Related papers: Cosmic Rays and the Search for a Lorentz Invarianc…
Lorentz symmetry violation (LSV) is often discussed using models of the $TH\epsilon \mu $ type which involve, basically, energy independent parameters. However, if LSV is generated at the Planck scale or at some other fundamental length…
The origin of the highest energy cosmic rays represents one of the most conspicuous enigmas of modern astrophysics, in spite of gigantic experimental efforts in the past fifty years, and of active theoretical research. The past decade has…
The recently discovered Higgs particle with a mass near $126$ GeV presents new opportunities to explore Lorentz violation. Ultra-high-energy cosmic rays are one of the most sensitive testing grounds for Lorentz symmetry, and can be used to…
The relation between the violation of Lorentz invariance and the dynamical effects in high energy gamma rays production is discussed. By using the framework of noncommutative classical electrodynamics, it is shown that full dynamical…
Lorentz invariance violation (LIV) has long been recognized as an observable low-energy signature of quantum gravity. In spite of a great effort to detect LIV effects, so far only lower bounds have been derived. The high energy photons from…
Lorentz invariance violation (LV) is examined through the time delay between high-energy and low-energy photons in gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Previous studies determined the LV energy scale as $E_{\rm LV} \simeq 3.60 \times 10^{17}$~GeV using…
The highest energy cosmic rays, above the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cut-off of cosmic ray spectrum, may be produced in decays of superheavy long-living X-particles. We conjecture that these particles may be produced naturally in the early…
We briefly discuss the implications of recent AUGER results for patterns of Lorentz symmetry violation (LSV), assuming that the existence of the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cutoff is definitely confirmed. The mass composition of the…
A model is proposed for the origin of cosmic rays (CRs) from ~10^14 eV to the highest energies, >10^20 eV. Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) are assumed to inject CR protons and ions into the interstellar medium of star-forming galaxies--including…
We show that if the sources of ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) with energies E>10^{19}eV are associated with galaxies, then the production of UHECRs must occur in transient events. Our galaxy is currently at a dim state in between…
A prediction of standard Big Bang cosmology is that the observed UHECR (ultra-high-energy cosmic rays) spectrum will exhibit a cutoff at the GKZ limit, resulting from interaction with the photons that constitute the cosmic microwave…
The field of ultra-high energy cosmic rays made a lot of progresses last years with large area experiments such as the Pierre Auger Observatory, HiRes and the Telescope Array. A suppression of the cosmic ray flux at energies above…
The origin of highest energy cosmic rays is yet unknown. An appealing possibility is the so-called Z-burst scenario, in which a large fraction of these cosmic rays are decay products of Z bosons produced in the scattering of ultrahigh…
We present the results of a new calculation of the photodisintegration of ultrahigh energy cosmic ray (UHCR) nuclei in intergalactic space. The critical interactions for energy loss and photodisintegration of UHCR nuclei occur with photons…
Due to the high energies and long distances to the sources, astrophysical observations provide a unique opportunity to test possible signatures of Lorentz invariance violation (LIV). Superluminal LIV enables the decay of photons at high…
It has been long conjectured that a signature of Quantum Gravity will be Lorentz Invariance Violation (LIV) that could be observed at energies much lower than the Planck scale. One possible signature of LIV is an energy-dependent speed of…
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are among the most potent probes of Lorentz invariance violation (LIV), offering direct constraints on the quantum gravity energy scale ($E_{\rm QG}$) based on observations of energy-dependent time lags. Individual…
The flux of cosmic rays beyond the GZK cutoff ($\sim 10^{20}$ eV) may be explained through their production by ultra high energy cosmic neutrinos, annihilating on the relic neutrino background, in the vicinity of our galaxy. This process is…
Astrophysical observations provide a unique opportunity to test possible signatures of Lorentz Invariance Violation (LIV), due to the high energies and long distances involved. In quantum theory of gravity, one may expect the modification…
gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are likely sources of ultra-high energy, >10^{19} eV, protons and high energy, >1 TeV, neutrinos. Large volume detectors of ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) and high energy neutrinos, which are already…