Related papers: GRBs and the thermalization process of electron-po…
The propagation of a relativistic electron-positron beam in a magnetized electron-ion plasma is studied, focusing on the polarization of the radiation generated in this case. Special emphasis is laid on investigating the polarization of the…
The expansion of the electron-positron plasma in the GRB phenomenon is compared and contrasted in the treatments of Meszaros, Laguna and Rees, of Shemi, Piran and Narayan, and of Ruffini et al. The role of the correct numerical integration…
A classical model based on a power law assumption for the radius-time relationship in the expansion of a Supernova (SN) allows to derive an analytical expression for the flow of mechanical kinetic energy and the time duration of Gamma-ray…
By numerically solving the relativistic Boltzmann equations, we compute the time scale for relaxation to thermal equilibrium for an optically thick electron-positron plasma with baryon loading. We focus on the time scales of electromagnetic…
Being the most extreme explosions in the universe, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) provide a unique laboratory to study various plasma physics phenomena. The complex lightcurve and broad-band, non-thermal spectra indicate a very complicated system…
Most models for blazars and gamma-ray bursts involve relativistic plasma outflows powered by accretion processes onto black holes. The blast wave physics developed for cosmological models of GRBs is reviewed. Two points relevant for blazar…
(Shortened) We show by example how the uncoding of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) offers unprecedented possibilities to foster new knowledge in fundamental physics and in astrophysics. After recalling some of the classic work on vacuum…
Electron-positron plasma is believed to play imporant role both in the early Universe and in sources of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). We focus on analogy and difference between physical conditions of electron-positron plasma in the early…
The Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) offer the unprecedented opportunity to observe for the first time the blackholic energy extracted by the vacuum polarization during the process of gravitational collapse to a black hole leading to the formation…
The diverse and complex light curves of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) remain an outstanding astrophysical mystery. Here we report the results of 2-1/2-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations of the relativistic expansion of magnetized…
A leading mechanism for producing cosmological gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) is via ultra-relativistic particles in an expanding fireball. The kinetic energy of the particles is converted into thermal energy in a forward shock and a reverse…
We use a new method of analysis to determine parameters of cosmological gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), assuming that their distribution follows the star-formation history of the universe. Spectral evolution is calculated from an external shock…
In this paper we model the emission from a relativistically expanding electron-positron pair plasma fireball originating near the surface of a heated neutron star. This pair fireball is deposited via the annihilation of neutrino pairs…
Simultaneous $\gamma$-ray measurements of gamma-ray burst (GRB) spectra and polarization offer a unique way to determine the underlying emission mechanism(s) in these objects as well as probing the particle acceleration mechanism(s) that…
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are a mixed class of sources consisting of, at least, the long duration and short-hard subclasses, the X-ray flashes, and the low-luminosity GRBs. In all cases, the release of enormous amounts of energy on a short…
Gamma-ray burst (GRB) engines are probed most intimately during the prompt gamma-ray luminous phase when the expanding blast wave is closest to the explosion center. Using GRBs 990123 and 940217 as guides, we briefly review observations of…
Optically thick energy dominated plasma created in the source of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) expands radially with acceleration and forms a shell with constant width measured in the laboratory frame. When strong Lorentz factor gradients are…
We have used the free expansion of ultracold neutral plasmas as a time-resolved probe of electron temperature. A combination of experimental measurements of the ion expansion velocity and numerical simulations characterize the crossover…
Expanding blast waves are ubiquitous in many astronomical sources, such as supernovae remnants (SNRs), X-ray emitting binaries (XRBs) and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). I consider here the dynamics of such an expanding blast wave, both in the…
The dominant radiation mechanism that produces the prompt emission in gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) remains a major open question. Spectral information alone has proven insufficient in elucidating its nature. Time-resolved linear polarization has…