7,251 research outputs found
Gamma Rays from Star Formation in Clusters of Galaxies
Star formation in galaxies is observed to be associated with gamma-ray
emission. The detection of gamma rays from star-forming galaxies by the Fermi
Large Area Telescope (LAT) has allowed the determination of a functional
relationship between star formation rate and gamma-ray luminosity (Ackermann
et. al. 2012). Since star formation is known to scale with total infrared
(8-1000 micrometers) and radio (1.4 GHz) luminosity, the observed infrared and
radio emission from a star-forming galaxy can be used to quantitatively infer
the galaxy's gamma-ray luminosity. Similarly, star forming galaxies within
galaxy clusters allow us to derive lower limits on the gamma-ray emission from
clusters, which have not yet been conclusively detected in gamma rays. In this
study we apply the relationships between gamma-ray luminosity and radio and IR
luminosities derived in Ackermann et. al. 2012 to a sample of galaxy clusters
from Ackermann et. al. 2010 in order to place lower limits on the gamma-ray
emission associated with star formation in galaxy clusters. We find that
several clusters have predicted lower limits on gamma-ray emission that are
within an order of magnitude of the upper limits derived in Ackermann et. al.
2010 based on non-detection by Fermi-LAT. Given the current gamma-ray limits,
star formation likely plays a significant role in the gamma-ray emission in
some clusters, especially those with cool cores. We predict that both Fermi-LAT
over the course of its lifetime and the future Cherenkov Telescope Array will
be able to detect gamma-ray emission from star-forming galaxies in clusters.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figures, 2 tables. Minor revisions made to match version
accepted to Ap
Constraints on Decaying Dark Matter from Fermi Observations of Nearby Galaxies and Clusters
We analyze the impact of Fermi gamma-ray observations (primarily
non-detections) of selected nearby galaxies, including dwarf spheroidals, and
of clusters of galaxies on decaying dark matter models. We show that the fact
that galaxy clusters do not shine in gamma rays puts the most stringent limits
available to-date on the lifetime of dark matter particles for a wide range of
particle masses and decay final states. In particular, our results put strong
constraints on the possibility of ascribing to decaying dark matter both the
increasing positron fraction reported by PAMELA and the high-energy feature in
the electron-positron spectrum measured by Fermi. Observations of nearby dwarf
galaxies and of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) do not provide as strong limits as
those from galaxy clusters, while still improving on previous constraints in
some cases.Comment: 27 pages, 5 figures, submitted to JCAP, revised version with some
additions and correction
A method for comparing non-nested models with application to astrophysical searches for new physics
Searches for unknown physics and decisions between competing astrophysical
models to explain data both rely on statistical hypothesis testing. The usual
approach in searches for new physical phenomena is based on the statistical
Likelihood Ratio Test (LRT) and its asymptotic properties. In the common
situation, when neither of the two models under comparison is a special case of
the other i.e., when the hypotheses are non-nested, this test is not
applicable. In astrophysics, this problem occurs when two models that reside in
different parameter spaces are to be compared. An important example is the
recently reported excess emission in astrophysical -rays and the
question whether its origin is known astrophysics or dark matter. We develop
and study a new, simple, generally applicable, frequentist method and validate
its statistical properties using a suite of simulations studies. We exemplify
it on realistic simulated data of the Fermi-LAT -ray satellite, where
non-nested hypotheses testing appears in the search for particle dark matter.Comment: We welcome examples of non-nested models testing problem
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Fermi/LAT discovery of gamma-ray emission from a relativistic jet in the narrow-line quasar PMN J0948+0022
We report the discovery by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi
Gamma-ray Space Telescope of high-energy gamma-ray emission from the peculiar
quasar PMN J0948+0022 (z=0.5846). The optical spectrum of this object exhibits
rather narrow Hbeta (FWHM(Hbeta) ~ 1500 km s^-1), weak forbidden lines and is
therefore classified as a narrow-line type I quasar. This class of objects is
thought to have relatively small black hole mass and to accrete at high
Eddington ratio. The radio loudness and variability of the compact radio core
indicates the presence of a relativistic jet. Quasi simultaneous
radio-optical-X-ray and gamma-ray observations are presented. Both radio and
gamma-ray emission (observed over 5-months) are strongly variable. The
simultaneous optical and X-ray data from Swift show a blue continuum attributed
to the accretion disk and a hard X-ray spectrum attributed to the jet. The
resulting broad band spectral energy distribution (SED) and, in particular, the
gamma-ray spectrum measured by Fermi are similar to those of more powerful
FSRQ. A comparison of the radio and gamma-ray characteristics of PMN J0948+0022
with the other blazars detected by LAT shows that this source has a relatively
low radio and gamma-ray power, with respect to other FSRQ. The physical
parameters obtained from modelling the SED also fall at the low power end of
the FSRQ parameter region discussed in Celotti & Ghisellini (2008). We suggest
that the similarity of the SED of PMN J0948+0022 to that of more massive and
more powerful quasars can be understood in a scenario in which the SED
properties depend on the Eddington ratio rather than on the absolute power.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication on ApJ Main Journal.
Corresponding author: L. Foschin
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