Modulated High-Energy Gamma-Ray Emission from the Microquasar Cygnus X-3

Abdo, A. A.; Ackermann, M.; Ajello, M.; Axelsson, M.; Baldini, Luca; Ballet, J.; Barbiellini, G.; Bastieri, D.; Baughman, B. M.; Bechtol, K.; Bellazzini, R.; Berenji, B.; Blandford, R. D.; Bloom, E. D.; Bonamente, E.; Borgland, A. W.; Brez, A.; Brigida, M.; Bruel, Pascal; Burnett, T. H.; Buson, S.; Caliandro, G. A.; Caraveo, P. A.; Casandjian, J. M.; Cecchi, C.; Çelik, Ö.; Chaty, S.; Cheung, C. C.; Chiang, J.; Ciprini, S.; Claus, R.; Cohen-Tanugi, J.; Cominski, L.R.; Conrad, J.; Corbel, S.; Corbet, R. H. D.; Dermer, C. D.; Palma, F. de; Digel, S. W.; Silva, E. Do Couto E; Drell, P. S.; Dubois, R.; Dubus, G.; Dumora, D.; Farnier, C.; Favuzzi, C.; Fegan, S. J.; Focke, W. B.; Fortin, P.; Frailis, M.; Fusco, P.; Gargano, F.; Gehrels, N.; Germani, S.; Giavitto, G.; Giebels, B.; Giglietto, N.; Giordano, F.; Glanzman, T.; Godfrey, G.; Grenier, I. A.; Grondin, M.‐H.; Grove, J. E.; Guillemot, L.; Guiriec, S.; Hanabata, Y.; Harding, A. K.; Hayashida, M.; Hays, E.; Hill, A. B.; Hjalmarsdotter, L.; Horan, D.; Hughes, R. E.; Jackson, M. S.; Jóhannesson, G.; Johnson, A. S.; Johnson, T. J.; Johnson, W. N.; Kamae, T.; Katagiri, H.; Kawai, N.; Kerr, M.; Knödlseder, J.; Kocian, M.; Koerding, E.; Kuss, M.; Landé, J.; Latronico, L.; Lemoine‐Goumard, M.; Longo, F.; Loparco, F.; Lott, B.; Lovellette, M. N.; Lubrano, P.; Madejski, G. M.; Makeev, A.; Marchand, L.; Marelli, M.; Max-Moerbeck, W.; Mazziotta, M. N.; Mccoll, N.; McEnery, J. E.; Meurer, C.; Michelson, P. F.; Migliari, S.; Mitthumsiri, W.; Mizuno, T.; Monte, C.; Monzani, M. E.; Morselli, A.; Moskalenko, I. V.; Murgia, S.; Nolan, P. L.; Norris, J. P.; Nuss, E.; Ohsugi, T.; Omodei, N.; Ong, R. A.; Ormes, J. F.; Paneque, D.; Parent, D.; Pelassa, V.; Pepé, M.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Piron, F.; Pooley, G. G.; Porter, T. A.; Pottschmidt, K.; Rainò, S.; Rando, R.; Ray, Paul S.; Razzano, M.; Rea, N.; Readhead, A. C. S.; Reimer, A.; Reimer, O.; Richards, J. L.; Rochester, Lynn; Rodríguez, J.; Rodriguez, A. Y.; Romani, Roger W.; Ryde, F.; Sadrosinski, H.F-W.; Sander, A.; Parkinson, P. M. Saz; Sgro, G.; Siskind, E. J.; Smith, David A.; Smith, P. D.; Spinelli, P.; Starck, Jean-Luc; Stevenson, M. A.; Strickman, M. S.; Takahashi, H.; Tanaka, Takaaki; Thayer, J. B.; Thompson, D. J.; Tibaldo, L.; Tomsick, John A.; Torres, D. F.; Tosti, G.; Tramacere, A.; Uchiyama, Y.; Usher, T.; Vasileiou, V.; Vilchez, N.; Vitale, V.; Waite, A. P.; Wang, P.; Wilms, J.; Winer, B. L.; Wood, K.; Ylinen, T.; Ziegler, M.

doi:10.1126/science.1182174

Cited by 213 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…A modulation in F ic is unavoidable. This variation in inverse Compton emission can explain the orbital modulation seen in high-energy gamma-rays from the microquasar Cygnus X-3 by Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Abdo et al 2009c;Dubus et al 2010). …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relativistic Doppler-boosted emission in gamma-ray binaries

Dubus¹,

Cerutti²,

Henri³

2010

A&A

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104

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Context. Gamma-ray binaries could be compact pulsar wind nebulae formed when a young pulsar orbits a massive star. The pulsar wind is contained by the stellar wind of the O or Be companion, creating a relativistic comet-like structure accompanying the pulsar along its orbit. Aims. The X-ray and the very high energy (>100 GeV, VHE) gamma-ray emission from the binary LS 5039 are modulated on the orbital period of the system. Maximum and minimum flux occur at the conjunctions of the orbit, suggesting that the explanation is linked to the orbital geometry. The VHE modulation has been proposed to be due to the combined effect of Compton scattering and pair production on stellar photons, both of which depend on orbital phase. The X-ray modulation could be due to relativistic Doppler boosting in the comet tail where both the X-ray and VHE photons would be emitted. Methods. Relativistic aberrations change the seed stellar photon flux in the comoving frame so Doppler boosting affects synchrotron and inverse Compton emission differently. The dependence with orbital phase of relativistic Doppler-boosted (isotropic) synchrotron and (anisotropic) inverse Compton emission is calculated, assuming that the flow is oriented radially away from the star (LS 5039) or tangentially to the orbit (LS I +61 • 303, PSR B1259-63).Results. Doppler boosting of the synchrotron emission in LS 5039 produces a lightcurve whose shape corresponds to the X-ray modulation. The observations imply an outflow velocity of 0.15-0.33c consistent with the expected flow speed at the pulsar wind termination shock. In LS I +61 • 303, the calculated Doppler boosted emission peaks in phase with the observed VHE and X-ray maximum. Conclusions. Doppler boosting is not negligible in gamma-ray binaries, even for mildly relativistic speeds. The boosted modulation reproduces the X-ray modulation in LS 5039 and could also provide an explanation for the puzzling phasing of the VHE peak in LS I +61 • 303.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relativistic Doppler-boosted emission in gamma-ray binaries

Dubus¹,

Cerutti²,

Henri³

2010

A&A

Self Cite

104

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“…The interplay between accretion processes and jet emission can best be studied in the MeV region, where disk Comptonization is expected to fade and other non-thermal components can originate from jet particles. e-ASTROGAM observations of Galactic compact objects and in particular of accreting BH systems (such as Cygnus X-1 [151], Cygnus X-3 ( [3,133]), V404 Cygni [119]) will determine the nature of the steady-state emission due to Comptonization and the transitions to highly non-thermal radiation (Fig. 4).…”

Section: Science Casementioning

confidence: 99%

The e-ASTROGAM mission

et al. 2017

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e-ASTROGAM ('enhanced ASTROGAM') is a breakthrough Observatory space mission, with a detector composed by a Silicon tracker, a calorimeter, and an anticoincidence system, dedicated to the study of the non-thermal Universe in the photon energy range from 0.3 MeV to 3 GeV -the lower energy limit can be pushed to energies as low as 150 keV, albeit with rapidly degrading angular resolution, for the tracker, and to 30 keV for calorimetric detection. The mission is based on an advanced space-proven detector technology, with unprecedented sensitivity, angular and energy resolution, combined with polarimetric capability. Thanks to its performance in the MeV-GeV domain, substantially improving its predecessors, e-ASTROGAM will open a new window on the non-thermal Universe, making pioneering observations of the most powerful Galactic and extragalactic sources, elucidating the nature of their relativistic outflows and their effects on the surroundings. With a line sensitivity in the MeV energy range one to two orders of magnitude better than previous generation instruments, e-ASTROGAM will determine the origin of key isotopes fundamental for the understanding of supernova explosion and the chemical evolution of our Galaxy. The mission will provide unique data of significant interest to a broad astronomical community, complementary to powerful observatories such as LIGO-Virgo-GEO600-KAGRA, SKA, ALMA, E-ELT, TMT, LSST, JWST, Athena, CTA, IceCube, KM3NeT, and the promise of eLISA.

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“…The number of members of the class of gamma-ray binaries is growing, being at present around ten, including unconfirmed candidates (e.g. Albert et al 2006Albert et al , 2007Aharonian et al 2005a,b;Abdo et al 2009aAbdo et al ,b,c, 2010aAbdo et al ,b, 2011Tavani et al 2009a,b;Sabatini et al 2010;Williams et al 2010;Tam et al 2010;Hill et al 2011;Falcone et al 2011;Corbet et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Large-scale flow dynamics and radiation in pulsarγ-ray binaries

Bosch‐Ramon

Barkov

2011

A&A

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Context. Several gamma-ray binaries show extended X-ray emission that may be associated to interactions of an outflow with the medium. Some of these systems are, or may be, high-mass binaries harboring young nonaccreting pulsars, in which the stellar and the pulsar winds collide, generating a powerful outflow that should terminate at some point in the ambient medium. Aims. This work studies the evolution and termination, as well as the related radiation, of the shocked-wind flow generated in highmass binaries hosting powerful pulsars. Methods. A characterization, based on previous numerical work, is given for the stellar/pulsar wind interaction. Then, an analytical study of the further evolution of the shocked flow and its dynamical impact on the surrounding medium is carried out. Finally, the expected nonthermal emission from the flow termination shock, likely the dominant emitting region, is calculated. Results. The shocked wind structure, initially strongly asymmetric, becomes a quasi-spherical, supersonically expanding bubble, with its energy coming from the pulsar and mass from the stellar wind. This bubble eventually interacts with the environment on ∼pc scales, producing a reverse and, sometimes, a forward shock. Nonthermal leptonic radiation can be efficient in the reverse shock. Radio emission is expected to be faint, whereas X-rays can easily reach detectable fluxes. Under very low magnetic fields and large nonthermal luminosities, gamma rays may also be significant. Conclusions. The complexity of the stellar/pulsar wind interaction is likely to be smoothed out outside the binary system, where the wind-mixed flow accelerates and eventually terminates in a strong reverse shock. This shock may be behind the extended Xrays observed in some binary systems. For very powerful pulsars, part of the unshocked pulsar wind may directly interact with the large-scale environment.

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Modulated High-Energy Gamma-Ray Emission from the Microquasar Cygnus X-3

Cited by 213 publications

References 27 publications

Relativistic Doppler-boosted emission in gamma-ray binaries

Relativistic Doppler-boosted emission in gamma-ray binaries

The e-ASTROGAM mission

Large-scale flow dynamics and radiation in pulsarγ-ray binaries

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