Related papers: High-Energy gamma-ray Astronomy and String Theory
We review the possibility that quantum fluctuations in the structure of space-time at the Planck scale might be subject to experimental probes. We study the effects of space-time foam in an approach inspired by string theory, in which…
We derive observational consequences of the hypothesis that cosmic rays (CR's) of energy $>10^{19}eV$ originate in the same cosmological objects producing gamma-ray bursts (GRB's). Inter-galactic magnetic fields $\gtrsim 10^{-12} G$ are…
Ultrahigh energy cosmic rays that produce giant extensive showers of charged particles and photons when they interact in the Earth's atmosphere provide a unique tool to search for new physics. Of particular interest is the possibility of…
The high-energy (> 100MeV) emission observed by Fermi-LAT during the prompt phase of some luminous gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) could arise from the cascade induced by interactions between accelerated protons and the radiation field of GRBs. The…
Recent international efforts have brought us closer to unveiling the century old mystery of the origin of cosmic rays. Cosmic ray, gamma ray, and neutrino observatories are reaching the necessary sensitivity to study the highest energy…
Gamma-ray bursts are the most energetic electromagnetic sources in the Universe. Their prompt gamma-ray radiation corresponds to an energy release of 1E42-1E47J. Fifty years after their discovery and several dedicated space-based…
The Fermi gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi) has detected hard X-ray (HXR) and gamma-ray photons from three flares, which according to \stereo occurred in active regions behind the limb of the Sun as delineated by near Earth instruments. For…
Hints for a GeV component in the emission from GRBs are known since the EGRET observations during the '90s and they have been recently confirmed by the data of the Fermi satellite. These results have, however, shown that a fully…
We calculate the flux of ultra high energy photons from individual ordinary (i.e. non-superconducting) cosmic strings and compare the results with the sensitivity of current and proposed TeV and EeV telescopes. Our calculations give only…
Recently, tentative evidence for an excess of gamma rays at energies around 130 GeV has been reported from analyses of data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). The excess is potentially of great interest, as it could be associated…
Quantum-gravity effects may introduce relevant consequences for the propagation and interaction of high energy cosmic rays particles. Assuming the space-time foamy structure results in an intrinsic uncertainty of energy and momentum of…
The study of time lags between spikes in Gamma-Ray Bursts light curves in different energy bands as a function of redshift may lead to the detection of effects due to Quantum Gravity. We present an analysis of 15 Gamma-Ray Bursts with…
We discuss possible tests of the constancy of the velocity of light using distant astrophysical sources such as gamma-ray bursters (GRBs), Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) and pulsars. This speculative quest may be motivated by some models of…
Energy spectra of particles accelerated by the first-order Fermi mechanism are investigated at ultrarelativistic shock waves, outside the range of Lorentz factors considered previously. For particle transport near the shock a numerical…
Plausibly spacetime is "foamy" on small distance scales, due to quantum fluctuations. We elaborate on the proposal to detect spacetime foam by looking for seeing disks in the images of distant quasars and AGNs. This is a null test in the…
Theories of gravity that obey the Weak Equivalence Principle have the same Parametrised Post-Newtonian parameter $\gamma$ for all particles at all energies. The large Shapiro time delays of extragalactic sources allow us to put tight…
The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi) was launched on June 11, 2008 and began its first year sky survey on August 11, 2008. The Large Area Telescope (LAT), a wide field-of-view pair-conversion telescope covering the energy range from…
The Fermi Bubbles are giant Galactic structures observed in both gamma-rays and microwaves. Recent studies have found support for the hypothesis that the gamma-ray and microwave emission can both be understood as arising from a hard…
Gamma-ray bursts and ultra-high-energy cosmic rays provide an important testing ground for fundamental physics. A simple-minded analysis of some gamma-ray bursts would lead to a huge estimate of the overall energy emitted, and this…
Little is known about the origin of the high-energy and sustained emission from solar Long-Duration Gamma-Ray Flares (LDGRFs), identified with the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO), the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM), and now Fermi. Though…