Engineering topics

Keshet, Uri

Publications and source records attributed to Keshet, Uri.

4 records

DOE OSTI2017

Analytic study of 1D diffusive relativistic shock acceleration

Diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) by relativistic shocks is thought to generate the dN / dE ∝ E{sup −p} spectra of charged particles in various astronomical relativistic flows. We show that for test particles in one dimension (1D), p {sup −1}=1−ln[γ{sub d}(1+β{sub d})]/ln[γ{sub u}(1+β{sub u})], where β{sub u}(β{sub d}) is the upstream (downstream) normalized velocity, and γ is the respective Lorentz factor. This analytically captures the main properties of relativistic DSA in higher dimensions, with no assumptions on the diffusion mechanism. Unlike 2D and 3D, here the spectrum is sensitive to the equation of state even in the ultra-relativistic limit, and (for a J(üttner-Synge equation of state) noticeably hardens with increasing 1<γ{sub u}<57, before logarithmically converging back to p (γ{sub u→∞})=2. The 1D spectrum is sensitive to drifts, but only in the downstream, and not in the ultra-relativistic limit.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2017

IceCube Constraints on the Fermi Bubbles

We analyze the IceCube four-year neutrino data in search of a signal from the Fermi bubbles. No signal is found from the bubbles or from their dense shell, even when taking into account the softer background. This imposes a conservative ξ {sub i} < 8% upper limit on the cosmic-ray ion (CRI) acceleration efficiency, and an η ≡ ξ {sub e} / ξ {sub i} ≳ 0.006 lower limit on the electron-to-ion ratio of acceleration efficiencies (at the 2 σ confidence level). For typical ξ {sub i} , a signal should surface once the number of IceCube neutrinos increases by ∼an order of magnitude, unless there is a <PeV cutoff on the CRI spectrum.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Preliminary Evidence for a Virial Shock around the Coma Galaxy Cluster

Galaxy clusters, the largest gravitationally bound objects in the universe, are thought to grow by accreting mass from their surroundings through large-scale virial shocks. Due to electron acceleration in such a shock, it should appear as a γ-ray, hard X-ray, and radio ring, elongated toward the large-scale filaments feeding the cluster, coincident with a cutoff in the thermal Sunyaev–Zel’dovich (SZ) signal. However, no such signature was found until now, and the very existence of cluster virial shocks has remained a theory. We find preliminary evidence for a large γ-ray ring of ∼5 Mpc minor axis around the Coma cluster, elongated toward the large-scale filament connecting Coma and Abell 1367, detected at the nominal 2.7σ confidence level (5.1σ using control signal simulations). The γ-ray ring correlates both with a synchrotron signal and with the SZ cutoff, but not with Galactic tracers. The γ-ray and radio signatures agree with analytic and numerical predictions if the shock deposits ∼1% of the thermal energy in relativistic electrons over a Hubble time and ∼1% in magnetic fields. The implied inverse Compton and synchrotron cumulative emission from similar shocks can contribute significantly to the diffuse extragalactic γ-ray and low-frequency radio backgrounds. Our results, if confirmed, reveal the prolate structure of the hot gas in Coma, the feeding pattern of the cluster, and properties of the surrounding large-scale voids and filaments. The anticipated detection of such shocks around other clusters would provide a powerful new cosmological probe.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Fermi Bubble Edges: Spectrum and Diffusion Function

Current measurements of the γ-ray Fermi bubbles (FB) are based on model-dependent tracers, carry substantial systematic uncertainties, and contain some discrepancies between each other. We show that gradient filters pick out the FB edges, which are found to smoothly connect to the bipolar X-ray structure emanating from the Galactic center, thus supporting the interpretation of the FBs as a Galactic-scale phenomenon. The sharp edges facilitate a direct, model-free measurement of the peripheral FB spectrum. The result is strikingly similar to the full FB-integrated spectrum, softened by a power law of index η ≃ (0.2–0.3). This is naturally explained, in both hadronic and leptonic models, if cosmic rays are injected at the edge, and diffuse away preferentially at higher energies E. The inferred, averaged diffusion function in the (more plausible) leptonic model, D(E)≃10{sup 29.5}(E/10GeV){sup 0.48±0.02} cm{sup 2} s{sup −1}, is consistent with estimates for Kraichnan-like turbulence. Our results, in particular the minute spatial variations in η, indicate that the FB edge is a strong, Mach ≳5, forward shock.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗