Collaborative Research: Uncovering Nature's 100 TeV Particle Accelerators in the Large-Scale Jets of Quasars

合作研究：在类星体大型喷流中发现大自然的 100 TeV 粒子加速器

• 批准号: 1716507
• 负责人: Eric Perlman
• 金额: $ 26.67万
• 依托单位: Florida Institute of Technology
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-09-01 至 2023-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1716507&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Uncovering; Nature; 100

Quasars can launch thin structures that stretch over hundreds of light years. Some of these large-scale jets are unusually bright at X-ray wavelengths. For more than a decade, a standard model seemed to explain this brightness. But the team's new observations of a few jets could not be fit by the standard model. The team developed an alternative model that did fit. In their model, particles are accelerated to extreme energies all along the jet. The team will examine many more large-scale jets. They will see if the standard model or their alternative model best fit the observations. Senior team members will train junior team members, some from underrepresented groups. The team will develop an interactive web page to convey the research to K-12 students. The web page will be submitted for curation by the American Association of Physics Teachers.The team will critically examine the prevailing theory for the nature of the anomalous X-ray emission in large-scale quasar jets, namely that this emission is due to cosmic microwave background photons being inverse-Compton scattered by 30-100 MeV energy jet electrons. They will also investigate the implications of their alternative explanation, namely that the X-rays are synchrotron emission from 30-100 TeV electrons accelerated in situ. The team's prior work suggests that the resulting TeV photons could heat the intergalactic medium, thereby reducing the number of dwarf galaxies formed. The team will develop this idea further.

类星体可以发射出长达数百光年的薄结构。其中一些大型喷流在x射线波长下异常明亮。十多年来，一个标准模型似乎可以解释这种亮度。但是，该团队对一些喷流的新观察结果无法用标准模型来拟合。该团队开发了一种适合的替代模型。在他们的模型中，粒子沿着喷流被加速到极端能量。该团队将研究更多的大型喷气机。他们将检验标准模型或替代模型是否最适合观测结果。高级团队成员将培训初级团队成员，其中一些来自代表性不足的群体。该团队将开发一个互动网页，向K-12学生传达研究结果。该网页将提交给美国物理教师协会进行管理。该团队将严格检查大规模类星体喷流中异常x射线发射本质的流行理论，即这种发射是由于宇宙微波背景光子被30-100 MeV能量的喷射电子反向康普顿散射。他们还将研究另一种解释的含义，即x射线是由30-100 TeV电子在原位加速产生的同步辐射。该团队先前的工作表明，由此产生的TeV光子可以加热星系间介质，从而减少形成的矮星系的数量。该团队将进一步发展这一想法。

项目成果

Unraveling the Physics of Quasar Jets: Optical Polarimetry and Implications for the X-ray Emission Process

解开类星体射流的物理原理：光学偏振测量及其对 X 射线发射过程的影响

• DOI: 10.3390/galaxies8040071
• 发表时间: 2020
• 期刊: Galaxies
• 影响因子: 2.5
• 作者: Perlman, Eric S.;Clautice, Devon;Avachat, Sayali;Cara, Mihai;Sparks, William B.;Georganopoulos, Markos;Meyer, Eileen
• 通讯作者: Meyer, Eileen

JetCurry I. Reconstructing three-dimensional jet geometry from two-dimensional images

• DOI: 10.1016/j.ascom.2022.100653
• 发表时间: 2022-09
• 期刊: Astron. Comput.
• 作者: S. Sawant;K. Kosak;K. Li;S. Avachat;E. Perlman;D. Mitra

An X-Ray Imaging Survey of Quasar Jets: The Complete Survey

• DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/aaaf66
• 发表时间: 2018-02
• 期刊: The Astrophysical Journal
• 作者: H. Marshall;J. Gelbord;D. Worrall;M. Birkinshaw;D. Schwartz;D. Jauncey;G. Griffiths;D. Murphy

A multiwavelength study of multiple spectral component jets in AGN: testing the IC/CMB model for the large-scale-jet X-ray emission

AGN 中多光谱分量射流的多波长研究：测试大规模射流 X 射线发射的 IC/CMB 模型

• DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stac3081
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
• 影响因子: 4.8
• 作者: Breiding, Peter;Meyer, Eileen T.;Georganopoulos, Markos;Reddy, Karthik;Kollmann, Kassidy E.;Roychowdhury, Agniva
• 通讯作者: Roychowdhury, Agniva

Variability of extragalactic X-ray jets on kiloparsec scales

河外 X 射线射流在千秒差距尺度上的变化

• DOI: 10.1038/s41550-023-01983-1
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Nature Astronomy
• 影响因子: 14.1
• 作者: Meyer, Eileen T.;Shaik, Aamil;Tang, Yanbo;Reid, Nancy;Reddy, Karthik;Breiding, Peter;Georganopoulos, Markos;Chiaberge, Marco;Perlman, Eric;Clautice, Devon
• 通讯作者: Clautice, Devon