Speaker
Description
The origin of magnetic fields in galaxies and clusters of galaxies are generally explained via amplification mechanisms of weak seed fields. However, the nature of these seeds is still unknown. Two different hypotheses exist: the astrophysical and the cosmological origins. In the latter case a residual magnetic field is expected in the cosmic voids. For this reason it is crucial to look for signatures of magnetization in regions devoid of structures.
A possible way to constrain the Intergalactic Magnetic Field (IGMF) is based on gamma ray observations of extragalactic sources. Very High Energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) photons from an extragalactic source interact with the intergalactic medium producing an electromagnetic cascade at lower energies. The presence of a not negligible IGMF induced observable effects in the cascade signal that can be used to measure or constrain the IGMF configuration. In this talk I review the most important results achieved in the last years and give a future perspective in the context of CTA (Cherenkov Telescope Array)
