Remarkable discovery of 37 million e gamma-ray spectrum line done by Chinese scientists

Gamma-ray line (Representative Image - Canva)

Chinese scientists from the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP) made a remarkable discovery of a gamma-ray spectrum line with an energy of up to 37 million electron volts. The finding of this discovery was published in “Science China: Physics, Mechanics and Astronomy,” on Thursday, explaining the gamma-ray bursts.

This ray, with the highest energy ever emitted by celestial objects in space, exhibits a unique power-law evolution in both energy and luminosity. To make this remarkable discovery, data was taken from the Polar Space Telescope and the Fermi satellite was analyzed.

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are immensely energetic explosions observed in distant galaxies. They are the brightest and most extreme explosive events in the entire universe, described by NASA as the “most powerful class of explosions.”

The specific GRB involved in this discovery is known as GRB 221009A, which reached Earth on October 9, 2022. The collaborative research team, including scientists from IHEP, the Yunnan Observatories of CAS, Hebei Normal University, and Guizhou Normal University.

The team analyzed data from two space gamma-ray monitors: GECAM-C and Fermi/GBM. Despite challenges due to the burst’s extreme brightness, they successfully obtained reliable spectra and identified the intriguing gamma-ray line.

The detection of the gamma rays can be done through several methods there are specialized instruments designed to capture and measure this highly energetic form of electromagnetic radiation.

These detectors, often housed in space-based observatories like the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, utilize various technologies to identify gamma rays.

One of the widely used methods to detect gamma rays is scintillation detectors, which use materials that emit light when struck by gamma rays. The detected light then gets converted into electrical signals, that are used to determine the energy and origin of the gamma rays.

An additional method utilizes semiconductor detectors, including high-purity germanium detectors, which provide superior energy resolution by producing electron-hole pairs upon the interaction between gamma rays and the semiconductor material.

To precisely map the sources of gamma rays in the sky, gamma-ray telescopes also frequently use sophisticated imaging techniques such as Compton scattering detectors or coded-aperture masks.

Through the study of gamma-ray bursts, supernova remnants, and other high-energy astronomical occurrences, this advanced equipment allows scientists to gain important insights into the universe's most intense processes.

This breakthrough provides crucial clues for unravelling the mysteries of gamma-ray bursts and relativistic jets, marking a significant milestone in our understanding of these cosmic phenomena.