0000000000802456
AUTHOR
S. E. Boggs
SPI/INTEGRAL observation of the Cygnus region
We present the analysis of the first observations of the Cygnus region by the SPI spectrometer onboard the Integral Gamma Ray Observatory, encompassing ${\sim}$ 600 ks of data. Three sources namely Cyg X-1, Cyg X-3 and EXO 2030+375 were clearly detected. Our data illustrate the temporal variability of Cyg X-1 in the energy range from 20 keV to 300 keV. The spectral analysis shows a remarkable stability of the Cyg X-1 spectra when averaged over one day timescale. The other goal of these observations is SPI inflight calibration and performance verification. The latest objective has been achieved as demonstrated by the results presented in this paper.
Antideuterons as an indirect dark matter signature: design and preparation for a balloon-born GAPS experiment
The General Antiparticle Spectrometer (GAPS) exploits low energy antideuterons produced in neutralino-neutralino annihilations as an indirect dark matter (DM) signature that is effectively free from background. When an antiparticle is captured by a target material, it forms an exotic atom in an excited state which quickly decays by emitting X-rays of precisely defined energy and a correlated pion signature from nuclear annihilation. We have successfully demonstrated the GAPS method in an accelerator environment and are currently planning a prototype flight from Japan for 2009. This will lead to a long duration balloon (LDB) mission that will complement existing and planned direct DM searche…