Open AccessThe jet power extracted from a magnetized accretion disc
Author(s) -
Cao Xinwu
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
monthly notices of the royal astronomical society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.058
H-Index - 383
eISSN - 1365-2966
pISSN - 0035-8711
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05375.x
Subject(s) - physics , astrophysics , black hole (networking) , accretion (finance) , jet (fluid) , accretion disc , quasar , magnetic field , rotating black hole , field strength , astrophysical jet , astronomy , active galactic nucleus , mechanics , galaxy , computer network , routing protocol , routing (electronic design automation) , quantum mechanics , computer science , link state routing protocol
We consider the power of a relativistic jet accelerated by the magnetic field of an accretion disc. It is found that the power extracted from the disc is mainly determined by the field strength and configuration of the field far from the disc. Comparing it with the power extracted from a rotating black hole, we find that the jet power extracted from a disc can dominate over that from the rotating black hole. However, in some cases, the jet power extracted from a rapidly rotating hole can be more important than that from the disc, even if the poloidal field threading the hole is not significantly larger than that threading the inner edge of the disc. The results imply that the radio‐loudness of quasars may be governed by its accretion rate, which might be regulated by the central black hole mass. It is proposed that the different disc field generation mechanisms might be tested against observations of radio‐loud quasars if their black hole masses are available.