Cosmic Ray Acceleration and Nonthermal Radiation at Accretion Shocks in the Outer Regions of Galaxy Clusters

TL;DR

This paper investigates how cosmic rays are accelerated at galaxy cluster accretion shocks, using simulations and models to predict nonthermal emissions, and compares these predictions with observations.

Contribution

It introduces a new model for electron pre-acceleration at high-$eta$ shocks based on PIC simulations, applicable to cosmological shock environments.

Findings

Electrons can be pre-energized via ion-Weibel instability.

Predicted synchrotron maps align with observations of the Coma cluster.

Detection of IC X-rays and gamma-rays remains challenging.

Abstract

Cosmology models predict that external accretion shocks form in the outer region of galaxy clusters due to supersonic gas infall from filaments and voids in the cosmic web. They are characterized by high sonic and Alfv\'enic Mach numbers, $M_s\sim10-10^2$ and $M_A\sim10^2-10^3$, and propagate into weakly magnetized plasmas of $\beta\equiv P_g/P_B\gtrsim10^2$. Although strong accretion shocks are expected to be efficient accelerators of cosmic rays (CRs), nonthermal signatures of shock-accelerated CRs around clusters have not been confirmed, and detailed acceleration physics at such shocks has yet to be understood. In this study, we first establish through two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations that at strong high-$\beta$ shocks electrons can be pre-energized via stochastic Fermi acceleration owing to the ion-Weibel instability in the shock transition region, possibly followed by injection into diffusive shock acceleration. Hence, we propose that the models derived from conventional thermal leakage injection may be employed for the acceleration of electrons and ions at accretion shocks as well. Applying these analytic models to numerical shock zones identified in structure formation simulations, we estimate nonthermal radiation, such as synchrotron and inverse-Compton (IC) emission due to CR electrons, and $\pi^0$-decay $\gamma$-rays due to CR protons, around simulated clusters. Our models with the injection parameter, $Q\approx3.5-3.8$, predict synthetic synchrotron maps, which seem consistent with recent radio observations of the Coma cluster. However, the detection of nonthermal IC X-rays and $\gamma$-rays from accretion shocks would be quite challenging. We suggest that the proposed analytic models may be adopted as generic recipes for CR production at cosmological shocks.