Transparency of the Universe to gamma rays

Abstract

Using the most recent observational data concerning the Extragalactic Background Light and the Radio Background, for a source at a redshift z_s < 3 we compute the energy E_0 of an observed gamma-ray photon in the range 10 GeV < E_0 < 10^13 GeV such that the resulting optical depth tau_gamma(E_0,z_s) takes the values 1, 2, 3 and 4.6, corresponding to an observed flux dimming of e^-1 = 0.37, e^-2 = 0.14, e^-3 = 0.05 and e^-4.6 = 0.01, respectively. Below a source distance D = 8 kpc we find that tau_gamma(E_0,DH_0/c) < 1 for any value of E_0. In the limiting case of a local Universe (z_s = 0) we compare our result with the one derived in 1997 by Coppi and Aharonian. The present achievement is of paramount relevance for the planned ground-based detectors like CTA, HAWC and HiSCORE.

5 pages, 2 figures, MNRAS (2013) - in Press

References in corpus (8)

• Very-High-Energy Gamma Rays from a Distant Quasar: How Transparent Is the Universe?
• New limits on the density of the extragalactic background light in the optical to the far-infrared from the spectra of all known TeV blazars
• First lower limits on the photon-axion-like particle coupling from very high energy gamma-ray observation
• The contribution of the Unresolved Extragalactic Radio Sources to the Brightness Temperature of the sky
• Evidence for VHE Gamma-ray Emission from the Distant BL Lac PG 1553+113
• Break in the VHE spectrum of PG 1553+113: new upper limit on its redshift?
• Revisiting the Indication for a low opacity Universe for very high energy gamma-rays
• A Warning on the GeV-TeV Connection in Blazars

Cited by in corpus (51)

• Evidence for neutrino emission from the nearby active galaxy NGC 1068
• The Gamma-Ray Window to Intergalactic Magnetism
• A Search for Point Sources of EeV Neutrons
• On detecting oscillations of gamma rays into axion-like particles in turbulent and coherent magnetic fields
• Constraints on Lorentz invariance violation from HAWC observations of gamma rays above 100 TeV
• Blazar VHE spectral alterations induced by photon-ALP oscillations
• Photons to axion-like particles conversion in Active Galactic Nuclei
• Improved limits on Lorentz invariance violation from astrophysical gamma-ray sources
• Extragalactic photon--axion-like particle oscillations up to 1000 TeV
• Restrictions from Lorentz invariance violation on cosmic ray propagation
• Axion-like Particles Implications for High-Energy Astrophysics
• Hint at an axion-like particle from the redshift dependence of blazar spectra
• Ultrahigh-energy photons from LHAASO as probes of Lorentz symmetry violations
• A search for point sources of EeV photons
• On the sensitivity of CTA to gamma-ray boxes from multi-TeV dark matter
• Multi-Messenger Physics with the Pierre Auger Observatory
• Testing effects of Lorentz invariance violation in the propagation of astroparticles with the Pierre Auger Observatory
• Probing Quantum Gravity with Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes
• Limits on the Lorentz Invariance Violation from UHECR astrophysics
• Gamma-Ray Astrophysics
• An upper limit on the cosmic-ray luminosity of individual sources from gamma-ray observations
• Fundamental physics with blazar spectra: a critical appraisal
• ALP induced polarization effects on photons from galaxy clusters
• Photon-ALP oscillations inducing modifications to photon polarization
• Photon-ALP interaction as a measure of initial photon polarization
• Estimation of the Extragalactic Background Light using TeV Observations of BL~Lacs
• Near-future discovery of point sources of ultra-high-energy neutrinos
• Estimating $\gamma \gamma$ absorption for UHE photons with lepton and hadron production
• Quantum gravity phenomenology at the dawn of the multi-messenger era -- A review
• Modification of the mean free path of very high energy photons due to a relativistic deformed kinematics
• Photon emission and decay from generic Lorentz Invariance Violation
• Axion-like Particle Effects on Photon Polarization in High-Energy Astrophysics
• Probing the absorption of gamma-rays by IR radiation from the dusty torus in FSRQs with the Cherenkov Telescope Array
• Astrophysical constraints from synchrotron emission on very massive decaying dark matter
• Propagation of very-high-energy $\gamma$-rays from distant blazars
• Ultra high energy cosmic rays and possible signature of black strings
• MeV dark energy emission from a de Sitter Universe
• Probing UHECR production in Centaurus A using secondary neutrinos and gamma-rays
• Central accumulation of magnetic flux in massive Seyfert galaxies as a possible engine to trigger ultrahigh energy cosmic rays
• A Special Lorentz Violation Model and a Special Rainbow Function
• Astroparticle Physics Tests of Lorentz Invariance Violation
• Absorption of Photons from Distant Gamma-Ray Sources
• Gamma rays: propagation and detection
• Gamma Ray Bursts: Not so Much Deadlier than We Thought
• Fundamental Physics With Cosmic High-Energy Gamma Rays
• Report from the Multi-Messenger Working Group at UHECR-2014 Conference
• Search for dark matter using sub-PeV $\mathbf{\gamma }$-rays observed by Tibet AS${}_{\mathbf{\gamma }}$
• Projected sensitivity of CTAO to axion-like particles from blazars with a machine learning approach
• Pulsars as candidates of LHAASO sources J2226+6057, J1908+0621 and J1825-1326: The leptonic origin
• Photon Absorption in a Doubly Special Relativity Model with Undeformed Free Propagation and Total Momentum Conservation
• On gamma rays as predictors of UHECR flux in AGNs