Measurement of the cosmic electron plus positron spectrum with the MAGIC telescopes

TL;DR

This paper presents the first measurement of the cosmic electron plus positron spectrum in the TeV range using the MAGIC telescopes, providing new data to investigate local sources and dark matter hypotheses.

Contribution

It introduces a novel measurement of the TeV cosmic electron spectrum with the MAGIC telescopes, extending the energy range of previous observations.

Findings

First measurement of the cosmic electron spectrum with MAGIC in the TeV range

Detection of spectral features that could indicate local sources or dark matter

Enhanced sensitivity to electron flux above hundreds of GeV

Abstract

Cosmic electrons with energies in the TeV range lose their energy rapidly through synchrotron radiation and inverse Compton processes, resulting in a relatively short lifetime (~ 10^5 years). They are only visible from comparatively nearby sources (<1 kpc). Unexpected features in their spectrum at a few hundreds GeV, as measured by several experiments (ATIC, Fermi and H.E.S.S. among others), might be caused by local sources such as pulsars or by dark matter annihilation/decay. In order to investigate these possibilities, new measurements in the TeV energy region are needed. Since the completion of the stereo system, the MAGIC Cherenkov experiment is sensitive enough to measure the cosmic electron flux between a few hundred GeV and few TeV. The electron signal has to be extracted from the overwhelming background of hadronic cosmic rays estimated through Monte Carlo simulations. Here we present the first results of the cosmic electron spectrum measured with the MAGIC telescopes.