The description of physical processes with many-particle systems is a key approach to the modeling of countless physical systems. In storage rings, where ultrarelativistic particles are agglomerated in dense bunches, the measurement of their phase-sp
ace distribution (PSD) is of paramount importance: at any time the PSD not only determines the complete space-time evolution but also provides fundamental performance characteristics for storage ring operation. Here, we demonstrate a non-destructive tomographic imaging technique for the 2D longitudinal PSD of ultrarelativistic electron bunches. For this purpose, we utilize a unique setup, which streams turn-by-turn near-field measurements of bunch profiles at MHz repetition rates. To demonstrate the feasibility of our method, we induce a non-equilibrium state and show, that the PSD microstructuring as well as the PSD dynamics can be observed in great detail with an unprecedented resolution. Our approach offers a pathway to control ultrashort bunches and supports, as one example, the development of compact accelerators with low energy footprints.
The development of fast detection methods for comprehensive monitoring of electron bunches is a prerequisite to gain comprehensive control over the synchrontron emission in storage rings with their MHz repetition rate. Here, we present a proof-of-pri
nciple experiment with at detailed description of our implementation to detect the longitudinal electron bunch profiles via single-shot, near-field electro-optical sampling at the Karlsruhe Research Accelerator (KARA). Our experiment is equipped with an ultra-fast line array camera providing a high-throughput MHz data stream. We characterize statistical properties of the obtained data set and give a detailed description for the data processing as well as for the calculation of the charge density profiles, which where measured in the short-bunch operation mode of KARA. Finally, we discuss properties of the bunch profile dynamics on a coarse-grained level on the example of the well-known synchrotron oscillation.
Previous analyses of point sources in the gamma-ray range were done either below 30 MeV or above 100 MeV. Below 30 MeV, the imaging Compton telescope (COMPTEL) onboard NASAs Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory detected 26 steady sources in the energy range
from 0.75 to 30 MeV. At high energy, the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has detected more than three thousand sources between 100 MeV and 300 GeV. Since the Fermi LAT detects gamma rays also below 100 MeV, we apply a point source detection algorithm in the energy range between 30 MeV and 100 MeV. In the analysis we use PGWave, which is a background independent tool based on a wavelet transform.
We report a study of extended $gamma$-ray emission with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, which is likely to be the second case of a $gamma$-ray detection from a star-forming region (SFR) in our Galaxy. The L
AT source is located in the G25 region, $1.7^{circ} times 2.1^{circ}$ around $(l, b) = (25.0^{circ}, 0.0^{circ})$. The $gamma$-ray emission is found to be composed of two extended sources and one point-like source. The extended sources have a similar sizes of about $1.4^{circ} times 0.6^{circ}$. An $sim 0.4^{circ}$ diameter sub-region of one has a photon index of $Gamma = 1.53 pm 0.15$; and is spatially coincident with HESS J1837$-$069, likely a pulsar wind nebula. The other parts of the extended sources have a photon index of $Gamma = 2.1 pm 0.2$ without significant spectral curvature. Given their spatial and spectral properties, they have no clear associations with sources at other wavelengths. Their $gamma$-ray properties are similar to those of the Cygnus cocoon SFR, the only firmly established $gamma$-ray detection of an SFR in the Galaxy. Indeed, we find bubble-like structures of atomic and molecular gas in G25, which may be created by a putative OB association/cluster. The $gamma$-ray emitting regions appear confined in the bubble-like structure; similar properties are also found in the Cygnus cocoon. In addition, using observations with the the XMM-Newton we find a candidate young massive OB association/cluster G25.18+0.26 in the G25 region. We propose that the extended $gamma$-ray emission in G25 is associated with an SFR driven by G25.18+0.26. Based on this scenario, we discuss possible acceleration processes in the SFR and compare them with the Cygnus cocoon.
The details of what constitutes the majority of the mass that makes up dark matter in the Universe remains one of the prime puzzles of cosmology and particle physics today - eighty years after the first observational indications. Today, it is widely
accepted that dark matter exists and that it is very likely composed of elementary particles - that are weakly interacting and massive (WIMPs for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles). As important as dark matter is in our understanding of cosmology, the detection of these particles has so far been elusive. Their primary properties such as mass and interaction cross sections are still unknown. Indirect detection searches for the products of WIMP annihilation or decay. This is generally done through observations of gamma-ray photons or cosmic rays. Instruments such as the Fermi-LAT, H.E.S.S., MAGIC and VERITAS, combined with the future Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) will provide important and complementary constraints to other search techniques. Given the expected sensitivities of all search techniques, we are at a stage where the WIMP scenario is facing stringent tests and it can be expected that WIMPs will be either be detected or the scenario will be so severely constrained that it will have to be re-thought. In this sense we are on the Threshold of Discovery. In this article, I will give a general overview over the current status and the future expectations for indirect searches for dark matter (WIMP) particles.
The past decade has seen a dramatic improvement in the quality of data available at both high (HE: 100 MeV to 100 GeV) and very high (VHE: 100 GeV to 100 TeV) gamma-ray energies. With three years of data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) and
deep pointed observations with arrays of Cherenkov telescope, continuous spectral coverage from 100 MeV to $sim10$ TeV exists for the first time for the brightest gamma-ray sources. The Fermi-LAT is likely to continue for several years, resulting in significant improvements in high energy sensitivity. On the same timescale, the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) will be constructed providing unprecedented VHE capabilities. The optimisation of CTA must take into account competition and complementarity with Fermi, in particularly in the overlapping energy range 10$-$100 GeV. Here we compare the performance of Fermi-LAT and the current baseline CTA design for steady and transient, point-like and extended sources.
Gamma-ray studies are an essential tool in our search for the origin of cosmic rays. Instruments like the Fermi-LAT, H.E.S.S., MAGIC and VERITAS have revolutionized our understanding of the high energy Universe. This paper describes the status of the
very rich field of gamma-ray astrophysics that contains a wealth of data on Galactic and extragalactic particle accelerators. It is the write-up of a rapporteur talk given at the 32nd ICRC in Beijing, China in which new results were presented with an emphasis on the cosmic-ray related studies of the Universe.
We report the detection of GeV gamma-ray emission from the molecular cloud complex that surrounds the supernova remnant (SNR) W44 using the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard Fermi. While the previously reported gamma-ray emission from SNR W44 is lik
ely to arise from the dense radio-emitting filaments within the remnant, the gamma-ray emission that appears to come from the surrounding molecular cloud complex can be ascribed to the cosmic rays (CRs) that have escaped from W44. The non-detection of synchrotron radio emission associated with the molecular cloud complex suggests the decay of neutral pi mesons produced in hadronic collisions as the gamma-ray emission mechanism. The total kinetic energy channeled into the escaping CRs is estimated to be (0.3--3)x10^{50} erg, in broad agreement with the conjecture that SNRs are the main sources of Galactic CRs.
Whilst the Vela pulsar and its associated nebula are often considered as the archetype of a system powered by a sim10^4 year old isolated neutron star, many features of the spectral energy distribution of this pulsar wind nebula are both puzzling and
unusual. Here we develop a model that for the first time relates the main structures in the system, the extended radio nebula (ERN) and the X-ray cocoon through continuous injection of particles with a fixed spectral shape. We argue that diffusive escape of particles from the ERN can explain the steep Fermi-LAT spectrum. In this scenario Vela X should produce a distinct feature in the locally-measured cosmic ray electron spectrum at very high energies. This prediction can be tested in the future using the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA). If particles are indeed released early in the evolution of PWNe and can avoid severe adiabatic losses, PWN provide a natural explanation for the rising positron fraction in the local CR spectrum.
