2006/09/20 by A. O. Petric, Andreea Petric, G. A. Telis +3
Physics and Astronomy · #Astrophysics #Astrophysics and Cosmic Phenomena #Extinction (optical mineralogy) #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae #Halo #Intergalactic dust #Intergalactic travel #Physics #Quantum mechanics #Quasar #Redshift #Scattering #Supernova #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/507667
published as Astrophys.J.651:41-45,2006 · 14 pages, 2 figures. to appear in ApJ, vol. 651, Nov. 2006
arxiv created 2006/09/20 · openalex publication_date 2006/10/27 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We report on the results of a search for an intergalactic X-ray dust scattering halo in a deep observation of the bright, high-redshift quasar QSO 1508+5714 with the Chandra X-Ray Observatory . We do not detect such a halo. Our result implies an upper limit on the density of diffuse, large-grained intergalactic dust of Ω d < 2 × 10 -6 , assuming a characteristic grain size of ~1 μm. The result demonstrates the sensitivity of this technique for detecting very small amounts of intergalactic dust, which are very hard to detect otherwise. This will allow us to put important constraints on systematic effects induced by extinction on the interpretation of the Hubble diagram for Type Ia supernovae, as well as on the amount and properties of cosmological dust being expelled into the intergalactic medium at early ( z ≥ 2) times.