scholarly journals Inverse Compton signatures of gamma-ray burst afterglows

2020 ◽  
Vol 496 (1) ◽  
pp. 974-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Zhang ◽  
I M Christie ◽  
M Petropoulou ◽  
J M Rueda-Becerril ◽  
D Giannios
Keyword(s):  
Blast Wave ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Light Attenuation ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Late Time ◽  
Photon Field ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Infrared Photon

ABSTRACT The afterglow emission from gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) is believed to originate from a relativistic blast wave driven into the circumburst medium. Although the afterglow emission from radio up to X-ray frequencies is thought to originate from synchrotron radiation emitted by relativistic, non-thermal electrons accelerated by the blast wave, the origin of the emission at high energies (HE; ≳GeV) remains uncertain. The recent detection of sub-TeV emission from GRB 190114C by the Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov Telescopes (MAGIC) raises further debate on what powers the very high energy (VHE; ≳300 GeV) emission. Here, we explore the inverse Compton scenario as a candidate for the HE and VHE emissions, considering two sources of seed photons for scattering: synchrotron photons from the blast wave (synchrotron self-Compton or SSC) and isotropic photon fields external to the blast wave (external Compton). For each case, we compute the multiwavelength afterglow spectra and light curves. We find that SSC will dominate particle cooling and the GeV emission, unless a dense ambient infrared photon field, typical of star-forming regions, is present. Additionally, considering the extragalactic background light attenuation, we discuss the detectability of VHE afterglows by existing and future gamma-ray instruments for a wide range of model parameters. Studying GRB 190114C, we find that its afterglow emission in the Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT) band is synchrotron dominated. The late-time Fermi-LAT measurement (i.e. t ∼ 104 s), and the MAGIC observation also set an upper limit on the energy density of a putative external infrared photon field (i.e. ${\lesssim} 3\times 10^{-9}\, {\rm erg\, cm^{-3}}$), making the inverse Compton dominant in the sub-TeV energies.

scholarly journals e±-rich GRB Fireball and Infrared Flashes

2003 ◽  
Vol 214 ◽  
pp. 331-332
Author(s):  
Zhuo Li ◽  
Z. G. Dai ◽  
T. Lu
Keyword(s):  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Lorentz Factor ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Gamma Ray Bursts ◽  
Rapid Response ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Very High Energy ◽  
Very High

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are believed to originate from ultra-relativistic fireballs, with initial Lorentz factor η ∼ 102 − 103. However very high energy photons may still suffer from γγ interaction. We show here that in a wide range of model parameters, the resulting pairs may dominate electrons associated with the fireball baryons. This may provide an explanation for the rarity of prompt optical detections. A rapid response to the GRB trigger at the IR band would detect such a strong flash.

KLEIN–NISHINA EFFECTS IN THE PROMPT AND EXTENDED HIGH-ENERGY GAMMA-RAY EMISSION OF GAMMA-RAY BURSTS

2011 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 2023-2027 ◽  
Author(s):  
XIANG-YU WANG ◽  
HAO-NING HE ◽  
ZHUO LI
Keyword(s):  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Early Time ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Gamma Ray Bursts ◽  
Low Energy ◽  
Large Area ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Energy Gamma ◽  
Gamma Ray Emission

Prompt and extended high-energy (> 100 MeV) gamma-ray emission has been observed from more than ten gamma-ray bursts by Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). Such emission is likely to be produced by synchrotron radiation of electrons accelerated in internal or external shocks. We show that IC scattering of these electrons with synchrotron photons are typically in the Klein–Nishina (KN) regime. For the prompt emission, the KN effect can suppress the IC component and as a result, one single component is seen in some strong bursts. The KN inverse-Compton cooling may also affect the low-energy electron number distribution and hence result in a hard low-energy synchrotron photon spectrum. During the afterglow, KN effect makes the Compton-Y parameter generally less than 1 in the first seconds for a wide range of parameter space. Furthermore, we suggest that the KN effect can explain the somewhat faster-than-expected decay of the early-time high-energy emission observed in GRB090510 and GRB090902B.

scholarly journals Cosmic-ray acceleration and escape from post-adiabatic supernova remnants

2020 ◽  
Vol 634 ◽  
pp. A59 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Brose ◽  
M. Pohl ◽  
I. Sushch ◽  
O. Petruk ◽  
T. Kuzyo
Keyword(s):  
Cosmic Rays ◽  
Supernova Remnants ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Transport Equations ◽  
Low Density ◽  
Magnetic Turbulence ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Inverse Compton

Context. Supernova remnants are known to accelerate cosmic rays on account of their nonthermal emission of radio waves, X-rays, and gamma rays. Although there are many models for the acceleration of cosmic rays in supernova remnants, the escape of cosmic rays from these sources has not yet been adequately studied. Aims. We aim to use our time-dependent acceleration code RATPaC to study the acceleration of cosmic rays and their escape in post-adiabatic supernova remnants and calculate the subsequent gamma-ray emission from inverse-Compton scattering and Pion decay. Methods. We performed spherically symmetric 1D simulations in which we simultaneously solved the transport equations for cosmic rays, magnetic turbulence, and the hydrodynamical flow of the thermal plasma in a volume large enough to keep all cosmic rays in the simulation. The transport equations for cosmic rays and magnetic turbulence were coupled via the cosmic-ray gradient and the spatial diffusion coefficient of the cosmic rays, while the cosmic-ray feedback onto the shock structure can be ignored. Our simulations span 100 000 years, thus covering the free-expansion, the Sedov–Taylor, and the beginning of the post-adiabatic phase of the remnant’s evolution. Results. At later stages of the evolution, cosmic rays over a wide range of energy can reside outside of the remnant, creating spectra that are softer than predicted by standard diffusive shock acceleration, and feature breaks in the 10 − 100 GeV-range. The total spectrum of cosmic rays released into the interstellar medium has a spectral index of s ≈ 2.4 above roughly 10 GeV which is close to that required by Galactic propagation models. We further find the gamma-ray luminosity to peak around an age of 4000 years for inverse-Compton-dominated high-energy emission. Remnants expanding in low-density media generally emit more inverse-Compton radiation, matching the fact that the brightest known supernova remnants – RCW86, Vela Jr., HESS J1731−347 and RX J1713.7−3946 – are all expanding in low density environments.

GAMMA-RAY BURSTS AS VHE-UHE SOURCES

2008 ◽  
Vol 17 (09) ◽  
pp. 1319-1332
Author(s):  
PETER MÉSZÁROS
Keyword(s):  
Cosmic Rays ◽  
Gamma Rays ◽  
Lower Energy ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Gamma Ray Bursts ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Fundamental Interaction ◽  
Acceleration Mechanism ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Tev Gamma Rays

Gamma-ray bursts are capable of accelerating cosmic rays up to GZK energies Ep ~ 1020 eV, which can lead to a flux at Earth comparable to that observed by large EAS arrays such as Auger. The semi-relativistic outflows inferred in GRB-related hypernovae are also likely sources of somewhat lower energy cosmic rays. Leptonic processes, such as synchrotron and inverse Compton, as well as hadronic processes, can lead to GeV-TeV gamma-rays measurable by GLAST, AGILE, or ACTs, providing useful probes of the burst physics and model parameters. Photo-meson interactions also produce neutrinos at energies ranging from sub-TeV to EeV, which will be probed with forthcoming experiments such as IceCube, ANITA and KM3NeT. This would provide information about the fundamental interaction physics, the acceleration mechanism, the nature of the sources and their environment.

scholarly journals Gamma-ray production in selected Wolf-Rayet binaries

2003 ◽  
Vol 212 ◽  
pp. 150-151
Author(s):  
Paula Benaglia ◽  
Gustavo E. Romero
Keyword(s):  
Particle Acceleration ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Thermal Flux ◽  
Detection Threshold ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Early Type ◽  
Acceleration Region ◽  
Thermal Radio Emission ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Γ Ray

In the colliding wind region of early-type binaries, electrons can be accelerated up to relativistic energies, as demonstrated by the detection of non-thermal radio emission from several WR+OB systems. The particle acceleration region is exposed to strong photon fields, and inverse-Compton cooling of the electrons could result in a substantial high-energy non-thermal flux. We present here preliminary results of a study of the binaries WR 140, WR 146, and WR 147 in the light of recent radio and γ-ray observations. We show that under reasonable assumptions WR 140 can produce the γ-ray flux from the GRO-egret source 3EG J 2022+4317. WR 146 and WR 147 are below the detection threshold.

scholarly journals High-energy emission from transients

2013 ◽  
Vol 371 (1992) ◽  
pp. 20120279 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Hinton ◽  
R. L. C. Starling
Keyword(s):  
Particle Acceleration ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Supernova Remnants ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Experimental Situation ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Galactic Cosmic Rays ◽  
Time Variable ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Cosmic Explosions

Cosmic explosions dissipate energy into their surroundings on a very wide range of time scales: producing shock waves and associated particle acceleration. The historical culprits for the acceleration of the bulk of Galactic cosmic rays are supernova remnants: explosions on approximately 10 4 year time scales. Increasingly, however, time-variable emission points to rapid and efficient particle acceleration in a range of different astrophysical systems. Gamma-ray bursts have the shortest time scales, with inferred bulk Lorentz factors of approximately 1000 and photons emitted beyond 100 GeV, but active galaxies, pulsar wind nebulae and colliding stellar winds are all now associated with time-variable emission at approximately teraelectron volt energies. Cosmic photons and neutrinos at these energies offer a powerful probe of the underlying physical mechanisms of cosmic explosions, and a tool for exploring fundamental physics with these systems. Here, we discuss the motivations for high-energy observations of transients, the current experimental situation, and the prospects for the next decade, with particular reference to the major next-generation high-energy observatory, the Cherenkov Telescope Array.

scholarly journals Optical Monitoring of Gamma-Ray Loud Blazars

1996 ◽  
Vol 175 ◽  
pp. 287-288
Author(s):  
C.M. Raiteri ◽  
G. Ghisellini ◽  
M. Villata ◽  
G. DE FRANCESCO ◽  
S. Bosio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gamma Ray ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Significant Fraction ◽  
Optical Monitoring ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Theoretical Predictions ◽  
Γ Ray ◽  
Uv Photons ◽  
High Energy Particles ◽  
Crucial Test

The observations by the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) have shown that highly variable and radio-loud quasars emit a significant fraction of their energy in the γ band. According to the Inverse Compton model, the γ-ray emission is due to upscattering of soft (IR-optical-UV) photons by high energy particles. Optical monitoring is thus of great value in providing information on the mechanisms that rule the production of the seed photons for the γ-ray radiation and on the γ-ray emission itself. In particular, detection of variability correlations between optical and γ-ray emissions would be a crucial test for the theoretical predictions.

scholarly journals Gamma rays from jets interacting with BLR clouds in blazars

2019 ◽  
Vol 623 ◽  
pp. A101 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. del Palacio ◽  
V. Bosch-Ramon ◽  
G. E. Romero
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Emission ◽  
Strong Shock ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Broad Line ◽  
High Energy Radiation ◽  
Broad Line Region ◽  
Photon Field ◽  
Cloud Dynamics ◽  
Line Region ◽  
Inverse Compton

Context. The innermost parts of powerful jets in active galactic nuclei are surrounded by dense, high-velocity clouds from the broad-line region, which may penetrate into the jet and lead to the formation of a strong shock. Such jet-cloud interactions are expected to have measurable effects on the γ-ray emission from blazars. Aims. We characterise the dynamics of a typical cloud-jet interaction scenario, and the evolution of its radiative output in the 0.1–30 GeV energy range, to assess to what extent these interactions can contribute to the γ-ray emission in blazars. Methods. We use semi-analytical descriptions of the jet-cloud dynamics, taking into account the expansion of the cloud inside the jet and its acceleration. Assuming that electrons are accelerated in the interaction and making use of the hydrodynamical information, we then compute the high-energy radiation from the cloud, including the absorption of γ-rays in the ambient photon field through pair creation. Results. Jet-cloud interactions can lead to significant γ-ray fluxes in blazars with a broad-line region (BLR), in particular when the cloud expansion and acceleration inside the jet are taken into account. This is caused by 1) the increased shocked area in the jet, which leads to an increase in the energy budget for the non-thermal emission; 2) a more efficient inverse Compton cooling with the boosted photon field of the BLR; and 3) an increased observer luminosity due to Doppler boosting effects. Conclusions. For typical broad-line region parameters, either (i) jet-cloud interactions contribute significantly to the persistent γ-ray emission from blazars or (ii) the BLR is far from spherical or the fraction of energy deposited in non-thermal electrons is small.

scholarly journals Kinetic beaming in radiative relativistic magnetic reconnection: a mechanism for rapid gamma-ray flares in jets

2020 ◽  
Vol 498 (1) ◽  
pp. 799-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
J M Mehlhaff ◽  
G R Werner ◽  
D A Uzdensky ◽  
M C Begelman
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Reconnection ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Particle In Cell ◽  
Pair Plasma ◽  
Spectrum Radio ◽  
Inverse Compton ◽  
Emission Models ◽  
The One

ABSTRACT Rapid gamma-ray flares pose an astrophysical puzzle, requiring mechanisms both to accelerate energetic particles and to produce fast observed variability. These dual requirements may be satisfied by collisionless relativistic magnetic reconnection. On the one hand, relativistic reconnection can energize gamma-ray emitting electrons. On the other hand, as previous kinetic simulations have shown, the reconnection acceleration mechanism preferentially focuses high energy particles – and their emitted photons – into beams, which may create rapid blips in flux as they cross a telescope’s line of sight. Using a series of 2D pair-plasma particle-in-cell simulations, we explicitly demonstrate the critical role played by radiative (specifically inverse Compton) cooling in mediating the observable signatures of this ‘kinetic beaming’ effect. Only in our efficiently cooled simulations do we measure kinetic beaming beyond one light crossing time of the reconnection layer. We find a correlation between the cooling strength and the photon energy range across which persistent kinetic beaming occurs: stronger cooling coincides with a wider range of beamed photon energies. We also apply our results to rapid gamma-ray flares in flat-spectrum radio quasars, suggesting that a paradigm of radiatively efficient kinetic beaming constrains relevant emission models. In particular, beaming-produced variability may be more easily realized in two-zone (e.g. spine-sheath) set-ups, with Compton seed photons originating in the jet itself, rather than in one-zone external Compton scenarios.

scholarly journals GRB 030329: 3 years of radio afterglow monitoring

2007 ◽  
Vol 365 (1854) ◽  
pp. 1241-1246 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.J van der Horst ◽  
A Kamble ◽  
R.A.M.J Wijers ◽  
L Resmi ◽  
D Bhattacharya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blast Wave ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Ambient Medium ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Blast Waves ◽  
Physical Parameters ◽  
Late Time ◽  
Wave Band ◽  
Radio Telescopes ◽  
Relativistic Phase

Radio observations of gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows are essential for our understanding of the physics of relativistic blast waves, as they enable us to follow the evolution of GRB explosions much longer than the afterglows in any other wave band. We have performed a 3-year monitoring campaign of GRB 030329 with the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescopes and the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope. Our observations, combined with observations at other wavelengths, have allowed us to determine the GRB blast wave physical parameters, such as the total burst energy and the ambient medium density, as well as to investigate the jet nature of the relativistic outflow. Further, by modelling the late-time radio light curve of GRB 030329, we predict that the Low-Frequency Array (30–240 MHz) will be able to observe afterglows of similar GRBs, and constrain the physics of the blast wave during its non-relativistic phase.

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