paper

PKS 1510-089: a rare example of a flat spectrum radio quasar with a very high-energy emission

arXiv:1307.1779 · doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201322205

Abstract

The blazar PKS 1510-089 is an example of flat spectrum radio quasars. High-energy emissions from this class of objects are believed to have been produced by inverse Compton radiation with seed photons originating from the broad line region. In such a paradigm, a lack of very high-energy emissions is expected because of the Klein-Nishina effect and strong absorption in the broad line region. Recent detection of at least three such blazars by Cherenkov telescopes has forced a revision of our understanding of these objects. We have aimed to model the observed spectral energy distribution of PKS 1510-089 from the high-energy flares in March 2009, during which very high-energy emission were also detected by H.E.S.S. We have applied the single-zone internal shock scenario to reproduce the multiwavelength spectrum of PKS~1510-089. We have followed the evolution of the electrons as they propagate along the jet and emit synchrotron and inverse Compton radiation. We have considered two sources of external photons: the dusty torus and the broad line region. We have also examined the effects of the gamma-gamma absorption of the high-energy photons both in the AGN environment (the broad line region and the dusty torus), as well as while traveling over cosmological distances: the extragalactic background light. We have successfully modeled the observed spectrum of PKS 1510-089. In our model, the highest energy emission is the result of the Comptonization of the infrared photons from the dusty torus, thus avoiding Klein-Nishina regime, while the bulk of the emissions in the GeV range may still be dominated by the Comptonization of radiation coming from the broad line region.

Accepted for publication in A&A

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