On the formation of energy spectra of synchrotron X-rays and inverse Compton gamma-rays in binary systems with luminous optical stars

Abstract

In this paper we study formation broad band energy spectra of electrons due to synchrotron radiation and inverse Compton (IC) scattering. The effect of transition of IC cooling from the Thomson regime to the Klein-Nishina regime can be very significant in the environments where radiation density dominates over the magnetic field density. We discuss impact of this effect on the formation of synchrotron and IC radiation components of TeV electrons in binary systems with very luminous optical stars. Such a scenario can be realized, for example, at the wind termination shock of the pulsar in PSR B1259-63/SS2883 or in the jets of microquasars. The calculations are based on the solution of Boltzmann equation using precise differential Compton cross-section.