English

Did Swift measure GRB prompt emission radii?

Astrophysics 2009-11-11 v1

Abstract

The Swift X-Ray Telescope often observes a rapidly decaying X-ray emission stretching to as long as t103 t \sim 10^3 seconds after a conventional prompt phase. This component is most likely due to a prompt emission viewed at large observer angles θ>1/Γ\theta > 1/\Gamma, where θ0.1\theta\sim 0.1 is a typical viewing angle of the jet andΓ100\Gamma\geq 100 is the Lorentz factor of the flow during the prompt phase. This can be used to estimate the prompt emission radii, rem2tc/θ26×1015r_{em} \geq 2 t c/\theta^2 \sim 6 \times 10^{15} cm. These radii are much larger than is assumed within a framework of a fireball model. Such large emission radii can be reconciled with a fast variability, on time scales as short as milliseconds, if the emission is beamed in the bulk outflow frame, e.g. due to a random relativistic motion of ''fundamental emitters''. This may also offer a possible explanation for X-ray flares observed during early afterglows.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0601557,
  title  = {Did Swift measure GRB prompt emission radii?},
  author = {Maxim Lyutikov},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0601557},
  year   = {2009}
}

Comments

9 pages, 2 figure, submitted to MNRAS Letters