High-energy Neutrino and Gamma Ray Emission from Clusters-like Perseus

TL;DR

This study models high-energy gamma-ray and neutrino emissions from galaxy clusters like Perseus, considering magnetic confinement and interactions, to predict detectability by observatories like IceCube and CTA.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive simulation framework combining cosmological MHD, CR propagation, and source evolution to predict multi-messenger signals from galaxy clusters.

Findings

CRs up to 10^{17} eV can be confined in clusters over cosmological times.

Predicted neutrino and gamma-ray fluxes could be detectable by IceCube and CTA.

Clusters contribute significantly to the diffuse high-energy background.

Abstract

We calculate the high-energy gamma-ray and neutrino emissions from galaxy clusters like Perseus that host active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our primary objective is to distinguish the emission from the central source, such as NGC$1275$, from the diffuse emission originating in the outskirts of the Perseus cluster. Due to a unique magnetic-field configuration, CRs with energy $\leq 10^{17}$ eV can be confined within these structures over cosmological time scales, and generate secondary particles, including neutrinos and gamma-rays, through interactions with the background gas and photons. We employ three-dimensional cosmological magnetohydrodynamical simulations of structure formation to model the turbulent intracluster medium (ICM). We propagate CRs in intracluster medium (ICM) and intergalactic medium using multi-dimensional Monte Carlo simulations, considering all relevant photohadronic, photonuclear, and hadronuclear interactions. We also include the cosmological evolution of sources like Perseus. By comparing our results with the existing upper limits from IceCube for galaxy clusters and the sensitivity of CTA, we predict that these observatories could potentially establish a new class of astrophysical sources capable of emitting high-energy multi-messenger signals. We also compute the contribution from clusters like Perseus to the diffuse neutrino and gamma-ray background.