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Paper: Decelerating Flows in TeV Blazars: A Resolution to the BL Lacertae-FR I Unification Problem
Volume: 350, Blazar Variability Workshop II: Entering the GLAST Era
Page: 124
Authors: Kazanas, D.; Georganopoulos, M.
Abstract: The values of the Doppler factor δ of the relativistic plasma out- flows responsible for the observed radiation of the TeV-detected BL Lacertae (BL) objects are obtained by fitting their spectra by the Synchrotron-Self Compton (SSC) process; these model fits are driven mainly by the need to match the flux of these objects at the highest (TeV) energies and yield δ ≥ 50, values in violent disagreement with the BL Lac/FR I unification schemes. Motivated by the absence of any accompanying super-luminal velocities in the sub-pc scale jets of the best studied TeV blazars, MKN 421 and MKN 501, we propose the possibility that the relativistic flows in the TeV BLs decelerate. We show that the SSC emission by plasma in relativistic motion with a rather modest Lorentz factor Γ = 15, decelerating to values consistent with its kinematic state as inferred by recent radio interferometric observations can both produce good fits to the spectra and be consistent with the BL Lac/FR I unification scheme.
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