Particle diffusion and localized acceleration in inhomogeneous AGN jets - I. Steady-state spectra
- We study the acceleration, transport, and emission of particles in relativistic jets. Localized stochastic particle acceleration, spatial diffusion, and synchrotron as well as synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) emission are considered in a leptonic model. To account for inhomogeneity, we use a 2D axisymmetric cylindrical geometry for both relativistic electrons and magnetic field. In this first phase of our work, we focus on steady-state spectra that develop from a time-dependent model. We demonstrate that small isolated acceleration region in a much larger emission volume are sufficient to accelerate particles to high energy. Diffusive escape from these small regions provides a natural explanation for the spectral form of the jet emission. The location of the acceleration regions within the jet is found to affect the cooling break of the spectrum in this diffusive model. Diffusion-caused energy-dependent inhomogeneity in the jets predicts that the SSC spectrum is harder than the synchrotron spectrum. There can also be a spectralWe study the acceleration, transport, and emission of particles in relativistic jets. Localized stochastic particle acceleration, spatial diffusion, and synchrotron as well as synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) emission are considered in a leptonic model. To account for inhomogeneity, we use a 2D axisymmetric cylindrical geometry for both relativistic electrons and magnetic field. In this first phase of our work, we focus on steady-state spectra that develop from a time-dependent model. We demonstrate that small isolated acceleration region in a much larger emission volume are sufficient to accelerate particles to high energy. Diffusive escape from these small regions provides a natural explanation for the spectral form of the jet emission. The location of the acceleration regions within the jet is found to affect the cooling break of the spectrum in this diffusive model. Diffusion-caused energy-dependent inhomogeneity in the jets predicts that the SSC spectrum is harder than the synchrotron spectrum. There can also be a spectral hardening towards the high-energy section of the synchrotron spectrum, if particle escape is relatively slow. These two spectral hardening effects indicate that the jet inhomogeneity might be a natural explanation for the unexpected hard. gamma-ray spectra observed in some blazars.…
| Author details: | Xuhui Chen, Martin PohlORCiDGND, Markus Böttcher |
|---|---|
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stu2438 |
| ISSN: | 0035-8711 |
| ISSN: | 1365-2966 |
| Title of parent work (English): | Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |
| Publisher: | Oxford Univ. Press |
| Place of publishing: | Oxford |
| Publication type: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Year of first publication: | 2015 |
| Publication year: | 2015 |
| Release date: | 2017/03/27 |
| Tag: | acceleration of particles; diffusion; galaxies: jets; galaxies:active; radiation mechanisms: non-thermal |
| Volume: | 447 |
| Issue: | 1 |
| Number of pages: | 15 |
| First page: | 530 |
| Last Page: | 544 |
| Funding institution: | Helmholtz Alliance for Astroparticle Physics HAP - Initiative and Networking Fund of the Helmholtz Association.; South African Department of Science and Technology through the National Research Foundation under NRF SARChI Chair [64789] |
| Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Physik und Astronomie |
| Peer review: | Referiert |
