Very-high-energy gamma-ray signal from nuclear photodisintegration as a probe of extragalactic sources of ultrahigh-energy nuclei

Kohta Murase and John F. Beacom

Phys. Rev. D 82, 043008 – Published 19 August 2010

Abstract

It is crucial to identify the ultrahigh-energy cosmic-ray sources and probe their unknown properties. Recent results from the Pierre Auger Observatory favor a heavy nuclear composition for the ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays. Under the requirement that heavy nuclei survive in these sources, using gamma-ray bursts as an example, we predict a diagnostic gamma-ray signal, unique to nuclei—the emission of deexcitation gamma rays following photodisintegration. These gamma rays, boosted from MeV to TeV-PeV energies, may be detectable by gamma-ray telescopes such as VERITAS, HESS, and MAGIC, and especially the next-generation CTA and AGIS. They are a promising messenger to identify and study individual ultrahigh-energy nuclei accelerators.

Received 26 February 2010

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.82.043008

Authors & Affiliations

Kohta Murase^1,2 and John F. Beacom^2,3,4

¹Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan
²CCAPP, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA
³Department of Physics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA
⁴Department of Astronomy, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA

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Vol. 82, Iss. 4 — 15 August 2010

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