3,081 research outputs found
Ultra high energy cosmic rays: clustering, GUT scale and neutrino masses
The clustering of ultra high energy (above 5\cdot 10^{19} eV) cosmic rays
(UHECR) suggests that they might be emitted by compact sources. We present a
statistical analysis on the source density based on the multiplicities. The
propagation of UHECR protons is studied in detail. The UHECR spectrum is
consistent with the decay of GUT scale particles and/or with the Z-burst. The
predicted GUT mass is m_X=10^b GeV, where b=14.6_{-1.7}^{+1.6}. Our neutrino
mass prediction depends on the origin of the power part of the spectrum:
m_\nu=2.75^{+1.28}_{-0.97} eV for halo and 0.26^{+0.20}_{-0.14} eV for
extragalactic (EG) origin.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures. Talk given at TAUP 2001, September 8-12, 2001 in
Gran Sass
Bounds on Relic Neutrino Masses in the Z-burst Model
Neutrinos from far-away sources annihilating at the Z resonance on relic
neutrinos may give origin to the extreme-energy cosmic rays (EECR). If
``Z-bursts'' are responsible for the EECR events, then we show that the
non-observation of cosmic ray events at energies above 2 x 10^20 eV by the
AGASA Collaboration implies a lower bound around 0.3 eV on the relic neutrino
mass. Since this mass exceeds the mass-squared differences inferred from
oscillation physics, the bound in fact applies to all three neutrino masses.
Together with the upper bound provided by comparisons of the CMB anisotropy
with large-scale structure, this bound leaves only a small interval for
neutrino masses around 0.3 eV, if Z-bursts are to explain the existing EECR
events.Comment: 19 pages, including 4 figure
Determination of absolute neutrino masses from Z-bursts
Ultrahigh energy neutrinos (UHE\nu) scatter on relic neutrinos (R\nu)
producing Z bosons, which can decay hadronically producing protons (Z-burst).
We compare the predicted proton spectrum with the observed ultrahigh energy
cosmic ray (UHECR) spectrum and determine the mass of the heaviest R\nu via a
maximum likelihood analysis. Our prediction depends on the origin of the
power-like part of the UHECR spectrum: m_\nu=2.75^{+1.28}_{-0.97} eV for
Galactic halo and 0.26^{+0.20}_{-0.14} eV for extragalactic (EG) origin. The
necessary UHE\nu flux should be detected in the near future.Comment: slight rewording, revised neutrino fluxes, conclusions unchanged,
version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
VLBI observations of SN2011dh: imaging of the youngest radio supernova
We report on the VLBI detection of supernova SN2011dh at 22GHz using a subset
of the EVN array. The observations took place 14 days after the discovery of
the supernova, thus resulting in a VLBI image of the youngest radio-loud
supernova ever. We provide revised coordinates for the supernova with
milli-arcsecond precision, linked to the ICRF. The recovered flux density is a
factor 2 below the EVLA flux density reported by other authors at the same
frequency and epoch of our observations. This discrepancy could be due to
extended emission detected with the EVLA or to calibration problems in the VLBI
and/or EVLA observations.Comment: Letter. Accepted in A&
Relic Neutrino Absorption Spectroscopy
Resonant annihilation of extremely high-energy cosmic neutrinos on big-bang
relic anti-neutrinos (and vice versa) into Z-bosons leads to sizable absorption
dips in the neutrino flux to be observed at Earth. The high-energy edges of
these dips are fixed, via the resonance energies, by the neutrino masses alone.
Their depths are determined by the cosmic neutrino background density, by the
cosmological parameters determining the expansion rate of the universe, and by
the large redshift history of the cosmic neutrino sources. We investigate the
possibility of determining the existence of the cosmic neutrino background
within the next decade from a measurement of these absorption dips in the
neutrino flux. As a by-product, we study the prospects to infer the absolute
neutrino mass scale. We find that, with the presently planned neutrino
detectors (ANITA, Auger, EUSO, OWL, RICE, and SalSA) operating in the relevant
energy regime above 10^{21} eV, relic neutrino absorption spectroscopy becomes
a realistic possibility. It requires, however, the existence of extremely
powerful neutrino sources, which should be opaque to nucleons and high-energy
photons to evade present constraints. Furthermore, the neutrino mass spectrum
must be quasi-degenerate to optimize the dip, which implies m_{nu} >~ 0.1 eV
for the lightest neutrino. With a second generation of neutrino detectors,
these demanding requirements can be relaxed considerably.Comment: 19 pages, 26 figures, REVTeX
Clustering in Highest Energy Cosmic Rays: Physics or Statistics?
Directional clustering can be expected in cosmic ray observations due to
purely statistical fluctuations for sources distributed randomly in the sky. We
develop an analytic approach to estimate the probability of random cluster
configurations, and use these results to study the strong potential of the
HiRes, Auger, Telescope Array and EUSO/OWL/AirWatch facilities for deciding
whether any observed clustering is most likely due to non-random sources.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 3 figure
Chandra Observations of the Crab-like Supernova Remnant G21.5-0.9
Chandra observations of the Crab-like supernova remnant G21.5-0.9 reveal a
compact central core and spectral variations indicative of synchrotron burn-off
of higher energy electrons in the inner nebula. The central core is slightly
extended, perhaps indicating the presence of an inner wind-shock nebula
surrounding the pulsar. No pulsations are observed from the central region,
yielding an upper limit of ~40% for the pulsed fraction. A faint outer shell
may be the first evidence of the expanding ejecta and blast wave formed in the
initial explosion, indicating a composite nature for G21.5-0.9.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, formatted with emulateapj, submitted to ApJ
Which blazars are neutrino loud?
Protons accelerated in the cores of active galactic nuclei can effectively
produce neutrinos only if the soft radiation background in the core is
sufficiently high. We find restrictions on the spectral properties and
luminosity of blazars under which they can be strong neutrino sources. We
analyze the possibility that neutrino flux is highly beamed along the rotation
axis of the central black hole. The enhancement of neutrino flux compared to
GeV gamma-ray flux from a given source makes the detection of neutrino point
sources more probable. At the same time the smaller open angle reduces the
number of possible neutrino-loud blazars compared to the number of gamma-ray
loud ones. We present the table of 15 blazars which are the most likely
candidates for the detection by future neutrino telescopes.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, version to be published in PR
DA495 - an aging pulsar wind nebula
We present a radio continuum study of the pulsar wind nebula (PWN) DA 495
(G65.7+1.2), including images of total intensity and linear polarization from
408 to 10550 MHz based on the Canadian Galactic Plane Survey and observations
with the Effelsberg 100-m Radio Telescope. Removal of flux density
contributions from a superimposed \ion{H}{2} region and from compact
extragalactic sources reveals a break in the spectrum of DA 495 at 1.3 GHz,
with a spectral index below the break and
above it (). The
spectral break is more than three times lower in frequency than the lowest
break detected in any other PWN. The break in the spectrum is likely the result
of synchrotron cooling, and DA 495, at an age of 20,000 yr, may have
evolved from an object similar to the Vela X nebula, with a similarly energetic
pulsar. We find a magnetic field of 1.3 mG inside the nebula. After
correcting for the resulting high internal rotation measure, the magnetic field
structure is quite simple, resembling the inner part of a dipole field
projected onto the plane of the sky, although a toroidal component is likely
also present. The dipole field axis, which should be parallel to the spin axis
of the putative pulsar, lies at an angle of {\sim}50\degr east of the North
Celestial Pole and is pointing away from us towards the south-west. The upper
limit for the radio surface brightness of any shell-type supernova remnant
emission around DA 495 is OAWatt
m Hz sr (assuming a radio spectral index of ), lower than the faintest shell-type remnant known to date.Comment: 25 pages, accepted by Ap
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