arXiv subjects

Elena Moretti

Publications and source records attributed to Elena Moretti.

15 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

The very high energy view of gamma-ray bursts with the MAGIC telescopes

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are one of the main targets for the observations of the MAGIC telescopes. As a result of the effort in improving the sensitivity of the instrument and the automatic follow-up strategy, MAGIC detected two GRBs in the very-high-energy (VHE, $E>100$ GeV) range, namely GRB 190114C and GRB 201216C. In GRB 190114C ($z=0.42$), the data collected by MAGIC revealed a new emission component at sub-TeV energies in the afterglow of the GRB. The very rich multi-wavelength dataset, spanning 17 orders of magnitude in energy, allowed to perform a detailed modelling of the broadband emission. The multi-wavelength data could be modelled within a one-zone synchrotron-self Compton scenario with internal $\gamma-\gamma$ absorption, where the model parameters are compatible with those found in previous GRB afterglow studies below GeV energies. Similarly, GRB 201216C broadband emission could be explained using the same model, although the amount of simultaneous multi-wavelength data is reduced with respect to GRB 190114C. In particular, GRB 201216C challenged the current MAGIC detection potential, as its redshift was determined to be $z=1.1$, strongly reducing the observed gamma-ray flux but making it the most distant source detected at VHE. These two detections, accompanied by evidence of VHE emission from a few more GRBs, opened up new questions such as the presence of sub-TeV emission in different classes and phases of GRBs. In this contribution we will present the status of the MAGIC GRB follow-up program, with an highlight on its detected GRBs. Moreover we will show the results on the GRBs observed by MAGIC from 2013 to 2019 with no evidence of VHE emission, in particular for those with simultaneous X-ray observations and redshift $z<2$. We will discuss the implications of these results for GRB physics and the challenges and prospects for future GRB observations with MAGIC.

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arXiv2022

Calibration and performance of the readout system based on switched capacitor arrays for the Large-Sized Telescope of the Cherenkov Telescope Array

The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) is the next-generation ground-based very-high-energy gamma-ray observatory. The Large-Sized Telescope (LST) of CTA is designed to detect gamma rays between 20 GeV and a few TeV with a 23-meter diameter mirror. We have developed the focal plane camera of the first LST, which has 1855 photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) and the readout system which samples a PMT waveform at GHz with switched capacitor arrays, Domino Ring Sampler ver4 (DRS4). To measure the precise pulse charge and arrival time of Cherenkov signals, we developed a method to calibrate the output voltage of DRS4 and the sampling time interval, as well as an analysis method to correct the spike noise of DRS4. Since the first LST was inaugurated in 2018, we have performed the commissioning tests and calibrated the camera. We characterised the camera in terms of the charge pedestal under various conditions of the night sky background, the charge resolution of each pixel, the charge uniformity of the whole camera, and the time resolutions with a test pulse and calibration laser.

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arXiv2019

Following up GW Alerts With MAGIC: The Third LIGO/Virgo Observation Run

The first two LIGO and Virgo observation runs have been important milestones in the gravitational wave (GW) field, thanks to the detection of GW signals from ten binary black hole systems and a binary neutron star system. In order to fully characterize the emitting source, the remnant object and its environment, electromagnetic follow-up observations at different wavelengths are essential, as learned from the GW170817/GRB170817A case. Given the quite large localization uncertainties provided by interferometers, the main challenge faced by facilities with a narrow field of view (e.g. Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes, IACTs) is to setup a suitable follow-up strategy in order to observe sky regions with the highest probability to host the electromagnetic (EM) counterpart of the GW signal. As member of the EM follow-up community, the MAGIC collaboration joined this effort in 2014. As the third observation run (O3) is currently ongoing, where both LIGO and Virgo are expected to have much better sensitivities, MAGIC is refining its follow-up strategy to maximize the chances of observing the EM counterparts as soon as possible. In this contribution we will describe this strategy, focusing on the different observation cases, which mainly depends on the information available from both GW and EM partner facilities.

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arXiv2019

Following up Transient Sources at Very High Energies with MAGIC

Several classes of sources are known to emit different messengers. Among them, transient sources are a special case, due to their serendipitous occurrence, time variability and duration on different timescales. They are associated with explosive and catastrophic events where very compact objects like neutron stars and black holes are involved. The difficulty of observing such elusive and possibly short-lasting events requires a fast reaction and a well-organized alert network between different experiments. In order to characterize them in the best possible way, instruments with a wide field of view should serve as external triggers for facilities with small sky coverage. MAGIC, as a Cherenkov telescope, belongs to the latter category. The search for transients by MAGIC is possible thanks to an automatic alert system listening to the alerts sent by the Gamma-ray Coordinate Network (GCN). In this contribution we describe the MAGIC alert system, which was designed mainly for the follow-up of Gamma-Ray Bursts in its initial conception. The alert system was recently updated in a multi-messenger context, receiving alerts also from neutrino and GW observatories. Finally we will present the MAGIC program for transient sources and how it was adapted in the current multi-wavelength and multi-messenger panorama.

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arXiv2019

Searching for GRBs at VHE with MAGIC: the status before CTA

Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) are one of the main targets for current and next generation Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs). Given their transient behavior, especially in the case of their prompt emission phase, performing fast follow-up observations is challenging for IACTs, which have a narrow field of view and limited duty cycle. Despite this, MAGIC plays a major role in the search for Very High Energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from GRBs: this is possible thanks to its fast repositioning speed, low energy threshold and high sensitivity at the lowest energies. In 2013 the MAGIC GRB automatic procedure was upgraded, increasing the number of GRBs followed in the prompt and early afterglow phases and decreasing dramatically hardware failures during fast repositioning. Currently, only GRB 190114C was firmly detected in the VHE band, while for other GRBs no significant detection was achieved. In such a case, upper limits (ULs) can give insight into the physics driving such eluding sources, especially on their emission mechanisms. In this contribution we report on the status of the GRB follow-up with MAGIC and focus on the ULs and results obtained from a sample of GRBs observed between 2013 and 2018. This GRB catalog is the result of the MAGIC well-designed and tested follow-up procedure, and it serves as a precursor of GRBs observation with the next generation IACT system, the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA).

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arXiv2018

VHE observations of binary systems performed with the MAGIC telescopes

The improvement on the Imaging Air Cherenkov Technique (IACT) led to the discovery of a new type of sources that can emit at very high energies: the gamma-ray binaries. Only six systems are part of this exclusive class. We summarize the latest results from the observations performed with the MAGIC telescopes on different systems as the gamma-ray binary LS I +61$^{\circ}$ 303 and the microquasars SS433, V404 Cygni and Cygnus X-1, which are considered potential VHE gamma-ray emitters. The binary system LS I +61$^{\circ}$ 303 has been observed by MAGIC in a long-term monitoring campaign. We show the newest results of our search for super-orbital variability also in context of contemporaneous optical observations. Besides, we will present the results of the only super-critical accretor known in our galaxy: SS 433. We will introduce the VHE results achieved with MAGIC after 100 hours of observations on the microquasar Cygnus X-1 and report on the microquasar V404 Cyg, which has been observed with MAGIC after it went through a series of exceptional X-ray outbursts in June 2015.

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arXiv2017

MAGIC VHE Gamma-Ray Observations Of Binary Systems

There are several types of Galactic sources that can potentially accelerate charged particles up to GeV and TeV energies. We present here the results of our observations of the source class of gamma-ray binaries and the subclass of binary systems known as novae with the MAGIC telescopes. Up to now novae were only detected in the GeV range. This emission can be interpreted in terms of an inverse Compton process of electrons accelerated in a shock. In this case it is expected that protons in the same conditions can be accelerated to much higher energies. Consequently they may produce a second component in the gamma-ray spectrum at TeV energies. The focus here lies on the four sources: nova V339 Del, SS433, LS I +61 303 and V404 Cygni. The binary system LS I +61 303 was observed in a long-term monitoring campaign for 8 years. We show the newest results on our search for superorbital variability, also in context with contemporaneous optical observations. Furthermore, we present the observations of the only super-critical accretion system known in our galaxy: SS433. Finally, the results of the follow-up observations of the microquasar V404 Cygni during a series of outbursts in the X-ray band and the ones of the nova V339 Del will be discussed in these proceedings.

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arXiv2016

Optimising a balloon-borne polarimeter in the hard X-ray domain: from the PoGOLite Pathfinder to PoGO+

PoGOLite is a balloon-borne hard X-ray polarimeter dedicated to the study of point sources. Compton scattered events are registered using an array of plastic scintillator units to determine the polarisation of incident X-rays in the energy range 20 - 240 keV. In 2013, a near circumpolar balloon flight of 14 days duration was completed after launch from Esrange, Sweden, resulting in a measurement of the linear polarisation of the Crab emission. Building on the experience gained from this Pathfinder flight, the polarimeter is being modified to improve performance for a second flight in 2016. Such optimisations, based on Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations, take into account the source characteristics, the instrument response and the background environment which is dominated by atmospheric neutrons. This paper describes the optimisation of the polarimeter and details the associated increase in performance. The resulting design, PoGO+, is expected to improve the Minimum Detectable Polarisation (MDP) for the Crab from 19.8% to 11.1% for a 5 day flight. Assuming the same Crab polarisation fraction as measured during the 2013 flight, this improvement in MDP will allow a 5{\sigma} constrained result. It will also allow the study of the nebula emission only (Crab off-pulse) and Cygnus X-1 if in the hard state.

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arXiv2016

Signs of magnetic acceleration and multi-zone emission in GRB 080825C

One of the major results from the study of gamma-ray bursts with the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has been the confirmation that several emission components can be present in the energy spectrum. Here we reanalyse the spectrum of GRB 080825C using data from the Fermi LAT and GBM instruments. Although fairly weak, it is the first gamma-ray burst detected by the Fermi-LAT. We improve on the original analysis by using the LAT Low Energy (LLE) events covering the 30-00 MeV band. We find evidence of an additional component above the main emission peak (modelled using a Band function) with a significance of 3.5 $\sigma$ in 2 out of the 4 time bins. The component is well fitted by a Planck function, but shows unusual behaviour: the peak energy increases in the prompt emission phase, reaching energies of several MeV. This is the first time such a trend has been seen, and implies that the origin of this component is different from those previously detected. We suggest that the two spectral components likely arise in different regions of the outflow, and that strong constraints can be achieved by assuming one of them originates from the photosphere. The most promising model appears to be that the high-energy peak is the result of photospheric emission in a Poynting flux dominated outflow where the magnetisation increases with time.

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arXiv2014

PoGOLino: a scintillator-based balloon-borne neutron detector

PoGOLino is a balloon-borne scintillator-based experiment developed to study the largely unexplored high altitude neutron environment at high geomagnetic latitudes. The instrument comprises two detectors that make use of LiCAF, a novel neutron sensitive scintillator, sandwiched by BGO crystals for background reduction. The experiment was launched on March 20th 2013 from the Esrange Space Centre, Northern Sweden (geomagnetic latitude of $65^\circ$), for a three hour flight during which the instrument took data up to an altitude of 30.9 km. The detector design and ground calibration results are presented together with the measurement results from the balloon flight.

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arXiv2013

A Balloon-borne Measurement of High Latitude Atmospheric Neutrons Using a LiCAF Neutron Detector

PoGOLino is a scintillator-based neutron detector. Its main purpose is to provide data on the neutron flux in the upper stratosphere at high latitudes at thermal and nonthermal energies for the PoGOLite instrument. PoGOLite is a balloon borne hard X-ray polarimeter for which the main source of background stems from high energy neutrons. No measurements of the neutron environment for the planned flight latitude and altitude exist. Furthermore this neutron environment changes with altitude, latitude and solar activity, three variables that will vary throughout the PoGOLite flight. PoGOLino was developed to study the neutron environment and the influences from these three variables upon it. PoGOLino consists of two Europium doped Lithium Calcium Aluminium Fluoride (Eu:LiCAF) scintillators, each of which is sandwiched between 2 Bismuth Germanium Oxide (BGO) scintillating crystals, which serve to veto signals produced by gamma-rays and charged particles. This allows the neutron flux to be measured even in high radiation environments. Measurements of neutrons in two separate energy bands are achieved by placing one LiCAF detector inside a moderating polyethylene shield while the second detector remains unshielded. The PoGOLino instrument was launched on March 20th 2013 from the Esrange Space Center in Northern Sweden to an altitude of 30.9 km. A description of the detector design and read-out system is presented. A detailed set of simulations of the atmospheric neutron environment performed using both PLANETOCOSMICS and Geant4 will also be described. The comparison of the neutron flux measured during flight to predictions based on these simulations will be presented and the consequences for the PoGOLite background will be discussed.

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arXiv2013

XIPE: the X-ray Imaging Polarimetry Explorer

X-ray polarimetry, sometimes alone, and sometimes coupled to spectral and temporal variability measurements and to imaging, allows a wealth of physical phenomena in astrophysics to be studied. X-ray polarimetry investigates the acceleration process, for example, including those typical of magnetic reconnection in solar flares, but also emission in the strong magnetic fields of neutron stars and white dwarfs. It detects scattering in asymmetric structures such as accretion disks and columns, and in the so-called molecular torus and ionization cones. In addition, it allows fundamental physics in regimes of gravity and of magnetic field intensity not accessible to experiments on the Earth to be probed. Finally, models that describe fundamental interactions (e.g. quantum gravity and the extension of the Standard Model) can be tested. We describe in this paper the X-ray Imaging Polarimetry Explorer (XIPE), proposed in June 2012 to the first ESA call for a small mission with a launch in 2017 but not selected. XIPE is composed of two out of the three existing JET-X telescopes with two Gas Pixel Detectors (GPD) filled with a He-DME mixture at their focus and two additional GPDs filled with pressurized Ar-DME facing the sun. The Minimum Detectable Polarization is 14 % at 1 mCrab in 10E5 s (2-10 keV) and 0.6 % for an X10 class flare. The Half Energy Width, measured at PANTER X-ray test facility (MPE, Germany) with JET-X optics is 24 arcsec. XIPE takes advantage of a low-earth equatorial orbit with Malindi as down-link station and of a Mission Operation Center (MOC) at INPE (Brazil).

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arXiv2013

Variable jet properties in GRB110721A: Time resolved observations of the jet photosphere

{\it Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope} observations of GRB110721A have revealed two emission components from the relativistic jet: emission from the photosphere, peaking at $\sim 100$ keV and a non-thermal component, which peaks at $\sim 1000$ keV. We use the photospheric component to calculate the properties of the relativistic outflow. We find a strong evolution in the flow properties: the Lorentz factor decreases with time during the bursts from $\Gamma \sim 1000$ to $\sim 150$ (assuming a redshift $z=2$; the values are only weakly dependent on unknown efficiency parameters). Such a decrease is contrary to the expectations from the internal shocks and the isolated magnetar birth models. Moreover, the position of the flow nozzle measured from the central engine, $r_0$, increases by more than two orders of magnitude. Assuming a moderately magnetised outflow we estimate that $r_0$ varies from $10^6$ cm to $\sim 10^9$ cm during the burst. We suggest that the maximal value reflects the size of the progenitor core. Finally, we show that these jet properties naturally explain the observed broken power-law decay of the temperature which has been reported as a characteristic for GRB pulses.

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arXiv2012

Balloon-borne hard X-ray polarimetry with PoGOLite

PoGOLite is a hard X-ray polarimeter operating in the 25-100 keV energy band. The instrument design is optimised for the observation of compact astrophysical sources. Observations are conducted from a stabilised stratospheric balloon platform at an altitude of approximately 40 km. The primary targets for first balloon flights of a reduced effective area instrument are the Crab and Cygnus-X1. The polarisation of incoming photons is determined using coincident Compton scattering and photo-absorption events reconstructed in an array of plastic scintillator detector cells surrounded by a bismuth germanate oxide (BGO) side anticoincidence shield and a polyethylene neutron shield. A custom attitude control system keeps the polarimeter field-of-view aligned to targets of interest, compensating for sidereal motion and perturbations such as torsional forces in the balloon rigging. An overview of the PoGOLite project is presented and the outcome of the ill-fated maiden balloon flight is discussed.

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arXiv2011

Observational evidence of dissipative photospheres in gamma-ray bursts

The emission from a gamma-ray burst (GRB) photosphere can give rise to a variety of spectral shapes. The spectrum can retain the shape of a Planck function or it can be broadened and have the shape of a Band function. This fact is best illustrated by studying GRB090902B: The main gamma-ray spectral component is initially close to a Planck function, which can only be explained by emission from the jet photosphere. Later, the same component evolves into a broader Band function. This burst thus provides observational evidence that the photosphere can give rise to a non-thermal spectrum. We show that such a broadening is most naturally explained by subphotospheric dissipation in the jet. The broadening mainly depends on the strength and location of the dissipation, on the magnetic field strength, and on the relation between the energy densities of thermal photons and of the electrons. We suggest that the evolution in spectral shape observed in GRB090902B is due to a decrease of the bulk Lorentz factor of the flow, leading to the main dissipation becoming subphotospheric. Such a change in the flow parameters can also explain the correlation observed between the peak energy of the spectrum and low-energy power law slope, alpha, a correlation commonly observed in GRBs. We conclude that photospheric emission could indeed be a ubiquitous feature during the prompt phase in GRBs and play a decisive role in creating the diverse spectral shapes and spectral evolutions that are observed.

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