The Fermi blazars’ divide based on the diagnostic of the SEDs peak frequencies

Abstract

We have studied the quasi‐simultaneous Spectral Energy Distributions (SED) of 48 LBAS blazars, detected within the three months of the LAT Bright AGN Sample (LBAS) data taking period, combining Fermi and Swift data with radio NIR‐Optical and hard‐ X/gamma‐ray data.Using these quasi‐simultaneous SEDs, sampling both the low and the high energy peak of the blazars broad band emission, we were able to apply a diagnostic tool based on the estimate of the peak frequencies of the synchrotron (S) and Inverse Compton (IC) components.Our analysis shows a Fermi blazar’s divide based on the peak frequencies of the SED. The robust result is that the Synchrotron Self Compton (SSC) region divides in two the νpS−γpSSC plane. Objects within or below this region, radiating likely via the SSC process, are high‐frequency‐peaked BL Lac object (HBL), or low/intermediate‐frequency‐peaked BL Lac object (LBL/IBL). All of the IBLs/LBLs within or below the SSC region are not Compton dominated. The objects lying above the SSC region, radiating likely via the External radiation Compton (ERC) process, are Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars and IBLs/LBLs. All of the IBLs/LBLs in the ERC region show a significant Compton dominance.