arXiv subjects

David L. Band

Publications and source records attributed to David L. Band.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2009

The Correlation of Spectral Lag Evolution with Prompt Optical Emission in GRB 080319B

We report on observations of correlated behavior between the prompt gamma-ray and optical emission from GRB 080319B, which confirm that (i) they occurred within the same astrophysical source region and (ii) their respective radiation mechanisms were dynamically coupled. Our results, based upon a new CCF methodology for determining the time-resolved spectral lag, are summarized as follows. First, the evolution in the arrival offset of prompt gamma-ray photon counts between Swift-BAT 15-25 keV and 50-100 keV energy bands (intrinsic gamma-ray spectral lag) appears to be anti-correlated with the arrival offset between prompt 15-350 keV gamma-rays and the optical emission observed by TORTORA (extrinsic optical/gamma-ray spectral lag), thus effectively partitioning the burst into two main episodes at ~T+28+/-2 sec. Second, the rise and decline of prompt optical emission at ~T+10+/-1 sec and ~T+50+/-1 sec, respectively, both coincide with discontinuities in the hard to soft evolution of the photon index for a power law fit to 15-150 keV Swift-BAT data at ~T+8+/-2 sec and ~T+48+/-1 sec. These spectral energy changes also coincide with intervals whose time-resolved spectral lag values are consistent with zero, at ~T+12+/-2 sec and ~T+50+/-2 sec. These results, which are robust across heuristic permutations of Swift-BAT energy channels and varying temporal bin resolution, have also been corroborated via independent analysis of Konus-Wind data. This potential discovery may provide the first observational evidence for an implicit connection between spectral lags and GRB emission mechanisms in the context of canonical fireball phenomenology. Future work includes exploring a subset of bursts with prompt optical emission to probe the unique or ubiquitous nature of this result.

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arXiv2008

Correlative Spectral Analysis of Gamma-Ray Bursts using Swift-BAT and GLAST-GBM

We discuss the preliminary results of spectral analysis simulations involving anticipated correlated multi-wavelength observations of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) using Swift's Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) and the Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope's (GLAST) Burst Monitor (GLAST-GBM), resulting in joint spectral fits, including characteristic photon energy (Epeak) values, for a conservative annual estimate of ~30 GRBs. The addition of BAT's spectral response will (i) complement in-orbit calibration efforts of GBM's detector response matrices, (ii) augment GLAST's low energy sensitivity by increasing the ~20-100 keV effective area, (iii) facilitate ground-based follow-up efforts of GLAST GRBs by increasing GBM's source localization precision, and (iv) help identify a subset of non-triggered GRBs discovered via off-line GBM data analysis. Such multi-wavelength correlative analyses, which have been demonstrated by successful joint-spectral fits of Swift-BAT GRBs with other higher energy detectors such as Konus-WIND and Suzaku-WAM, would enable the study of broad-band spectral and temporal evolution of prompt GRB emission over three energy decades, thus potentially increasing the science return without placing additional demands upon mission resources throughout their contemporaneous orbital tenure over the next decade.

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arXiv2006

The Complete BATSE Spectral Catalog of Bright Gamma-Ray Bursts

We present a systematic spectral analysis of 350 bright Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) observed with the Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE; $\sim$ 30 keV -- 2 MeV) with high temporal and spectral resolution. Our sample was selected from the complete set of 2704 BATSE GRBs based on their energy fluence or peak photon flux values to assure good statistics, and included 17 short GRBs. To obtain well-constrained spectral parameters, several photon models were used to fit each spectrum. We compared spectral parameters resulting from the fits using different models, and the spectral parameters that best represent each spectrum were statistically determined, taking into account the parameterization differences among the models. A thorough analysis was performed on 350 time-integrated and 8459 time-resolved burst spectra, and the effects of integration times in determining the spectral parameters were explored. Using the results, we studied correlations among spectral parameters and their evolution pattern within each burst. The resulting spectral catalog is the most comprehensive study of spectral properties of GRB prompt emission to date, and is available electronically from the High-Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center (HEASARC). The catalog provides reliable constraints on particle acceleration and emission mechanisms in GRBs.

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arXiv2006

Post-Launch Analysis of Swift's Gamma-Ray Burst Detection Sensitivity

The dependence of Swift's detection sensitivity on a burst's temporal and spectral properties shapes the detected burst population. Using simplified models of the detector hardware and the burst trigger system I find that Swift is more sensitive to long, soft bursts than CGRO's BATSE, a reference detector because of the large burst database it accumulated. Thus Swift has increased sensitivity in the parameter space region into which time dilation and spectral redshifting shift high redshift bursts.

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arXiv2006

Burst Detector Sensitivity: Past, Present & Future

I compare the burst detection sensitivity of CGRO's BATSE, Swift's BAT, the GLAST Burst Monitor (GBM) and EXIST as a function of a burst's spectrum and duration. A detector's overall burst sensitivity depends on its energy sensitivity and set of accumulations times Delta t; these two factors shape the detected burst population. For example, relative to BATSE, the BAT's softer energy band decreases the detection rate of short, hard bursts, while the BAT's longer accumulation times increase the detection rate of long, soft bursts. Consequently, Swift is detecting long, low fluence bursts (2-3x fainter than BATSE).

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arXiv2006

The Complete Spectral Catalog of Bright BATSE Gamma-Ray Bursts

We present a systematic spectral analysis of 350 bright GRBs observed with BATSE, with high spectral and temporal resolution. Our sample was selected from the complete set of 2704 BATSE GRBs, and included 17 short GRBs. To obtain well-constrained spectral parameters, four different photon models were fitted and the spectral parameters that best represent each spectrum were statistically determined. A thorough analysis was performed on 350 time-integrated and 8459 time-resolved burst spectra. Using the results, we compared time-integrated and time-resolved spectral parameters, and also studied correlations among the parameters and their evolution within each burst. The resulting catalog is the most comprehensive study of spectral properties of GRB prompt emission to date, and provides constraints with exceptional statistics on particle acceleration and emission mechanisms in GRBs.

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arXiv2005

A Search for Early Optical Emission at Gamma-Ray Burst Locations by the Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI)

The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) views nearly every point on the sky once every 102 minutes and can detect point sources as faint as R~10th magnitude. Therefore, SMEI can detect or provide upper limits for the optical afterglow from gamma-ray bursts in the tens of minutes after the burst when different shocked regions may emit optically. Here we provide upper limits for 58 bursts between 2003 February and 2005 April.

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arXiv2005

Testing the Gamma-Ray Burst Energy Relationships

Building on Nakar & Piran's analysis of the Amati relation relating gamma-ray burst peak energies E_p and isotropic energies E_iso, we test the consistency of a large sample of BATSE bursts with the Amati and Ghirlanda (which relates peak energies and actual gamma-ray energies E_gamma) relations. Each of these relations can be expressed as a ratio of the different energies that is a function of redshift (for both the Amati and Ghirlanda relations) and beaming fraction f_B (for the Ghirlanda relation). The most rigorous test, which allows bursts to be at any redshift, corroborates Nakar & Piran's result--88% of the BATSE bursts are inconsistent with the Amati relation--while only 1.6% of the bursts are inconsistent with the Ghirlanda relation if f_B=1. Even when we allow for a real dispersion in the Amati relation we find an inconsistency. Modelling the redshift distribution results in an energy ratio distribution for the Amati relation that is shifted by an order of magnitude relative to the observed distribution; any sub-population satisfying the Amati relation can comprise at most ~18% of our burst sample. A similar analysis of the Ghirlanda relation depends sensitively on the beaming fraction distribution for small values of f_B; for reasonable estimates of this distribution about a third of the burst sample is inconsistent with the Ghirlanda relation. Our results indicate that these relations are an artifact of the selection effects of the burst sample in which they were found; these selection effects may favor sub-populations for which these relations are valid.

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arXiv2005

Supporting the GLAST User Community

The Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) Science Support Center (GSSC) is the scientific community's interface with GLAST. The GSSC will provide data, analysis software and documentation. In addition, the GSSC will administer the guest investigator program for NASA HQ. Consequently, the GSSC will provide proposal preparation tools to assist proposers in assessing the feasibility of observing sources of interest.

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arXiv2004

Gamma-Ray Burst Intensity Distributions

We use the lag-luminosity relation to calculate self-consistently the redshifts, apparent peak bolometric luminosities L_B, and isotropic energies E_iso for a large sample of BATSE gamma-ray bursts. We consider two different forms of the lag-luminosity relation; for both forms the median redshift for our burst database is 1.6. We model the resulting E_iso sample with power law and Gaussian probability distributions without redshift evolution, both of which are reasonable models. The power law model has an index of alpha_E=1.76+/-0.05 (95% confidence), where p(E_iso) propto E_iso^(-alpha_E). The simple universal jet profile model suggested but did not require alpha_E=2, and subsequent physically reasonable refinements to this model permit greater diversity in alpha_E, as well as deviations from a power law; therefore our observed E_iso probability distribution does not disprove the universal jet model.

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arXiv2003

Burst Populations and Detector Sensitivity

The F_T (peak bolometric photon flux) vs. E_p (peak energy) plane is a powerful tool to compare the burst populations detected by different detectors. Detector sensitivity curves in this plane demonstrate which burst populations the detectors will detect. For example, future CZT-based detectors will show the largest increase in sensitivity for soft bursts, and will be particularly well-suited to study X-ray rich bursts and X-ray Flashes. Identical bursts at different redshifts describe a track in the F_T-E_p plane.

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arXiv2003

Analysis of Burst Observations by GLAST's LAT Detector

Analyzing data from GLAST's Large Area Telescope (LAT) will require sophisticated techniques. The PSF and effective area are functions of both photon energy and the position in the field-of-view. During most of the mission the observatory will survey the sky continuously and thus the LAT will detect each count from a source at a different detector orientation; each count requires its own response function! The likelihood as a function of celestial position and photon energy will be the foundation of the standard analysis techniques. However the 20 MeV-300 GeV emission at the time of the ~100 keV burst emission (timescale of ~10 s) can be isolated and analyzed because essentially no non-burst counts are expected within a PSF radius of the burst location during the burst. Both binned and unbinned (in energy) spectral fitting will be possible. Longer timescale afterglow emission will require the likelihood analysis that will be used for persistent sources.

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arXiv2003

Comparison of the Gamma-Ray Burst Sensitivity of Different Detectors

Gamma-ray burst detectors are sensitive at different energies, complicating the comparison of the burst populations that they detect. The instrument teams often report their detector sensitivities in their instruments' energy band. I propose that sensitivities be reported as the threshold peak photon flux F_T over the 1-1000 keV energy band for a specific spectral shape. The primary spectral parameter is E_p, the energy of the maximum E^2 N_E propto nu f_nu. Thus F_T vs. E_p is a useful description of a detector's sensitivity. I find that Swift will be marginally more sensitive than BATSE for E_p>100 keV, but significantly more sensitive for E_p<100 keV. Because of its low energy sensitivity, the FREGATE on HETE-2 is surprisingly sensitive below E_p=100 keV. Both the WFC on BeppoSAX and the WXM on HETE-2 are/were sensitive for low E_p. As expected, the GBM on GLAST will be less sensitive than BATSE, while EXIST will be significantly more sensitive than Swift. The BeppoSAX GRBM was less sensitive that the WFC, particularly at low E_p.

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arXiv2002

A Gamma-Ray Burst Trigger Toolkit

(Abbreviated) The detection rate of a GRB detector can be increased by using a count rate trigger with many accumulation times Dt and energy bands DE, but the nominal sensitivity is less important than how much fainter a burst could be at the detection threshold as Dt and DE are changed. Predictions of the detection rate depend on the assumed burst population, which can be wildly in error. I base the fiducial rate on the BATSE observations: 550 bursts per sky above a peak flux of 0.3 ph/cm^2/s averaged over Dt=1.024s and DE=50-300 keV. I find that triggering on any value of Dt decreases the average threshold peak flux on the 1.024s timescale by a factor of 0.6. Extending DE to lower energies includes the large flux of the X-ray background, increasing the background count rate; a low energy DE is advantageous only for very soft bursts. Whether a large fraction of the population of bright bursts is soft is disputed; the new population of X-ray Flashes is soft but relatively faint.

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arXiv2001

Intensity Distributions of Gamma-Ray Bursts

Observations of individual bursts chosen by the vagaries of telescope availability demonstrated that bursts are not standard candles and that their apparent energy can be as great as 10^54 erg. However, determining the distribution of their apparent energy (and of other burst properties) requires the statistical analysis of a well-defined burst sample; the sample definition includes the threshold for including a burst in the sample. Thus optical groups need to the criteria behind the decision to search for a spectroscopic redshift. Currently the burst samples are insufficient to choose between lognormal and power law functional forms of the distribution, and the parameter values for these functional forms differ between burst samples. Similarly, the actual intensity distribution may be broader than observed, with a low energy tail extending below the detection threshold.

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arXiv2001

The Energy Distribution of Gamma-Ray Bursts

The distribution of the apparent total energy emitted by a gamma-ray burst reflects not only the distribution of the energy actually released by the burst engine, but also the distribution of beaming angles. Using the observed energy fluences, the detection thresholds and burst redshifts for three burst samples, I calculate the best-fit parameters for lognormal and power-law distributions of the apparent total energy. Two of the samples include a small number of bursts with spectroscopic redshifts, while the third sample has 220 bursts with redshifts determined by the proposed variability-luminosity correlation. I find different sets of parameter values for the three burst samples. The Bayesian odds ratio cannot distinguish between the two model distribution functions for the two smaller burst samples with spectroscopic redshifts, but does favor the lognormal distribution for the larger sample with variability-derived redshifts. The data do not rule out a distribution with a low energy tail which is currently unobservable. I find that neglecting the burst detection threshold biases the fitted distribution to be narrower with a higher average value than the true distribution; this demonstrates the importance of determining and reporting the effective detection threshold for bursts in a sample.

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arXiv2001

Redshifts and Luminosities for 112 Gamma Ray Bursts

Two different luminosity indicators have recently been proposed for Gamma Ray Bursts that use gamma-ray observations alone. They relate the burst luminosity (L) with the time lag between peaks in hard and soft energies, and the spikiness or variability of the burst's light curve (V). These relations are currently justified and calibrated with only 6 or 7 bursts with known red shifts. We have examined BATSE data for the lag and V for 112 bursts. (1) A strong correlation between the lag and V exists, and it is exactly as predicted from the two proposed relations. This is proof that both luminosity indicators are reliable. (2) GRB830801 is the all-time brightest burst, yet with a small V and a large lag, and hence is likely the closest known event being perhaps as close as 3.2 Mpc. (3) We have combined the luminosities as derived from both indicators as a means to improve the statistical and systematic accuracy when compared with the accuracy from either method alone. The result is a list of 112 bursts with good luminosities and hence red shifts. (4) The burst averaged hardness ratio rises strongly with the luminosity of the burst. (5) The burst luminosity function is a broken power law, with the break at L = 2x10^{52} erg/s. The luminosity function has power law indices of -2.8+-0.2 above the break and -1.7+-0.1 below the break. (6) The number density of GRBs varies with red shift roughly as (1+z)^(2.5+-0.3) between 0.2<z<5. Excitingly, this result also provides a measure of the star formation rate out to z~5 with no effects from reddening, and the rate is rising uniformly for red shifts above 2.

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arXiv1997

The Gamma-Ray Burst Mystery

Gamma-ray bursts are transient events from beyond the solar system. Besides the allure of their mysterious origin, bursts are physically fascinating because they undoubtedly require exotic physics. Optical transients coincident with burst positions show that some, and probably all, bursts originate at cosmological distances, and not from a large Galactic halo. Observations of these events' spectral and temporal behavior will guide and constrain the study of the physical processes producing this extragalactic phenomenon.

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