Cosmic ray tracers from gas-rich active galaxies

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Julia Tjus
• Subject Area: Astrophysics and Astronomy
• Term: from 2011 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 193250435

The identification of the origin of cosmic rays (CRs) is one of the most challenging and most interesting questions in the field of astrophysics today. Neutral cosmic ray secondaries produced at the CR production site are well-suited for studies of the origin of cosmic rays, in particular when different wavelengths are combined to search for correlated signals. Here, it is proposed to predict high- and low-energy signatures from cosmic ray interactions in gas-rich active galaxies. Active galaxies are one of the few candidates that fulfill the mandatory criteria for the acceleration of cosmic rays up to the highest energies, i.e. up to E ~ 1021 eV. For active galaxies containing much gas, high-energy cosmic rays are bound to interact with the gas, which leads to the production of high-energy neutrinos and photons, detectable by the telescopes IceCube and H.E.S.S./MAGIC/VERITAS. At the low-energy end of the cosmic ray spectrum, the charged particles ionize the gas, which leads to the formation of molecular ions. The latter emit vibration-rotation lines can be observed at infrared and mm wavelengths. New telescopes like Herschel at infrared wavelengths and ALMA at mm wavelengths will be very well suited for investigations. In this proposal, it is planned to calculate both high-energy (E > 100 GeV) and low-energy (E < 100 MeV) signatures, aiming for a correlation study which can help identifying the sources of cosmic rays.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants