The Galactic center radio source shines below the Compton limit
The Galactic center radio source shines below the Compton limit
复制标题
银河中心射电源的亮度低于康普顿极限
DOI:
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发表时间:
1991
期刊:
影响因子:
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通讯作者:
L. Ozernoy
中科院分区:
文献类型:
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作者:
C. Gwinn;R. M. Danen;T. K. Tran;J. Middleditch;L. Ozernoy
Absence of refractive scintillation of Sgr A*, the Galactic center radio source, at 1.3 and 0.8 mm wavelengths places an observational limit of brightness temperature of below 0.5 {times} 10{sup 12} K on the source. This is less than the maximum brightness of an incoherently synchrotron-emitting plasma, 10 exp 12 K, known as the Compton limit. The refractive scintillations expected, due to strong broadening of the source by the interstellar plasma, are observed by Zhao et al. at decimeter wavelengths. It has proven to be impossible to observe them at 1.3 and 0.8 mm wavelengths over time spans between 0.1 s and 24 hr. Such scintillations are quenched by source size greater than about 0.1 AU, or, equivalently, less than 0.5 {times} 10{sup 12} K for Sgr A{asterisk}, at 0.8 mm wavelength. The scintilations would also require fluctuations with scale sizes of 0.1 AU in the scattering plasma, moving across the line of sight at velocities above about 100 km/s. The plasma that scatters Sgr A{asterisk} satisfies the latter two conditions, and the absence of scintillations is due to the size of the source. This observation strengthens the identification of Sgr A{asterisk} as a quiescent galactic nucleus. 35 refs.