The diffuse extragalactic background light consists of the sum of the starlight emitted by galaxies through the history of the Universe, and it could also have an important contribution from the ...‘first stars’, which may have formed before galaxy formation began. Direct measurements are difficult and not yet conclusive, owing to the large uncertainties caused by the bright foreground emission associated with zodiacal light. An alternative approach is to study the absorption features imprinted on the γ-ray spectra of distant extragalactic objects by interactions of those photons with the background light photons. Here we report the discovery of γ-ray emission from the blazars H 2356 - 309 and 1ES 1101 - 232, at redshifts z = 0.165 and z = 0.186, respectively. Their unexpectedly hard spectra provide an upper limit on the background light at optical/near-infrared wavelengths that appears to be very close to the lower limit given by the integrated light of resolved galaxies. The background flux at these wavelengths accordingly seems to be strongly dominated by the direct starlight from galaxies, thus excluding a large contribution from other sources—in particular from the first stars formed. This result also indicates that intergalactic space is more transparent to γ-rays than previously thought.
Relativistically colliding plasma is modeled by particle-in-cell simulations in one and two spatial dimensions, with an ion-to-electron mass ratio of 400 and a temperature of 100 keV. The energy of ...an initial quasi- parallel magnetic field is 1% of the plasma kinetic energy. Energy dissipation by a growing wave pulse of mixed polarity, probably an oblique whistler wave, and different densities of the colliding plasma slabs result in the formation of an energetic electromagnetic structure within milliseconds. The structure, which develops for an initial collision speed of 0.9c, accelerates electrons to Lorentz factors of several hundred. A downstream region forms, separating the forward and reverse shocks. In this region, the plasma approaches an energy equipartition between electrons, ions, and the magnetic field. The electron energy spectrum image resembles a power law at high energies, with an exponent close to -2.7, or image. The magnetic field reflects upstream ions, which form a beam and drag the electrons along to preserve the plasma quasineutrality. The forward and reverse shocks are asymmetric due to the unequal slab densities. The forward shock may be representative for the internal shocks of gamma-ray bursts.
The source of Galactic cosmic rays (with energies up to 1015 eV) remains unclear, although it is widely believed that they originate in the shock waves of expanding supernova remnants. At present the ...best way to investigate their acceleration and propagation is by observing the γ-rays produced when cosmic rays interact with interstellar gas. Here we report observations of an extended region of very-high-energy (> 1011 eV) γ-ray emission correlated spatially with a complex of giant molecular clouds in the central 200 parsecs of the Milky Way. The hardness of the γ-ray spectrum and the conditions in those molecular clouds indicate that the cosmic rays giving rise to the γ-rays are likely to be protons and nuclei rather than electrons. The energy associated with the cosmic rays could have come from a single supernova explosion around 104 years ago.
We derive an analytic expression for the power transferred from interstellar turbulence to the Galactic cosmic rays in propagation models which include re-acceleration. This is used to estimate the ...power required in such models and the relative importance of the primary acceleration as against re-acceleration. The analysis provides a formal mathematical justification for Fermi's heuristic account of second-order acceleration in his classic 1949 paper.
Context. The prompt emissions of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are seeded by radiating ultrarelativistic electrons. Kinetic energy dominated internal shocks propagating through a jet launched by a stellar ...implosion, are expected to dually amplify the magnetic field and accelerate electrons. Aims. We explore the effects of density asymmetry and of a quasi-parallel magnetic field on the collision of two plasma clouds. Methods. A two-dimensional relativistic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation models the collision with 0.9c of two plasma clouds, in the presence of a quasi-parallel magnetic field. The cloud density ratio is 10. The densities of ions and electrons and the temperature of 131 keV are equal in each cloud, and the mass ratio is 250. The peak Lorentz factor of the electrons is determined, along with the orientation and the strength of the magnetic field at the cloud collision boundary. Results. The magnetic field component orthogonal to the initial plasma flow direction is amplified to values that exceed those expected from the shock compression by over an order of magnitude. The forming shock is quasi-perpendicular due to this amplification, caused by a current sheet which develops in response to the differing deflection of the upstream electrons and ions incident on the magnetised shock transition layer. The electron deflection implies a charge separation of the upstream electrons and ions; the resulting electric field drags the electrons through the magnetic field, whereupon they acquire a relativistic mass comparable to that of the ions. We demonstrate how a magnetic field structure resembling the cross section of a flux tube grows self-consistently in the current sheet of the shock transition layer. Plasma filamentation develops behind the shock front, as well as signatures of orthogonal magnetic field striping, indicative of the filamentation instability. These magnetic fields convect away from the shock boundary and their energy density exceeds by far the thermal pressure of the plasma. Localized magnetic bubbles form. Conclusions. Energy equipartition between the ion, electron and magnetic energy is obtained at the shock transition layer. The electronic radiation can provide a seed photon population that can be energized by secondary processes (e.g. inverse Compton).
Starburst galaxies exhibit in their central regions a highly increased rate of supernovae, the remnants of which are thought to accelerate energetic cosmic rays up to energies of approximately 10¹⁵ ...electron volts. We report the detection of gamma rays--tracers of such cosmic rays--from the starburst galaxy NGC 253 using the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) array of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes. The gamma-ray flux above 220 billion electron volts is F = (5.5 ± 1.0stat ± 2.8sys) x 10⁻¹³ cm⁻² s⁻¹, implying a cosmic-ray density about three orders of magnitude larger than that in the center of the Milky Way. The fraction of cosmic-ray energy channeled into gamma rays in this starburst environment is five times as large as that in our Galaxy.
Context. Plasma processes close to supernova remnant shocks result in the amplification of magnetic fields and in the acceleration of electrons, injecting them into the diffusive acceleration ...mechanism.
Aims. The acceleration of electrons and the magnetic field amplification by the collision of two plasma clouds, each consisting of electrons and ions, at a speed of 0.5c is investigated. A quasi-parallel guiding magnetic field, a cloud density ratio of 10 and a plasma temperature of 25 keV are considered.
Methods. A relativistic and electromagnetic particle-in-cell simulation models the plasma in two spatial dimensions employing an ion-to-electron mass ratio of 400.
Results. A quasi-planar shock forms at the front of the dense plasma cloud. It is mediated by a circularly left-hand polarized electromagnetic wave with an electric field component along the guiding magnetic field. Its propagation direction is close to that of the guiding field and orthogonal to the collision boundary. It has a frequency too low to be determined during the simulation time and a wavelength that equals several times the ion inertial length. These properties would be indicative of a dispersive Alfvén wave close to the ion cyclotron resonance frequency of the left-handed mode, known as the ion whistler, provided that the frequency is appropriate. However, it moves with the super-alfvénic plasma collision speed, suggesting that it is an Alfvén precursor or a nonlinear MHD wave such as a Short Large-Amplitude Magnetic Structure (SLAMS). The growth of the magnetic amplitude of this wave to values well in excess of those of the quasi-parallel guiding field and of the filamentation modes results in a quasi-perpendicular shock. We present evidence for the instability of this mode to a four wave interaction. The waves developing upstream of the dense cloud give rise to electron acceleration ahead of the collision boundary. Energy equipartition between the ions and the electrons is established at the shock and the electrons are accelerated to relativistic speeds.
Conclusions. The magnetic fields in the foreshock of supernova remnant shocks can be amplified substantially and electrons can be injected into the diffusive acceleration, if strongly magnetised plasma subshells are present in the foreshock, with velocities an order of magnitude faster than the main shell.
The flat spectrum radio quasar 3C 279 is known to exhibit pronounced variability in the high-energy (100 MeV < E < 100 GeV) γ-ray band, which is continuously monitored with Fermi-LAT. During two ...periods of high activity in April 2014 and June 2015 target-of-opportunity observations were undertaken with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) in the very-high-energy (VHE, E > 100 GeV) γ-ray domain. While the observation in 2014 provides an upper limit, the observation in 2015 results in a signal with 8.7σ significance above an energy threshold of 66 GeV. No VHE variability was detected during the 2015 observations. The VHE photon spectrum is soft and described by a power-law index of 4.2 ± 0.3. The H.E.S.S. data along with a detailed and contemporaneous multiwavelength data set provide constraints on the physical parameters of the emission region. The minimum distance of the emission region from the central black hole was estimated using two plausible geometries of the broad-line region and three potential intrinsic spectra. The emission region is confidently placed at r ≳ 1.7 × 1017 cm from the black hole, that is beyond the assumed distance of the broad-line region. Time-dependent leptonic and lepto-hadronic one-zone models were used to describe the evolution of the 2015 flare. Neither model can fully reproduce the observations, despite testing various parameter sets. Furthermore, the H.E.S.S. data were used to derive constraints on Lorentz invariance violation given the large redshift of 3C 279.
The expansion of a dense plasma through a more rarefied ionized medium has been studied by means of two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. The initial conditions involve a density jump by a ...factor of 100, located in the middle of an otherwise equally dense electron-proton plasma with uniform proton and electron temperatures of 10 eV and 1keV, respectively. Simulations show the creation of a purely electrostatic collisionless shock together with an ion-acoustic soliton tied to its downstream region. The shock front is seen to evolve in filamentary structures consistently with the onset of the ion-ion instability. Meanwhile, an un-magnetized drift instability is triggered in the core part of the dense plasma. Such results explain recent laser-plasma experiments, carried out in similar conditions, and are of intrinsic relevance to non-relativistic shock scenarios in the solar and astrophysical systems.
Gamma-ray bursts are associated with relativistic plasma flow and intense X-ray and soft gamma-ray emissions. We perform particle-in-cell simulations to explore the growth and saturation of waves ...driven by the electrostatic two-stream instability that may contribute to the thermalization of the relativistic plasma flows and to the electromagnetic emissions. We evolve self-consistently the instability driven by two charge-neutral and cool interpenetrating beams of electrons and protons that move at a relative Lorentz factor of 100. We perform three simulations with the beam density ratios of 1, 2 and 10. The simulations show that the electrostatic waves saturate by trapping the electrons of only one beam and that the saturated electrostatic wave fields spatially modulate the mean momentum of the second beam, while retaining its temperature. Cavities form in the charge density of the latter beam which, in turn, compress the electrostatic waves to higher intensities. A runaway process develops that terminates with the collapse of the waves and the development of an exponential electron high-energy tail. We bring forward evidence that this energetic tail interacts stochastically with the charge density fluctuations of the relativistic proton beam. In response, an electron momentum distribution develops that follows an inverse power law up to a spectral break at four times the beam Lorentz factor.
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