Simultaneous X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Observations of TeV Blazars: Testing Synchro-Compton Emission Models and Probing the Infrared Extragalactic Background

The discovery of strong, variable TeV emission from the nearby blazars Mrk 421 and 501 presents us with a unique opportunity to probe jet gamma-ray emission mechanisms and constrain the intensity of the diffuse infrared/optical background. Robust conclusions are not possible, however, without strictly simultaneous X-ray and TeV observations of these objects. With the arrival of sensitive, broadband X-ray detectors like RXTE and SAX and the development of TeV Cherenkov arrays like HEGRA (and eventually VERITAS), such observations are now becoming possible. We show how such simultaneous data might be analyzed.