. The PIC code describes the motion of electron and ion particles under the electromagnetic field which is represented in grid zones. Here, we present a preliminary work of one-dimensional simulations. We show how shocks are set up as the turbulent electromagnetic field is developed in the shock transition layer, and discuss the implication on DSA and magnetic field amplification.