A simplified view of blazars: the very high energy gamma-ray vision

TL;DR

This paper presents a simplified model of blazars that accurately predicts their gamma-ray emissions, suggesting over 100 new blazars could be detected at very high energies with current and upcoming Cherenkov telescopes.

Contribution

The paper introduces a simplified, unified scenario for blazar emissions that successfully reproduces survey data and makes detailed predictions for very high energy gamma-ray detections.

Findings

Over 100 blazars detectable at VHE now

Predictions align with Fermi-LAT survey results

Detection of blazar at z=0.944 confirms model accuracy

Abstract

We have recently proposed a simplified scenario for blazars in which these sources are classified as flat-spectrum radio quasars or BL Lacs according to the prescriptions of unified schemes, and to a varying combination of Doppler boosted radiation from the jet, emission from the accretion disk, the broad line region, and light from the host galaxy. This scenario has been thoroughly tested through detailed Monte Carlo simulations and reproduces all the main features of existing radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray surveys. In this paper we consider the case of very high energy emission (E > 100 GeV) extrapolating from the expectations for the GeV band, which are in full accordance with the Fermi-LAT survey results, and make detailed predictions for current and future Cherenkov facilities, including the Cherenkov Telescope Array. Our results imply that >~ 100 new blazars can be detected now at very high energy and up to z ~1, consistently with the very recent MAGIC detection of S4 0218+35 at z=0.944.