Measurement of the cosmic ray e+ +e- spectrum from 20 GeV to 1 TeV with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

Phys Rev Lett. 2009 May 8;102(18):181101. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.102.181101. Epub 2009 May 4.

Abstract

Designed as a high-sensitivity gamma-ray observatory, the Fermi Large Area Telescope is also an electron detector with a large acceptance exceeding 2 m;{2} sr at 300 GeV. Building on the gamma-ray analysis, we have developed an efficient electron detection strategy which provides sufficient background rejection for measurement of the steeply falling electron spectrum up to 1 TeV. Our high precision data show that the electron spectrum falls with energy as E-3.0 and does not exhibit prominent spectral features. Interpretations in terms of a conventional diffusive model as well as a potential local extra component are briefly discussed.