An Examination of Cosmic Ray Behavior in Giant Molecular Cloud Environments
Start Date
August 2024
End Date
August 2024
Location
ALT 205
Abstract
Giant Molecular Clouds (GMC) are highly dense regions in interstellar space within which stars are formed. During the star formation process, stellar magnetic fields are twisted due to rotation of the star-forming disk through which they permeate. This twisting leads to a recombination of these randomly moving fields which in turn energizes particles into cosmic rays. Cosmic rays are cosmologically significant as they serve to drive the chemistry of what happens in the formation of non-stellar bodies within this region.
We have recreated mathematically the means of production and interaction of cosmic rays within this region, focused specifically on the secondary production of neutral pions via relativistic pp-scattering between cosmic rays and the ambient medium. In deriving an expression for the pion emissivity we assume a power log distribution, consistent with that which is observed in solar flares. In turn, the ɣ-ray emissivity resulting from the decay of neutral pions is easily derived. With expressions to describe both the neutral pion emissivity and the resultant ɣ-ray emissivity we are able to procure a figure to represent the energy distribution spectrum of ɣ-rays produced via the decay chain of neutral pions.
An Examination of Cosmic Ray Behavior in Giant Molecular Cloud Environments
ALT 205
Giant Molecular Clouds (GMC) are highly dense regions in interstellar space within which stars are formed. During the star formation process, stellar magnetic fields are twisted due to rotation of the star-forming disk through which they permeate. This twisting leads to a recombination of these randomly moving fields which in turn energizes particles into cosmic rays. Cosmic rays are cosmologically significant as they serve to drive the chemistry of what happens in the formation of non-stellar bodies within this region.
We have recreated mathematically the means of production and interaction of cosmic rays within this region, focused specifically on the secondary production of neutral pions via relativistic pp-scattering between cosmic rays and the ambient medium. In deriving an expression for the pion emissivity we assume a power log distribution, consistent with that which is observed in solar flares. In turn, the ɣ-ray emissivity resulting from the decay of neutral pions is easily derived. With expressions to describe both the neutral pion emissivity and the resultant ɣ-ray emissivity we are able to procure a figure to represent the energy distribution spectrum of ɣ-rays produced via the decay chain of neutral pions.
