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A 15.5 GHz detection of the galaxy cluster minihalo in RXJ1720.1+2638

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

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Authors

Carvalho, P 
Elwood, PJ 
Grainge, KJB 

Abstract

RXJ1720.1+2638 is a cool-core, 'relaxed-appearing' cluster with a minihalo previously detected up to 8.4 GHz, confined by X-ray-detected cold fronts. We present observations of the minihalo at 13 - 18 GHz with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager telescope, simultaneously modelling the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich signal of the cluster in conjunction with Planck and Chandra data in order to disentangle the non-thermal emission of the minihalo. We show that the previously-reported steepening of the minihalo emission at 8.4 GHz is not supported by the AMI data and that the spectrum is consistent with a single power-law up to 18 GHz. We also show the presence of a larger-scale component of the minihalo extending beyond the cold fronts. Both of these observations could be explained by the 'hadronic' or 'secondary' mechanism for the production of relativistic electrons, rather than the currently-favoured 're-acceleration' mechanism and/or multiple episodes of jet activity from the active galactic nucleus in the brightest cluster galaxy.

Description

Keywords

radiation mechanisms: non-thermal, galaxies: clusters: individual: RXJ1720.1+2638, galaxies: clusters: intracluster medium, radio continuum: general

Journal Title

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0035-8711
1365-2966

Volume Title

508

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)

Rights

All rights reserved
Sponsorship
European Research Council (307215)