NuSTAR study of Hard X-Ray Morphology and Spectroscopy of PWN G21.5-0.9

TL;DR

This study uses NuSTAR X-ray observations to analyze the morphology and spectrum of PWN G21.5-0.9, revealing complex non-thermal features, spectral breaks, and challenging existing models of particle flow and magnetic field structure.

Contribution

First spatially resolved high-energy X-ray imaging of PWN G21.5-0.9 up to 40 keV, revealing spectral breaks and challenging standard MHD outflow models.

Findings

Detection of non-thermal emission up to 20 keV along the supernova shell

Identification of a spectral break at ~9 keV not explained by current models

Derivation of an energy-dependent cooling length scale inconsistent with classical models

Abstract

We present NuSTAR high energy X-ray observations of the pulsar wind nebula (PWN)/supernova remnant G21.5-0.9. We detect integrated emission from the nebula up to ~40 keV, and resolve individual spatial features over a broad X-ray band for the first time. The morphology seen by NuSTAR agrees well with that seen by XMM-Newton and Chandra below 10 keV. At high energies NuSTAR clearly detects non-thermal emission up to ~20 keV that extends along the eastern and northern rim of the supernova shell. The broadband images clearly demonstrate that X-ray emission from the North Spur and Eastern Limb results predominantly from non-thermal processes. We detect a break in the spatially integrated X-ray spectrum at ~9 keV that cannot be reproduced by current SED models, implying either a more complex electron injection spectrum or an additional process such as diffusion compared to what has been considered in previous work. We use spatially resolved maps to derive an energy-dependent cooling length scale, $L(E) \propto E^{m}$ with $m = -0.21 \pm 0.01$. We find this to be inconsistent with the model for the morphological evolution with energy described by Kennel & Coroniti (1984). This value, along with the observed steepening in power-law index between radio and X-ray, can be quantitatively explained as an energy-loss spectral break in the simple scaling model of Reynolds (2009), assuming particle advection dominates over diffusion. This interpretation requires a substantial departure from spherical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD), magnetic-flux-conserving outflow, most plausibly in the form of turbulent magnetic-field amplification.