KINETIC-THEORY OF COSMIC-RAYS AND GAMMA-RAYS IN SUPERNOVA-REMNANTS .1. UNIFORM INTERSTELLAR-MEDIUM

Kinetic models of particle acceleration in supernova remnants (SNRs) a re used to determine the cosmic ray (CR) nucleon and, for the first ti me, also the associated gamma-ray spectrum during SN shock propagation in a uniform interstellar medium. SNR evolution is followed numerical ly taking into account the backreaction of accelerated CRs on the over all dynamics. The high energy CRs also produce pi(0)-decay gamma-rays. The model for SNRs includes injection of suprathermal particles at th e shock front and heating of the thermal plasma due to the dissipation of Alfven waves in the precursor region. It is shown that the CRs are accelerated with very high efficiency. About 50% of the explosion ene rgy is absorbed by CRs at maximum during the SNR evolution even for re latively low injection rates. The maximum energy achieved by accelerat ed CR protons is about 10(14) eV for a Bohm-limit diffusion coefficien t. The main flux of high energy gamma-rays is produced during the earl y Sedov phase and decreases thereafter. The results are compared with earlier models based on the hydrodynamic approximation for CR transpor t and test particle estimates. For a moderate ambient gas density of 0 .3 I-I-atoms cm(-3), corresponding to a warm interstellar medium, a ma gnetic field strength of 5 mu G, and an explosion energy of 10(51) erg , the integral TeV gamma-ray flux from a SNR at a distance of 1 kpc ex ceeds 10(-11) photons cm(-2)s(-1) at peak luminosity, This is higher t han previously estimated peak fluxes by factors of the order of 7, and is primarily due to the large shock compression during the sweep-up p hase. Spatially, SNRs without. a central compact object are shell sour ces also in gamma-rays throughout all their evolutionary phases. Given that such SNRs exist close-by they should be observable in particular with sensitive ground based instruments. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B. V.