2015/09/04 by I. Sushch, M. Böttcher, Sushch, Iurii +1
Physics and Astronomy · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #High-pressure geophysics and materials
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1509.01433
PSR B1259-63/LS 2883 is a very high energy (VHE; E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray\nemitting binary consisting of a 48 ms pulsar orbiting around a Be star with a\nperiod of 3.4 years. The Be star features a circumstellar disk which is\ninclined with respect to the orbit in such a way that the pulsar crosses it\ntwice every orbit. The circumstellar disk provides an additional field of\ntarget photons which may contribute to inverse Compton scattering and\ngamma-gamma absorption, leaving a characteristic imprint in the observed\nspectrum and light curve of the high energy emission. We study the signatures\nof Compton-supported, VHE gamma-ray induced pair cascades in the circumstellar\ndisc of the Be star and their possible contribution to the GeV flux. We also\nstudy a possible impact of the gamma-gamma absorption in the disk on the\nobserved TeV light curve. We show that the cumulative absorption of VHE\ngamma-rays in stellar and disk photon fields can explain the modulation of the\nflux at the periastron passage.\n