Abstract
Gamma-ray data from Fermi Large Area Telescope reveal a bilobular structure extending up to above and below the Galactic Center. It has been argued that the gamma rays arise from hadronic interactions of high-energy cosmic rays which are advected out by a strong wind, or from inverse-Compton scattering of relativistic electrons accelerated at plasma shocks present in the bubbles. We explore the alternative possibility that the relativistic electrons are undergoing stochastic 2nd-order Fermi acceleration by plasma wave turbulence through the entire volume of the bubbles. The observed gamma-ray spectral shape is then explained naturally by the resulting hard electron spectrum modulated by inverse-Compton energy losses. Rather than a constant volume emissivity as in other models, we predict a nearly constant surface brightness, and reproduce the observed sharp edges of the bubbles.
- Received 26 April 2011
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.091101
© 2011 American Physical Society