Abstract
Accretion and merger shocks in clusters of galaxies are potential accelerators of high-energy protons, which can give rise to high-energy neutrinos through pp interactions with the intracluster gas. We discuss the possibility that protons from cluster shocks make a significant contribution to the observed cosmic rays in the energy range between the second knee at-10 17.5 eV and the ankle at-1018.5 eV. The accompanying cumulative neutrino background above-PeV may be detectable by upcoming neutrino telescopes such as IceCube or KM3NeT, providing a test of this scenario as well as a probe of cosmic-ray confinement properties in clusters.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | L105-L108 |
Journal | Astrophysical Journal |
Volume | 689 |
Issue number | 2 PART 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2008 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science