VER J2227+608: A Hadronic PeVatron Pulsar Wind Nebula?

We report the detection of GeV $γ$-ray emission from the very-high-energy (VHE) $γ$-ray source VER J2227+608 associated with the "tail" region of SNR G106.3+2.7. The GeV $γ$-ray emission is extended and spatially coincident with molecular clouds traced by CO emission. The broadband GeV to TeV emission of VER J2227+608 can be well fitted by a single power-law function with an index of 1.90$\pm$0.04, without obvious indication of spectral cutoff toward high energies. The pure leptonic model for the $γ$-ray emission can be marginally ruled out by the X-ray and TeV data. In the hadronic model, the low energy content of CRs and the hard $γ$-ray spectrum, in combination with the center-bright source structure, suggest that VER J2227+608 may be powered by the PWN instead of shocks of the SNR. And the cutoff energy of the proton distribution needs to be higher than $\sim$ 400 TeV, which makes it an attractive PeVatron candidate. Future observations by the upcoming Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) and the Cherenkov Telescope Array in the north (CTA-North) could distinguish these models and constrain the maximum energy of cosmic rays in supernova remnants.

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