arXiv subjects

Felix A. Aharonian

Publications and source records attributed to Felix A. Aharonian.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Acceleration of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays in the kiloparsec-scale jets of nearby radio galaxies

Radio galaxies have long been considered as potential sources of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). Recent analyses of the UHECR spectrum, composition, and arrival directions indicate that the nearest radio galaxy, Centaurus A, could be linked to the reported dipole anisotropy, though the mechanism underlying the acceleration remains elusive. In this Letter, we explore UHECR acceleration in the kiloparsec-scale jets of radio galaxies, exemplified by Centaurus A. Using high-resolution relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic and test-particle simulations without sub-grid physics, we investigate the acceleration of the highest-energy particles in the turbulent sheath of a fast-moving jet. Our findings demonstrate that acceleration close to the maximum theoretical expectation is possible. When extrapolated to nearby radio galaxies, our results suggest that the kiloparsec-scale jets of Centaurus A could account for the dipole anisotropy in UHECRs, while more potent Fanaroff-Riley type II radio galaxies may account for the observed UHECR spectrum with a rigidity cutoff at a few Exavolts.

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arXiv2022

Particle acceleration in shearing flows: the self-generation of turbulent spine-sheath structures in relativistic MHD jet simulations

X-ray observations of several kiloparsec-scale extragalactic jets favour a synchrotron origin. The short cooling times of the emitting electrons requires distributed acceleration of electrons up to sub-PeV energies. In a previous paper, we found that this can be self-consistently explained by a shear acceleration model, where particles are accelerated to produce power-law spectra with a spectral index being determined mainly by the velocity profile and turbulence spectrum. In this paper, we perform 3D relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic simulations to investigate the formation of a spine-sheath structure and the development of turbulence for a relativistic jet propagating into a static cocoon. We explore different spine velocities and magnetic field profiles with values being chosen to match typical Fanaroff-Riley type I/II jets. We find that in all cases a sheath is generated on the interface of the spine and the cocoon mainly due to the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. The large scale velocity profile in the sheath is close to linear. Turbulence develops in both the spine and the sheath, with a turbulent velocity spectrum consistent with Kolmogorov-scaling. The implications for shear particle acceleration are explored, with a focus on the particle spectral index.

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arXiv2021

Does the Geminga, Monogem and PSR J0622+3749 $γ$-ray halos imply slow diffusion around pulsars?

The HAWC Collaboration has reported the detection of an extended $γ$-ray emission around the Geminga and Monogem pulsars of a few degree extension. Very recently, the LHAASO Collaboration released also the data for an extended $γ$-ray emission around the pulsar PSR J0622+3749. This flux can be explained with electrons and positrons injected from these sources and their inverse Compton Scattering on the interstellar radiation fields. So far the size of such $γ-$ray halos has been interpreted as the result of the diffusion coefficient around the sources being about two orders of magnitude smaller than the average in the Galaxy. However, this conclusion is driven by the assumption that particles propagate diffusively right away after the injection without taking into account the ballistic propagation. The propagation of cosmic-ray leptons in the proximity of the Geminga, Monogem and PSR J0622+3749 pulsars is examined here considering the transition from the quasi-ballistic, valid for the most recently injected particles, to the diffusive transport regime. For typical interstellar values of the diffusion coefficient, the quasi-ballistic regime dominates the lepton distribution up to distances of a few tens of parsec from the pulsar for particle energies above $\sim 10$ TeV. In this regime the resulting $γ-$ray source tends to be rather compact, despite particles travel a long distance. Indeed, for larger values of the diffusion coefficient, particles propagate ballistically up to larger distances with the result of a more point-like $γ-$ray source. When such transition is taken into account, a good fit to the HAWC and LHAASO $γ-$ray data around Geminga, Monogem and PSR J0622+3749 is obtained without the need to invoke a strong suppression of the diffusion coefficient.

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arXiv2021

Particle acceleration in shearing flows: the case for large-scale jets

X-ray observations of kilo-parsec scale jets indicate that a synchrotron origin of the sustained non-thermal emission is likely. This requires distributed acceleration of electrons up to near PeV energies along the jet. The underlying acceleration mechanism is still unclear. Shear acceleration is a promising candidate, as velocity-shear stratification is a natural consequence of the collimated flow of a jet. We study the details of shear acceleration by solving the steady-state Fokker-Planck-type equation and provide a simple general solution for trans-relativistic jets for a range of magnetohydrodynamic turbulent power-law spectra. In general, the accelerated particle population is a power-law spectrum with an exponential-like cut-off, where the power-law index is determined by the turbulence spectrum and the balance of escape and acceleration of particles. Adopting a simple linearly decreasing velocity profile in the boundary of large-scale jets, we find that the multi-wavelength spectral energy distribution of X-ray jets, such as Centaurus A and 3C 273, can be reproduced with electrons that are accelerated up to $\sim$ PeV. In kpc-scale jets, protons may be accelerated up to $\sim$ EeV, supporting the hypothesis that large-scale jets are strong candidates for ultra-high-energy-cosmic-ray sources within the framework of shear acceleration.

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arXiv2020

Time Variability of Nonthermal X-ray Stripes in Tycho's Supernova Remnant with Chandra

Analyzing Chandra data of Tycho's supernova remnant (SNR) taken in 2000, 2003, 2007, 2009, and 2015, we search for time variable features of synchrotron X-rays in the southwestern part of the SNR, where stripe structures of hard X-ray emission were previous found. By comparing X-ray images obtained at each epoch, we discover a knot-like structure in the northernmost part of the stripe region became brighter particularly in 2015. We also find a bright filamentary structure gradually became fainter and narrower as it moved outward. Our spectral analysis reveal that not only the nonthermal X-ray flux but also the photon indices of the knot-like structure change from year to year. During the period from 2000 to 2015, the small knot shows brightening of $\sim 70\%$ and hardening of $ΔΓ\sim 0.45$. The time variability can be explained if the magnetic field is amplified to $\sim 100~\mathrm{μG}$ and/or if magnetic turbulence significantly changes with time.

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arXiv2018

NuSTAR Detection of Nonthermal Bremsstrahlung from the Supernova Remnant W49B

We report on NuSTAR observations of the mixed morphology supernova remnant (SNR) W49B, focusing on its nonthermal emission. Whereas radio observations as well as recent gamma-ray observations evidenced particle acceleration in this SNR, nonthermal X-ray emission has not been reported so far. With the unprecedented sensitivity of NuSTAR in the hard X-ray band, we detect a significant power-law-like component extending up to $\sim 20~{\rm keV}$, most probably of nonthermal origin. The newly discovered component has a photon index of $Γ=1.4^{+1.0}_{-1.1}$ with an energy flux between 10 and 20 keV of $(3.3 \pm 0.7) \times 10^{-13}~{\rm erg}~{\rm cm}^{-2}~{\rm s}^{-1}$. The emission mechanism is discussed based on the NuSTAR data combined with those in other wavelengths in the literature. The NuSTAR data, in terms both of the spectral slope and of the flux, are best interpreted as nonthermal electron bremsstrahlung. If this scenario is the case, then the NuSTAR emission provides a new probe to sub-relativistic particles accelerated in the SNR.

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arXiv2017

Hitomi constraints on the 3.5 keV line in the Perseus galaxy cluster

High-resolution X-ray spectroscopy with Hitomi was expected to resolve the origin of the faint unidentified E=3.5 keV emission line reported in several low-resolution studies of various massive systems, such as galaxies and clusters, including the Perseus cluster. We have analyzed the Hitomi first-light observation of the Perseus cluster. The emission line expected for Perseus based on the XMM-Newton signal from the large cluster sample under the dark matter decay scenario is too faint to be detectable in the Hitomi data. However, the previously reported 3.5 keV flux from Perseus was anomalously high compared to the sample-based prediction. We find no unidentified line at the reported high flux level. Taking into account the XMM measurement uncertainties for this region, the inconsistency with Hitomi is at a 99% significance for a broad dark-matter line and at 99.7% for a narrow line from the gas. We do not find anomalously high fluxes of the nearby faint K line or the Ar satellite line that were proposed as explanations for the earlier 3.5 keV detections. We do find a hint of a broad excess near the energies of high-n transitions of Sxvi (E=3.44 keV rest-frame) -- a possible signature of charge exchange in the molecular nebula and another proposed explanation for the unidentified line. While its energy is consistent with XMM pn detections, it is unlikely to explain the MOS signal. A confirmation of this interesting feature has to wait for a more sensitive observation with a future calorimeter experiment.

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arXiv2016

Indication of a Local "Fog" of Sub-Ankle UHECR

During their propagation through intergalactic space, ultrahigh energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) interact with the background radiation fields. These interactions give rise to energetic electron/positron pairs and photons which in turn feed electromagnetic cascades, contributing to the isotropic gamma-ray background (IGRB). The gamma-ray flux level generated in this way highly depends upon the UHECR propagation distance, as well as the evolution of their sources with redshift. Recently, the Fermi-LAT collaboration reported that the majority of the total extragalactic gamma-ray flux originates from extragalactic point sources. This posits a stringent upper limit on the IGRB generated via UHECR propagation, and subsequently constrains their abundance in the distant Universe. Focusing on the contribution of UHECR at energies below the ankle within a narrow energy band ($(1-4)\times 10^{18}$eV), we calculate the diffuse gamma-ray flux generated through UHECR propagation, normalizing the total cosmic ray energy budget in this band to that measured. We find that in order to not over-produce the new IGRB limit, a local "fog" of UHECR produced by nearby sources may exist, with a possible non-negligible contribution from our Galaxy. Following the assumption that a given fraction of the observed IGRB at 820GeV originates from UHECR, we obtain a constraint on the maximum distance for the majority of their sources. With other unresolved source populations still contaminating the new IGRB limit, and UHECR above the ankle invariably contributing also to this background, the results presented here are rather conservative.

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arXiv2014

Hadronic gamma-rays from RX J1713.7-3946?

RXJ1713.7-3946 is a key object to check the supernova remnant paradigm of the origin of Galactic cosmic rays. While the origin of its gamma-ray emission (hadronic versus leptonic) is still debated, the hard spectrum at GeV energies reported by the Fermi collaboration is generally interpreted as a strong argument in favor of a leptonic scenario. On the contrary, we show that hadronic interactions can naturally explain the gamma-ray spectrum if gas clumps are present in the supernova remnant shell. The absence of thermal X-rays from the remnant fits well within this scenario.

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arXiv2014

Simple analytical approximations for treatment of inverse Compton scattering of relativistic electrons in the black-body radiation field

The inverse Compton (IC) scattering of relativistic electrons is one of the major gamma-ray production mechanisms in different environments. Often the target photons for the IC scattering are dominated by black (or grey) body radiation. In this case, the precise treatment of the characteristics of IC radiation requires numerical integrations over the Planckian distribution. Formally, analytical integrations are also possible but they result in series of several special functions; this limits the efficiency of usage of these expressions. The aim of this work is the derivation of approximate analytical presentations which would provide adequate accuracy for the calculations of the energy spectra of up-scattered radiation, the rate of electron energy losses, and the mean energy of emitted photons. Such formulae have been obtained by merging the analytical asymptotic limits. The coefficients in these expressions are calculated via the least square fitting of the results of numerical integrations. The simple analytical presentations, obtained for both the isotropic and anisotropic target radiation fields, provide adequate (as good as $1\%$) accuracy for broad astrophysical applications.

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arXiv2013

On the Jitter Radiation

In a small scale turbulent medium, when the nonrelativistic Larmor radius $R_{\rm L}=mc^2/eB$ exceeds the correlation length $λ$ of the magnetic field, the magnetic bremsstrahlung of charged relativistic particles unavoidably proceeds in the so-called jitter radiation regime. The cooling timescale of parent particles is identical to the synchrotron cooling time, thus this radiation regime can be produced with very high efficiency in different astrophysical sources characterized by high turbulence. The jitter radiation has distinct spectral features shifted, compared to synchrotron radiation, towards high energies. This makes the jitter mechanism an attractive broad-band gamma-ray production channel which in highly magnetized and turbulent environments can compete or even dominate over other high energy radiation mechanisms. In this paper we present a novel study on spectral properties of the jitter radiation performed within the framework of perturbation theory. The derived general expression for the spectral power of radiation is presented in a compact and convenient for numerical calculations form.

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arXiv2013

TeV Astronomy

With the successful realization of the current-generation of ground-based detectors, TeV Astronomy has entered into a new era. We review recent advances in VHE astronomy, focusing on the potential of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs), and highlight astrophysical implications of the results obtained within recent years.

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arXiv2012

Interpretation of the flares of M87 at TeV energies in the cloud-jet interaction scenario

Active galactic nuclei with misaligned jets have been recently established as a class of high-energy gamma-ray sources. M87, a nearby representative of this class, shows fast TeV variability on timescales less than one day. We present calculations performed in the framework of the scenario in which gamma-ray flares in non-blazar active galactic nuclei are produced by a red giant or a gas cloud interacting with the jet. We show that both the light curve and energy spectrum of the spectacular April 2010 flare can be reproduced by this model, assuming that a relatively massive cloud of approx 1.e29 g penetrates into the jet at few tens of Schwarzschild radii from the super-massive black hole.

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arXiv2012

The need for a local source of UHE CR nuclei

Recent results of the Pierre Auger (Auger) fluorescence detectors indicate an increasingly heavy composition of ultra-high energy (UHE) cosmic rays (CRs). Assuming that this trend continues up to the highest energies observed by the Auger surface detectors we derive the constraints this places on the local source distribution of UHE CR nuclei. Utilizing an analytic description of UHE CR propagation we derive the expected spectra and composition for a wide range of source emission spectra. We find that sources of intermediate-to-heavy nuclei are consistent with the observed spectra and composition data above the ankle. This consistency requires the presence of nearby sources within 60 Mpc and 80 Mpc for silicon and iron only sources, respectively. The necessity of these local sources becomes even more compelling in the presence nano-Gauss local extragalactic magnetic fields.

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arXiv2012

Magnetic substructure in the northern Fermi Bubble revealed by polarized WMAP emission

We report a correspondence between giant, polarized microwave structures emerging north from the Galactic plane near the Galactic center and a number of GeV gamma-ray features, including the eastern edge of the recently-discovered northern Fermi Bubble. The polarized microwave features also correspond to structures seen in the all-sky 408 MHz total intensity data, including the Galactic center spur. The magnetic field structure revealed by the polarization data at 23 GHz suggests that neither the emission coincident with the Bubble edge nor the Galactic center spur are likely to be features of the local ISM. On the basis of the observed morphological correspondences, similar inferred spectra, and the similar energetics of all sources, we suggest a direct connection between the Galactic center spur and the northern Fermi Bubble.

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arXiv2011

Rapid TeV variability in Blazars as result of Jet-Star Interaction

We propose a new model for the description of ultra-short flares from TeV blazars by compact magnetized condensations (blobs), produced when red giant stars cross the jet close to the central black hole. Our study includes a simple dynamical model for the evolution of the envelope lost by the star in the jet, and its high energy nonthermal emission through different leptonic and hadronic radiation mechanisms. We show that the fragmented envelope of the star can be accelerated to Lorentz factors up to 100 and radiate effectively the available energy in gamma-rays predominantly through proton synchrotron radiation or external inverse Compton scattering of electrons. The model can readily explain the minute-scale TeV flares on top of longer (typical time-scales of days) gamma-ray variability as observed from the blazar PKS 2155-304. In the framework of the proposed scenario, the key parameters of the source are robustly constrained. In the case of proton synchrotron origin of the emission a mass of the central black hole of $M_{\rm BH}\approx 10^8 M_{\odot}$, a total jet power of $L_{\rm j} \approx 2\times 10^{47} \, \rm erg\,s^{-1}$ and a Doppler factor, of the gamma-ray emitting blobs, of $δ\geq 40$ are required. Whilst for the external inverse Compton model, parameters of $M_{\rm BH}\approx 10^8 M_{\odot}$, $L_{\rm j} \approx 10^{46} \, \rm erg\,s^{-1}$ and the $δ\geq 150$ are required.

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arXiv2011

Modeling the hard TeV spectra of blazars 1ES 0229+200 and 3C 66A with an internal absorption scenario

We study the applicability of the idea of internal absorption of gamma-rays produced through synchrotron radiation of ultrarelativistic protons in highly magnetized blobs to 1ES 0229+200 and 3C 66A, the two TeV blazars which show unusually hard intrinsic gamma-ray spectra after being corrected for the intergalactic absorption. We show that for certain combinations of reasonable model parameters, even with quite modest energy requirements, the scenario allows a self-consistent explanation of the non-thermal emission of these objects in the keV, GeV, and TeV energy bands.

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arXiv2011

Molecular Clouds as Cosmic Ray Laboratories

We will here discuss how the gamma-ray emission from molecular clouds can be used to probe the cosmic ray flux in distant regions of the Galaxy and to constrain the highly unknown cosmic ray diffusion coefficient. In particular we will discuss the GeV to TeV emission from runaway cosmic rays penetrating molecular clouds close to young and old supernova remnants and in molecular clouds illuminated by the background cosmic ray flux.

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