Uncovering underappreciated physical effects hidden in the cosmic-ray electron spectra at very high-energy

TL;DR

This paper reveals that the high-energy cosmic-ray electron spectrum near Earth is significantly influenced by gluon condensation and anomalous pair-production effects in Cygnus X, offering new insights into cosmic-ray physics.

Contribution

It identifies previously underappreciated physical effects, specifically gluon condensation and anomalous pair-production, as key factors shaping the cosmic-ray electron spectrum at TeV energies.

Findings

Gluon condensation affects the electron spectrum near Earth.

Anomalous electron/positron pair-production occurs in Cygnus X.

These effects dominate the spectrum at very high energies.

Abstract

We show that the behavior of the cosmic ray electron spectrum in the TeV energy band near the Earth is dominated by gluon condensation and anomalous electron/positron pair-production in Cygnus X.