ULXs, Microblazars, and the Unidentified EGRET sources

Abstract

We suggest that ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) and some of the variable low latitude EGRET gamma-ray sources may be two different manifestations of the same underlying phenomena: high-mass microquasars with relativistic jets forming a small angle with the line of sight (i.e. microblazars). Microblazars with jets formed by relatively cool plasma (Lorentz factors for the leptons up to a few hundreds) naturally lead to ULXs. If the jet contains very energetic particles (high-energy cutoff above Lorentz factors of several thousands) the result is a relatively strong gamma-ray source. As pointed out by Kaufman Bernado, Romero & Mirabel (2002), a gamma-ray microblazar will always have an X-ray counterpart (although it might be relatively weak), whereas X-ray microblazars might have no gamma-ray counterparts.