The Ultimate Fate of Cosmic Rays from Galaxies and their Role in the Intergalactic Medium

Abstract

The majority of cosmic rays (CRs) generated by star-forming galaxies escape them and enter the intergalactic medium (IGM). Galactic wind termination shocks might also accelerate CRs. I show that the mean pressure of these CRs can reach to within an order of magnitude of the mean Lyman-alpha forest thermal pressure. At z >~ 1, their pressure may have even been dominant. I also demonstrate that, whichever IGM phase the CRs reside in, they contribute significantly to its pressure if its temperature is ~$10^4$ K, as long as pionic and Coulomb losses are negligible. Where CRs end up depends on the structure and strength of intergalactic magnetic fields. I argue that CRs end up at least 30 kpc from their progenitor galaxies. CRs may self-confine in the IGM to the sound speed, generating >~ $10^{-13}$ G magnetic fields. These considerations imply the existence and importance of a nonthermal IGM.

Published in MNRAS Letters; 5 pages, 1 figure

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• Can observations of 511 keV line from the M31 galaxy shed light on the AGN jet composition?
• Hadronic Interactions of Energetic Charged Particles in Protogalactic Outflow Environments and Implications for the Early Evolution of Galaxies
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