Phys. Rev. Lett.
101,
170402
(2008)
[5 pages]
Limits on an Energy Dependence of the Speed of Light from a Flare of the Active Galaxy PKS 2155-304
F. Aharonian et al. H.E.S.S. Collaboration
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F. Aharonian1,13, A. G. Akhperjanian2, U. Barres de Almeida8, A. R. Bazer-Bachi3, Y. Becherini12, B. Behera14, M. Beilicke4, W. Benbow1, K. Bernlöhr1,5, C. Boisson6, A. Bochow1, V. Borrel3, I. Braun1, E. Brion7, J. Brucker16, P. Brun7, R. Bühler1,*, T. Bulik24, I. Büsching9, T. Boutelier17, S. Carrigan1, P. M. Chadwick8, A. Charbonnier19, R. C. G. Chaves1, L.-M. Chounet10, A. C. Clapson1, G. Coignet11, L. Costamante1,29, M. Dalton5, B. Degrange10, C. Deil1, H. J. Dickinson8, A. Djannati-Ataï12, W. Domainko1, L. O’C. Drury13, F. Dubois11, G. Dubus17, J. Dyks24, K. Egberts1, D. Emmanoulopoulos14, P. Espigat12, C. Farnier15, F. Feinstein15, A. Fiasson15, A. Förster1, G. Fontaine10, M. Füßling5, S. Gabici13, Y. A. Gallant15, L. Gérard12, B. Giebels10, J. F. Glicenstein7, B. Glück16, P. Goret7, C. Hadjichristidis8, D. Hauser14, M. Hauser14, S. Heinz16, G. Heinzelmann4, G. Henri17, G. Hermann1, J. A. Hinton25, A. Hoffmann18, W. Hofmann1, M. Holleran9, S. Hoppe1, D. Horns4, A. Jacholkowska19,†, O. C. de Jager9, I. Jung16, K. Katarzyński27, S. Kaufmann14, E. Kendziorra18, M. Kerschhaggl5, D. Khangulyan1, B. Khélifi10, D. Keogh8, Nu. Komin15, K. Kosack1, G. Lamanna11, J.-P. Lenain6, T. Lohse5, V. Marandon12, J. M. Martin6, O. Martineau-Huynh19, A. Marcowith15, D. Maurin19, T. J. L. McComb8, C. Medina6, R. Moderski24, E. Moulin7, M. Naumann-Godo10, M. de Naurois19, D. Nedbal20, D. Nekrassov1, J. Niemiec28, S. J. Nolan8, S. Ohm1, J.-F. Olive3, E. de Oña Wilhelmi12,29, K. J. Orford8, J. L. Osborne8, M. Ostrowski23, M. Panter1, G. Pedaletti14, G. Pelletier17, P.-O. Petrucci17, S. Pita12, G. Pühlhofer14, M. Punch12, A. Quirrenbach14, B. C. Raubenheimer9, M. Raue1,29, S. M. Rayner8, M. Renaud1, F. Rieger1,29, J. Ripken4, L. Rob20, S. Rosier-Lees11, G. Rowell26, B. Rudak24, J. Ruppel21, V. Sahakian2, A. Santangelo18, R. Schlickeiser21, F. M. Schöck16, R. Schröder21, U. Schwanke5, S. Schwarzburg18, S. Schwemmer14, A. Shalchi21, J. L. Skilton25, H. Sol6, D. Spangler8, Ł. Stawarz23, R. Steenkamp22, C. Stegmann16, G. Superina10, P. H. Tam14, J.-P. Tavernet19, R. Terrier12, O. Tibolla14, C. van Eldik1, G. Vasileiadis15, C. Venter9, J. P. Vialle11, P. Vincent19, M. Vivier7, H. J. Völk1, F. Volpe10,29, S. J. Wagner14, M. Ward8, A. A. Zdziarski24, and A. Zech6 (H.E.S.S. Collaboration)
1Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik, P.O. Box 103980, D 69029 Heidelberg, Germany
2Yerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanian Brothers Street, 375036 Yerevan, Armenia
3Centre d’Etude Spatiale des Rayonnements, CNRS/UPS, 9 av. du Colonel Roche, BP 4346, F-31029 Toulouse Cedex 4, France
4Universität Hamburg, Institut für Experimentalphysik, Luruper Chaussee 149, D 22761 Hamburg, Germany
5Institut für Physik, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Newtonstr. 15, D 12489 Berlin, Germany
6LUTH, Observatoire de Paris, CNRS, Université Paris Diderot, 5 Place Jules Janssen, 92190 Meudon, France
7IRFU/DSM/CEA, CE Saclay, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, Cedex, France
8University of Durham, Department of Physics, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom
9Unit for Space Physics, North-West University, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa
10Laboratoire Leprince-Ringuet, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS/IN2P3, F-91128 Palaiseau, France
11Laboratoire d’Annecy-le-Vieux de Physique des Particules, CNRS/IN2P3, 9 Chemin de Bellevue - BP 110 F-74941 Annecy-le-Vieux Cedex, France
12Astroparticule et Cosmologie (APC), CNRS, Universite Paris 7 Denis Diderot, 10, rue Alice Domon et Leonie Duquet, F-75205 Paris Cedex 13, France
13Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 5 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, Ireland
14Landessternwarte, Universität Heidelberg, Königstuhl, D 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
15Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Astroparticules, CNRS/IN2P3, Université Montpellier II, CC 70, Place Eugène Bataillon, F-34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France
16Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Physikalisches Institut, Erwin-Rommel-Str. 1, D 91058 Erlangen, Germany
17Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Grenoble, INSU/CNRS, Université Joseph Fourier, BP 53, F-38041 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
18Institut für Astronomie und Astrophysik, Universität Tübingen, Sand 1, D 72076 Tübingen, Germany
19LPNHE, Université Pierre et Marie Curie Paris 6, Université Denis Diderot Paris 7, CNRS/IN2P3, 4 Place Jussieu, F-75252, Paris Cedex 5, France
20Institute of Particle and Nuclear Physics, Charles University, V Holesovickach 2, 180 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic
21Institut für Theoretische Physik, Lehrstuhl IV: Weltraum und Astrophysik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, D 44780 Bochum, Germany
22University of Namibia, Private Bag 13301, Windhoek, Namibia
23Obserwatorium Astronomiczne, Uniwersytet Jagielloński, ul. Orla 171, 30-244 Kraków, Poland
24Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, ul. Bartycka 18, 00-716 Warsaw, Poland
25School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
26School of Chemistry & Physics, University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
27Toruń Centre for Astronomy, Nicolaus Copernicus University, ul. Gagarina 11, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
28Instytut Fizyki Ja̧drowej PAN, ul. Radzikowskiego 152, 31-342 Kraków, Poland
29European Associated Laboratory for Gamma-Ray Astronomy, jointly supported by CNRS and MPG
Received 10 July 2008; published 22 October 2008
In the past few decades, several models have predicted an energy dependence of the speed of light in the context of quantum gravity. For cosmological sources such as active galaxies, this minuscule effect can add up to measurable photon-energy dependent time lags. In this Letter a search for such time lags during the High Energy Stereoscopic System observations of the exceptional very high energy flare of the active galaxy PKS 2155-304 on 28 July 2006 is presented. Since no significant time lag is found, lower limits on the energy scale of speed of light modifications are derived.
© 2008 The American Physical Society
URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.170402
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.170402
PACS:
03.30.+p, 95.85.Pw, 96.50.S−, 98.54.Cm
*Rolf.Buehler@mpi-hd.mpg.de †Agnieszka.Jacholkowska@cern.ch
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