Related papers: Constraining inputs to realistic kilonova simulati…
The observations of a macronova/kilonova accompanied by gravitational waves from a binary neutron star merger (GW170817) confirmed that neutron star coalescences produce copious ejecta. The coincident gamma-ray detection implies the…
The ejection of neutron-rich matter is one of the most important consequences of a neutron star merger. While the bulk of the matter is ejected at fast, but non-relativistic velocities ($\sim0.2c$), a small amount of mildly relativistic…
Neutron-star mergers can launch mildly relativistic to moderately relativistic outflows whose interaction with the ejecta can reshape kilonova emission. We parametrically study magnetically powered outbursts from long-lived merger remnants,…
We have performed r-process calculations for matter ejected dynamically in neutron star mergers based on a complete set of trajectories from a three-dimensional relativistic smoothed particle hydrodynamic simulation. Our calculations…
Freshly-synthesized r-process elements in kilonovae ejecta imprint absorption features on optical spectra, as observed in the GW170817 binary neutron star merger. These spectral features encode insights into the physical conditions of the…
A kilonova, the electromagnetic emission produced by compact binary mergers, is formed through a delicate interplay of physical processes, involving r-process nucleosynthesis and interactions between heavy elements and photons through…
We present the distributions of elemental abundance ratios using chemodynamical simulations which include four different neutron capture processes: magneto-rotational supernovae, neutron star mergers, neutrino driven winds, and electron…
We study the optical and near-infrared luminosities and detectability of radioactively powered electromagnetic transients ('macronovae') occuring in the aftermath of binary neutron star and neutron star black hole mergers. We explore the…
Heavy elements like gold, platinum or uranium are produced in the r-process, which needs neutron-rich and explosive environments. Neutron star mergers are a promising candidate for an r-process site. They exhibit three different channels…
We present a comprehensive nucleosynthesis study of the neutrino-driven wind in the aftermath of a binary neutron star merger. Our focus is the initial remnant phase when a massive central neutron star is present. Using tracers from a…
Accurate numerical-relativity simulations are essential to study the rich phenomenology of binary neutron star systems. In this work, we focus on the material that is dynamically ejected during the merger process and on the kilonova…
The first binary neutron star merger, GW170817, was accompanied by a radioactivity-powered optical/infrared transient called a kilonova. To date, no compelling kilonova has been found during optical surveys of the sky, independent of…
Direct detection of gravitational waves (GW) on Aug. 17, 2017, propagating from a binary neutron star merger, opened the era of multimessenger astronomy. The ejected material from neutron star mergers, or kilonova, is a good candidate for…
The discovery of gravitational waves from a neutron star merger in 2017 (GW170817) and the associated kilonova (AT2017gfo) confirmed these events as key sites for heavy element production through the r-process. Subsequent observations,…
The discovery of a radioactively powered kilonova associated with the binary neutron star merger GW170817 was the first - and still only - confirmed electromagnetic counterpart to a gravitational-wave event. However, observations of…
The mergers of double neutron star (NS-NS) and black hole (BH)-NS binaries are promising gravitational wave (GW) sources for Advanced LIGO and future GW detectors. The neutron-rich ejecta from such merger events undergoes rapid neutron…
The observation of a radioactively powered kilonova AT~2017gfo associated with the gravitational wave-event GW170817 from binary neutron star merger proves that these events are ideal sites for the production of heavy $r$-process elements.…
We present uniform modeling of eight kilonovae, five following short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs; including GRB170817A) and three following long GRBs. We model their broadband afterglows to determine the relative contributions of afterglow and…
Revealing the temporal evolution of individual heavy elements synthesized in the merger ejecta from binary neutron star mergers not only improves our understanding of the origin of heavy elements beyond iron but also clarifies the energy…
The merger of two neutron stars or of a neutron star and a black hole often result in the ejection of a few percents of a solar mass of matter expanding at high speed in space. Being matter coming from the violent disruption of a neutron…