Far-infrared probing with PRIMA into particle acceleration associated with relativistic jets from active galactic nuclei

Abstract

It is presented that the Probe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics (PRIMA) has a high potential to study particle acceleration phenomena associated with jets emanating from active galactic nuclei. A special focus is put on hot spots of radio galaxies because they are widely regarded as the jet-terminal shock where particles are accelerated via the diffusive shock acceleration. To investigate the particle acceleration condition in the hot spots, it is of prime importance to evaluate their magnetic field strength. As a useful indicator of the magnetic field, we propose to adopt a synchrotron spectral feature called the cooling break, of which the frequency is determined by the mutual balance between the synchrotron radiative cooling and the adiabatic one. Referring to the standard physical parameter of the hot spots, the cooling break is expected to reside in or slightly below the far-infrared range covered with PRIMA. The feasibility of the PRIMA observations to measure the far-infrared flux density and to constrain their cooling break frequency is discussed for nearby well-studied hot spots. An affordable observational strategy with PRIMA is described. A possible application of the method to lobes of radio galaxies is also briefly discussed.

This paper is part of the JATIS special issue focused on the PRobe Infrared Mission for Astrophysics (PRIMA) probe mission concept. The issue is edited by Matt Griffin and Naseem Rangwala (JATIS VOL. 11, NO. 3, July 2025)

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