Space Sciences/Astrophysics Seminar with Haocheng Zhang on Probing blazar jet physics with multi-wavelength polarimetry

Blazars are among the most powerful cosmic particle accelerators. It is believed that the blazar jets are strongly dominated by magnetic energy at the launching site. Despite decades of observational and theoretical efforts, the physical conditions and particle acceleration mechanism in the blazar zone, which is an unresolved region close to the central engine producing highly variable multi-wavelength flares, are still not well understood. The recently launched IXPE opens up a new window on studying blazars with multi-wavelength polarimetry. In this talk, I will present both semi-analytical and numerical models that can be uniquely tested against multi-wavelength polarization data. These studies can unambiguously reveal the blazar zone physical conditions, particle acceleration, and radiation mechanisms.

Sponsored by the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences.