Asymmetries in extragalactic double radio sources: clues from 3D simulations of jet-disc interaction

Observational and theoretical studies of extragalactic radio sources have suggested that an inhomogeneous environment may be responsible for observed arm-length asymmetries of jets and the properties of extended emission-line regions in high-redshift radio galaxies. We perform 3D hydrodynamic simulations of the interaction of a powerful extragalactic bipolar jet with a disc-shaped clumpy interstellar medium (ISM) of lognormal density distribution and analyse the asymmetry. Furthermore, we compute the relation between jet asymmetry and the ISM properties by means of Monte Carlo simulations based on a 1D propagation model for the jet through the dense medium. We find that the properties of the ISM can be related to a probability distribution of jet arm-length asymmetries: disc density and height are found to have the largest effect on the asymmetry for realistic parameter ranges, while the Fourier energy spectrum of the ISM and turbulent Mach number only have a smaller effect. The hydrodynamic simulations show that asymmetries generally may be even larger than expected from the 1D model due to the complex interaction of the jet and its bow shock with gaseous clumps, which goes much beyond simple energy disposal. From our results, observed asymmetries of medium-sized local radio galaxies may be explained by gas masses of 10⁹- 10¹⁰ M_⊙ in massive elliptical galaxies. Furthermore, the simulations provide a theoretical basis for the observed correlation that emission-line nebulae are generally found to be brighter on the side of the shorter lobe in high-redshift radio galaxies. This interaction of jets with the cold gas phase suggests that star formation in evolving high-redshift galaxies may be affected considerably by jet activity.