Study of an interaction between the jet and an interstellar medium of M87 with a spectral analysis by using Chandra

TL;DR

This study analyzes Chandra X-ray spectra of M87's jet and interstellar medium, revealing thermal and non-thermal components, with evidence of shock heating and electron interactions, advancing understanding of jet-medium interactions.

Contribution

It provides detailed spectral analysis confirming thermal and non-thermal emission components and suggests shock heating as a key interaction mechanism.

Findings

X-ray spectra fit with power law for nucleus and knots HST-1, D

Thermal component needed for knot A spectra

Evidence of shock heating in jet gas

Abstract

Both a thermal component and a non thermal component as an interaction between the jet and an interstellar medium are studied with an exposure time of 800 ks of Chandra. It is confirmed that an X-ray energy spectra for the nucleus, the knot HST-1 and the knot D is well described with a power law as synchrotron emission. It is found that a power law model is rejected statistically for the knot A and an X-ray energy spectra is well described with a combination model of a power law and a thermal component. There is a possibility that gas in a jet is heated by a shock as interaction between the jet and an interstellar medium and it is observed as thermal emission. The flux of a non thermal bremsstrahlung from the jet as an interaction between accelerated electrons and an interstellar medium is calculated from an X-ray result with an effect of a break in an index and it is suggested that there is some contribution from the knot HST-1 to the observed flux with Fermi. This scenario matches with a non-flux variability in a GeV energy range.