The connection between radio and γ-ray emission in Fermi/LAT blazars

Abstract

We collect the second Large Area Telescope AGN catalog (2LAC) and Monitor of Jets in AGN with VLBA Equipment (MOJAVE) quasi-simultaneous data to investigate the radio-γ connection of blazars. The cross sample contains 166 sources. The statistical analysis based on this sample confirms positive correlations between these two bands, but the correlations become weaker as the γ-ray energy increases. The statistical results between various parameters show negative correlations of γ-ray photon spectral index with γ-ray loudness for both Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars (FSRQs) and BL Lacertae objects, positive correlations of γ-ray variability index with the γ-ray loudness for FSRQs, a negative correlation of the γ-ray variability index with the γ-ray photon spectral index for FSRQs, and negative correlations of γ-ray photon spectral index with γ-ray luminosity for FSRQs. These results suggest that the γ-ray variability may be due to changes inside the γ-ray emission region like the injected power, rather than changes in the photon density of the external radiation fields, and the variability amplitude tends to be larger as the γ-rays are closer to the high energy peak of the spectral energy distribution (SED). No correlation of variability index found for BL Lacertae objects implies that variability behavior may differ below and above the peak energy. © 2012 National Astronomical Observatories of Chinese Academy of Sciences and IOP Publishing Ltd..