English

Constraining the initial Lorentz factor of gamma-ray bursts under different circumburst mediums

High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena 2025-04-17 v1

Abstract

The initial Lorentz factor (Γ0\Gamma_{\text{0}}) plays a crucial role in uncovering the physical characteristics of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Previous studies have indicated that the ambient medium density index kk for GRBs falls in the range of 0 - 2, rather than exactly equal to 0 (homogeneous interstellar ambient) or 2 (typical stellar wind). In this work, we aim to constrain the Γ0\Gamma_0 of GRBs considering their distinct circumburst medium. We select a total of 33 GRBs for our analysis, comprising 7 X-ray GRBs and 26 optical GRBs. Subsequently, by utilizing the deceleration time of fireball tpt_{\rm p}, we derive the Γ0\Gamma_0 for the 33 GRBs assuming the radiation efficiency of η=\eta = 0.2. The inferred initial Lorentz factor was found to be from 50 to 500, consistent with previous studies. We then investigate the correlation between the Γ0\Gamma_0 and the isotropic energy Eγ,isoE_{\rm \gamma,iso} (as well as the mean isotropic luminosity Lγ,isoL_{\rm \gamma,iso}), finding very tight correlations between them, i.e., Γ0\Gamma_0 \propto Eγ,iso,520.24E^{0.24}_{\rm \gamma,iso,52} (Γ0\Gamma_0 \propto Lγ,iso.490.20L^{0.20}_{\rm \gamma,iso.49}) with η\eta=0.2. Additionally, we verify the correlation among Γ0\Gamma_0, the isotropic energy Eγ,isoE_{\rm \gamma,iso} (or Lγ,isoL_{\rm \gamma,iso}) and the peak energy Ep,zE_{\rm{p,z}}, i.e., Eγ,iso,52E_{\rm \gamma,iso,52} \propto Γ01.36\Gamma^{1.36}_0Ep,z0.82E^{0.82}_{\rm{p,z}} (Lγ,iso,49L_{\rm \gamma,iso,49} \propto Γ01.05\Gamma^{1.05}_0Ep,z0.66E^{0.66}_{\rm{p,z}}) under the same radiation efficiency (η\eta=0.2).

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2504.11743,
  title  = {Constraining the initial Lorentz factor of gamma-ray bursts under different circumburst mediums},
  author = {Sheng-Jin Sun and Shuang-Xi Yi and Yuan-Chuan Zou and Yu-Peng Yang and Ying Qin and Qing-Wen Tang and Fa-Yin Wang},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2504.11743},
  year   = {2025}
}

Comments

9 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables; Accepted for publication in Journal of High Energy Astrophysics

R2 v1 2026-06-28T22:59:58.725Z