Related papers: Implications of Variability Patterns observed in T…
We discuss the implications of rapid (few-minute) variability in the TeV flux of blazars, which has been observed recently with the HESS and MAGIC telescopes. The variability timescales seen in PKS 2155-304 and Mrk 501 are much shorter than…
We propose a new model for the description of ultra-short flares from TeV blazars by compact magnetized condensations (blobs), produced when red giant stars cross the jet close to the central black hole. Our study includes a simple…
We present results of a detailed numerical study and theoretical analysis of the dynamics of internal shocks in relativistic jets and the non-thermal flares associated with these shocks. In our model internal shocks result from collisions…
We have studied the rapid X-ray variability of three extragalactic TeV gamma-ray sources; Mrk 421, Mrk 501 and PKS 2155-304. Analyzing the X-ray light curves obtained from ASCA and/or RXTE observations between 1993 and 1998, we have…
We study the variability properties at radio frequencies of the jets thought to be typical of Active Galactic Nuclei, i.e. bulk Lorentz factor \Gamma ~ 10, and incoherent synchrotron emission. We assume that the radiating electrons are…
Recently observed minute timescale variability of blazar emission at TeV energies has imposed severe constraints on jet models and TeV emission mechanisms. We focus on a robust jet instability to explain this variability. As a consequence…
Rapid variability on a time scale much faster than the light-crossing time of the central supermassive black hole has been seen in TeV emission from the blazar PKS 2155-304. The most plausible explanation of this puzzling observation is…
We investigate the spectral and timing signatures of the internal-shock model for blazars. For this purpose, we develop a semi-analytical model for the time-dependent radiative output from internal shocks arising from colliding relativistic…
We present an extensive study of 72 archival Chandra light curves of the high-frequency-peaked type blazar Mrk 421, the first strong extragalactic object to be detected at TeV energies. Between 2000 and 2015 Mrk 421 often displayed intraday…
The highest-energy blazars exhibit non-thermal radiation extending beyond 1 TeV with high luminosities and strong variabilities, indicating extreme particle acceleration in their relativistic jets. The gamma-ray spectra of blazars contain…
We compare the rise and decay timescales of $\sim$200 long-term ($\sim$weeks-months) GeV and R-band outbursts and $\sim$25 short-term ($\sim$hr-day) GeV flares in a sample of 10 blazars using light curves from the Fermi-LAT and the…
Highly variable Markarian 421 is a bright high synchrotron energy peaked blazar showing wide featureless non-thermal spectrum making it a good candidate for our study of intraday flux and spectral variations over time. We analyse its X-ray…
Three uninterrupted, long (lasting respectively 7, 10, and 10 days) ASCA observations of the well-studied TeV-bright blazars Mrk 421, Mrk 501 and PKS 2155-304 all show continuous strong X-ray flaring. Despite the relatively faint intensity…
The extremely rapid burst of TeV photons from Mkn 421 (15 May 1996) can be reconciled with the standard properties of a relativistic gamma-ray emitting jet (bulk Lorentz factor $\approx$ 10; size $\10^{17}$ cm) if one assumes that the…
In this presentation, we report the results of intraday variability in the optical (BVRI bands) and hard X-ray band (3-79 keV) in a number of blazars. In the optical microvariability studies of the blazars S5 0716+714 and BL Lac, we…
Recent Cherenkov observations of BL Lac objects showed that the TeV flux of PKS 2155-304 changed by a factor 2 in just 3-5 minutes. This fast variability can be accounted for if the emitting region is moving with a bulk Lorentz factor…
The development of instabilities leading to the formation of internal shocks is expected in the relativistic outflows of both gamma-ray bursts and blazars. The shocks heat the expanding ejecta, generate a tangled magnetic field and…
The discovery of strong gamma-ray and hard X-ray emission and the results from various multifrequency campaigns have disclosed new aspects of the blazar phenomenology, leading to a much more robust understanding of the mechanisms underlying…
We consider the transverse structure and stability properties of relativistic jets formed in the course of the collapse of a massive progenitor. Our numerical simulations show the presence of a strong shear in the bulk velocity of such…
In this review, I will discuss how to characterize synchrotron X-ray variability of TeV blazars by using the observed/simulated light curves. Apparently, temporal studies provide independent and complementary information to the spectral…