arXiv subjects

D. I. Páez-Sánchez

Publications and source records attributed to D. I. Páez-Sánchez.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Deciphering the VHE gamma-rays spectra of Extreme High-Frequency peaked BL Lac Objects through a Photohadronic Model

Extreme high-frequency peaked BL Lac objects (EHBLs) have their synchrotron peak above $\sim 1$ keV and their inverse Compton peak extends up to several TeVs. Due to low luminosity of EHBLs, these objects are often undetected, and only a small number of them are thus known. As a result, they are poorly understood. Using a photohadronic model and including extragalactic background light correction we analyzed 22 very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray spectra of 15 EHBL sources observed in different periods. We find that the photohadronic model used can adequately describe the observed VHE spectral energy distribution and furthermore, we classify them according to the value of the photon spectral index, $δ$. The redshift of the EHBL HESS J1943+213 is also tightly constrained using the same photohadronic model. Within the sample, a plurality of flaring epochs fall in the high-emission state which is followed by the low-emission state and the very-high-emission state respectively. These fractions of flaring epochs characterize only the present sample, not the EHBL population at large. Due to the anomalous behavior of the VHE gamma-ray spectra of the EHBL H 2356-309, we suggest it to be a new subclass of EHBL having hard and very soft intrinsic spectra during different flaring epochs.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2026

Temporary EHBL-like behavior of Markarian 501 during July 2014 VHE flaring

Markarian 501, a BL Lac object well-known as a high energy gamma-ray source, has exhibited several epochs of very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray flaring events when its synchrotron peak frequency shifted above $10^{17}$ Hz, a signature of extreme behavior. From July 16 to July 31, 2014 such flaring events were observed for 15 days by various telescopes. On July 19 (MJD 56857.98), the X-ray outburst from the source was at its highest and on the same day an intriguing narrow peak-like feature around 3 TeV was observed by the MAGIC telescopes, a feature inconsistent with standard interpretations. Using the well-known two-zone photohadronic model, we study these VHE gamma-ray spectra on a day-by-day basis and offer explanation. Our two-zone photohadronic scenario shows that, on MJD 56857.98, the peak-like feature appears at a cutoff energy of $E^c_γ=3.18$ TeV. Below this energy the VHE spectrum increases slowly and is in high emission state. However, for $E^c_γ\, > 3.18$ TeV, the spectrum falls faster, resulting in a mild peak-like feature, not prominent enough as claimed by the MAGIC collaboration.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Constraining the redshift of PG 1553+113 using the photohadronic model

Between 2005 and 2015, the BL Lacertae object PG 1553+113 exhibited multiple very high-energy (VHE; > 100 GeV) gamma-ray flares, which were detected by the Cherenkov telescopes, High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS), Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov (MAGIC), and the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS). Despite the uncertainty surrounding its redshift (z), various studies have sought to estimate this value. In this study, seventeen independently observed VHE gamma-ray spectra of PG 1553+113 are analyzed using four distinct extragalactic background light (EBL) models alongside the photohadronic framework. A global $χ^2$ fit is applied to all observational data to determine the best-fitting redshift for each EBL model. Additionally, confidence level (CL) intervals for the redshift are calculated across all EBL models. The findings demonstrate that the photohadronic framework effectively describes all observed spectra. Among the EBL models, the lowest total $χ^2$ value of 58.82 (with 58 degrees of freedom) was obtained using the model from Saldana-Lopez et al. (2021), while the highest value of 75.67 was associated with the model from Dominguez et al. (2011). The 95 per cent CL intervals for the statistical error of the redshift of PG 1553+113 are 0.500 < z < 0.537 for the Saldana-Lopez et al. (2021) model and 0.491 < z < 0.527 for the Dominguez et al. (2011) model. These results highlight the consistency of the photohadronic approach in interpreting the observed VHE gamma-ray spectra.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

Redshift constrain of BL Lac PKS 1424+240

In the period between 2009 and 2015, several very high-energy (VHE $> 100$ GeV) gamma-ray flaring events from the BL Lac object PKS 1424+240 were observed by the Cerenkov telescopes VERITAS and MAGIC. It had uncertain redshift ($z$) and using spectroscopical measurement, Paiano et al. (2017) found it to be $z=0.604$. Using four different extragalactic background light (EBL) models and the photohadronic model, nine independently observed VHE gamma-ray spectra of PKS 1424+240 are analyzed and a global $χ^2$ fit is performed on all observations to estimate the best-fit value for the redshift for each EBL model. Confidence levels (CL) intervals for the redshift are also estimated using all the EBL models. This method is tested by comparing our analysis with the observed value. It is shown that the photohadronic scenario provides an excellent description of all the observed spectra. It is found that the EBL model of Domínguez et al. (2011) is the one that provides the most restrictive limits on the redshift of PKS 1424+240, but in our analysis, $z=0.604$ lies within the $3σ$ CL interval of the EBL model of Saldana-Lopez et al. (2021).

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

TeV afterglow from GRB 221009A: photohadronic origin?

Gamma-ray burst (GRB), GRB 221009A, a long-duration GRB, was observed simultaneously by the Water Cherenkov Detector Array (WCDA) and the Kilometer Squared Array (KM2A) of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) during the prompt emission and the afterglow periods. Characteristic multi-TeV photons up to 13 TeV were observed in the afterglow phase. The observed very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray spectra by WCDA and KM2A during different time intervals and in different energy ranges can be explained very well in the context of the photohadronic model with the inclusion of extragalactic background light models. In the photohadronic scenario, interaction of high-energy protons with the synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) photons in the forward shock region of the jet is assumed to be the source of these VHE photons. The observed VHE spectra from the afterglow of GRB 221009A are similar to the VHE gamma-ray spectra observed from the temporary extreme high-energy peaked BL Lac (EHBL), 1ES 2344+514 {\it only} during the 11th and the 12th of August, 2016. Such spectra are new and have been observed for the first time in a GRB.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2023

A photohadronic interpretation of the H.E.S.S. afterglow observations from GRB 221009A

The High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) started observing the extremely powerful long-duration gamma-ray burst, GRB 221009A, after 53 hours of the triggering event. The H.E.S.S. collaboration carried out observations on the 11, 12, and 17, of October 2022 under poor atmospheric conditions, without detecting significant very high-energy photons from the source and computed the upper limits of the fluxes for the different nights. We study these flux upper limits by using the photohadronic model and show that the interaction of high-energy protons with the synchrotron seed photons in the forward shock region of the GRB jet exhibits behavior compatible with the upper limits computed by the H.E.S.S. collaboration.

astro-ph.HE↗