Don Melrose , Ashley Crouch, PASA, 14 (3), 251
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Next Section: Introduction
The Effect of Synchrotron Losses on Multiple Diffusive Shock Acceleration
Don Melrose 
Ashley Crouch 
Research Centre for Theoretical Astrophysics, School of Physics, University of Sydney
d.melrose@physics.usyd.edu.au
Department of Mathematics, Monash University
adcro2@student.monash.edu.au
Abstract:
The effect of synchrotron losses on diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) at many shocks is treated numerically. Synchrotron losses determine a maximum energy to which electrons can be accelerated through DSA, and this is referred to as the synchrotron cutoff, 
. The distribution of accelerated electrons after many shocks is found (a) for a distribution injected at the initial shock, to tend a plateau (f(p) independent of 
), and (b) for the cumulative distribution from injection at each shock to tend to 
with 
well below the synchrotron cutoff with a peak in the slope (
) at . It is suggested that the latter result might account for the flat synchrotron spectra observed in some Galactic Centre sources.
Keywords: Particle acceleration, flat synchrotron spectra, shock waves
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