New Method for Investigating the Presence of Extragalactic Magnetic Fields

Abstract

The extragalactic magnetic field could be detected by searching for signatures of the electromagnetic cascade initiated by high-energy photons on the intergalactic radiation and deflected by the field. This process produces a time delay and an extended gamma-ray halo around the source, which are looked for. We propose a new signature of electromagnetic echoes: the asymmetry of the gamma-ray distribution around blazars. As a measure of asymmetry, we use the offset of the gamma-ray distribution to the location of the blazar. This offset is due to the tilt of the jet of the blazar relative to the line of sight. Using a subsample of the 10 brightest BL Lacs, we exclude the range of extragalactic magnetic fields from $10^{-16}$ to $10^{-14}$ G, assuming that these objects have maintained a constant average luminosity over hundreds of thousands of years.

7 pages, 9 figures