Cosmological simulation of a radio synchrotron bridge between pre-merging galaxy clusters

¹ Istituto di Radioastronomia, INAF, Via Gobetti 101, 40121 Bologna, Italy
² Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Universita di Bologna, Via Gobetti 92/3, 40121 Bologna, Italy

^★ Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Received: 8 December 2025
Accepted: 2 April 2026

Abstract

Context. Radio bridges are diffuse synchrotron emission observed between merging galaxy clusters. Recent radio observations have reported both detections and non-detections of radio bridges between clusters. The detections imply the presence of cosmic rays (CRs) and magnetic fields permeating the cosmic web that produce synchrotron emission observable with current facilities, whereas the non-detections suggest that specific physical conditions are required for their formation.

Aims. We study the CR reacceleration by solenoidal turbulence in the filament connecting two massive clusters at an early stage of the merger. Our aim is to test whether this mechanism can generate diffuse emission in the inter-cluster region.

Methods. We performed a cosmological magneto-hydrodynamical (MHD) simulation using the Enzo code. We improved a run-time Lagrangian tracer method implemented in Enzo, and followed the trajectories of baryonic matter using N = 𝒪(10⁷) tracer particles. In post-processing, we conducted a parallel computation of the Fokker-Planck (FP) equation for all tracers, with cooling and reacceleration efficiencies evaluated from the local quantities recorded along each tracer trajectory.

Results. Our simulation generates a megaparsec-sized radio bridge in the early stage of the cluster merger. Within a reasonable parameter range, the reacceleration model produces a broad variety of spectra. In our fiducial model, the simulated bridge matches several properties of the one found between Abell 399 and Abell 401, such as its spectral shape, intensity profile, and pixel-by-pixel correlation between radio and X-ray intensities.

Conclusions. The inter-cluster region is filled with turbulence induced by infalling mass clumps and subsequently amplified by the approaching motion of the clusters. The CR reacceleration by the turbulence is a viable mechanism to power a megaparsec-sized synchrotron emission observed as radio bridges.