Using publicly available Monte Carlo codes as well as compilation of published data on p-p interactions for proton kinetic energy below 2 GeV, we parametrize the energy spectra and production rates of γ-rays by simple but quite accurate (≤ 20%) analytical expressions in a broad range from the kinematic threshold to PeV energies.

Context. A population of unidentified gamma-ray sources is forming a structure resembling a halo around the Galactic center. These sources are highly variable, and hence they should be associated with compact objects. Microquasars are objects undergoing accretion with relativistic jets; if such an object has a low-mass, evolved, donor star, it might be found in the Galactic halo. If these low-mass microquasars can generate detectable gamma-ray emission, then they are natural candidates to account for the halo high-energy sources. Aims. We aim to construct models for high-energy emission of low-mass microquasars, which could produce a significant luminosity in the gamma-ray domain. Methods. We consider that a significant fraction of the relativistic particles in the jets of low-mass microquasars are protons and then we study the production of high-energy emission through proton synchrotron radiation and photopion production. Photopair production and leptonic processes are considered as well. We compute a number of specific models with different parameters to explore the possibilities of this scenario. Results. We find that important luminosities, in the range of 10 34 -10 37 erg s −1 , can be achieved by proton synchrotron radiation in the Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) energy range, and lower, but still significant luminosities at higher energies for some models. Conclusions. We conclude that the proton microquasar model offers a very interesting alternative to account for the halo gamma-ray sources and presents a variety of predictions that might be tested in the near future by instruments like GLAST, the High-Energy Stereoscopic System II (HESS II), the Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov telescope II (MAGIC II), and neutrino telescopes like IceCube.

Context. Cygnus X-1 is a well-observed microquasar. Broadband observations at all wavelengths have been collected over the years. The origin of the MeV tail observed with COMPTEL and INTEGRAL is still under debate and it has mostly been attributed to the corona, although its high degree of polarization suggests that it is synchrotron radiation from a jet. The origin of the transient emission above ∼100 GeV is also unclear. Aims. We aim to clarify the origin of the broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) of Cygnus X-1, focusing particularly on the gamma-ray emission, and to gain information on the physical conditions inside the jets. Methods. We developed a lepto-hadronic, inhomogeneous jet model and applied it to the non-thermal SED of Cygnus X-1. We calculated the contributions to the SED of both protons and electrons accelerated in an extended region of the jet. We also estimated the radiation of charged secondaries produced in hadronic interactions through several radiative processes. Absorption effects were considered. We produced synthetic maps of the jets at radio wavelengths. Results. We find two sets of model parameters that lead to good fits of the SED. One of the models fits all the observations, including the MeV tail. This model also predicts hadronic gamma-ray emission slightly below the current upper limits. The flux predicted at 8.4 GHz is in agreement with the observations available in the literature, although the synthetic source is more compact than the imaged radio jet. Conclusions. Our results show that the MeV emission in Cygnus X-1 may be jet synchrotron radiation. This depends mainly on the strength of the jet magnetic field and the location of the injection region of the relativistic particles. Our calculations show that there must be energetic electrons in the jets quite far from the black hole.