Magnetars in the Metagalaxy: An Origin for Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays in the Nearby Universe

Abstract

I show that the relativistic winds of newly born magnetars with khz initial spin rates, occurring in all normal galaxies, can accelerate ultrarelativistic light ions with an E^{-1} injection spectrum, steepening to E^{-2} at higher energies, with an upper cutoff above 10^{21} eV. Interactions with the CMB yield a spectrum in good accord with the observed spectrum of Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR), if ~ 5-10% of the magnetars are born with voltages sufficiently high to accelerate the UHECR. The form the spectrum spectrum takes depends on the gravitational wave losses during the magnetars' early spindown - pure electromagnetic spindown yields a flattening of the E^3 J(E) spectrum below 10^{20} eV, while a moderate GZK ``cutoff'' appears if gravitational wave losses are strong enough. I outline the physics such that the high energy particles escape with small energy losses from a magnetar's natal supernova, including Rayleigh-Taylor ``shredding'' of the supernova envelope, expansion of a relativistic blast wave into the interstellar medium, acceleration of the UHE ions through surf-riding in the electromgnetic fields of the wind, and escape of the UHE ions in the rotational equator with negligible radiation loss. The abundance of interstellar supershells and unusually large supernova remnants suggests that most of the initial spindown energy is radiated in khz gravitational waves for several hours after each supernova, with effective strains from sources at typical distances ~ 3 x 10^{-21}. Such bursts of gravitational radiation should correlate with bursts of ultra-high energy particles. The Auger experiment should see such bursts every few years.