arXiv subjects

R. Ruffini

Publications and source records attributed to R. Ruffini.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Self-similarity and power-laws in GRB 190114C

Following Fermi and NOT observations, Ruffini et al. (2019b) soon identified GRB 190114C as BdHN I at z=0.424, it has been observed since, with unprecedented accuracy, [...] all the way to the successful optical observation of our predicted supernova (SN). This GRB is a twin of GRB 130427A. Here we take advantage of the GBM data and identify in it three different Episodes. Episode 1 represents the precursor which includes the SN breakout and the creation of the new neutron star ($ν$NS), the hypercritical accretion of the SN ejecta onto the NS binary companion, exceeding the NS critical mass at $t_{rf}=1.9$s. Episode 2 starting at $t_{rf}=1.9$s includes three major events: the formation of the BH, the onset of the GeV emission and the onset of the ultra-relativistic prompt emission (UPE), which extends all the way up to $t_{rf}=3.99$s. Episode 3 which occurs at times following $t_{rf}=3.99$s reveals the presence of a cavity carved out in the SN ejecta by the BH formation. We perform an in depth time-resolved spectral analysis on the entire UPE with the corresponding determination of the spectra best fit by a cut-off power-law and a black body (CPL+BB) model, and then we repeat the spectral analysis in 5 successive time iterations in increasingly shorter time bins: we find a similarity in the spectra in each stage of the iteration revealing clearly a self-similar structure. We find a power-law dependence of the BB temperature with index $-1.56\pm0.38$, a dependence with index $-1.20\pm0.26$ for the gamma-ray luminosity confirming a similar dependence with index $-1.20\pm0.36$ which we find as well in the GeV luminosity, both expressed in the rest-frame. We thus discover in the realm of relativistic astrophysics the existence of a self-similar physical process and power-law dependencies, extensively described in the micro-physical world by the classical works of Heisenberg-Landau-Wilson.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2019

Electromagnetic emission of white dwarf binary mergers

It has been recently proposed that the ejected matter from white dwarf (WD) binary mergers can produce transient, optical and infrared emission similar to the "kilonovae" of neutron star (NS) binary mergers. To confirm this we calculate the electromagnetic emission from WD-WD mergers and compare with kilonova observations. We simulate WD-WD mergers leading to a massive, fast rotating, highly magnetized WD with an adapted version of the smoothed-particle-hydrodynamics (SPH) code Phantom. We thus obtain initial conditions for the ejecta such as escape velocity, mass and initial position and distribution. The subsequent thermal and dynamical evolution of the ejecta is obtained by integrating the energy-conservation equation accounting for expansion cooling and a heating source given by the fallback accretion onto the newly-formed WD and its magneto-dipole radiation. We show that magnetospheric processes in the merger can lead to a prompt, short gamma-ray emission of up to $\approx 10^{46}$ erg in a timescale of $0.1$-$1$ s. The bulk of the ejecta initially expands non-relativistically with velocity $0.01 c$ and then it accelerates to $0.1 c$ due to the injection of fallback accretion energy. The ejecta become transparent at optical wavelengths around $\sim 7$ days post-merger with a luminosity $10^{41}$-$10^{42}$ erg s$^{-1}$. The X-ray emission from the fallback accretion becomes visible around $\sim 150$-$200$ day post-merger with a luminosity of $10^{39}$ erg s$^{-1}$. We also predict the post-merger time at which the central WD should appear as a pulsar depending on the value of the magnetic field and rotation period.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2019

Novel constraints on fermionic dark matter from galactic observables II: galaxy scaling relations

We have recently introduced in paper I an extension of the Ruffini-Argüelles-Rueda (RAR) model for the distribution of DM in galaxies, by including for escape of particle effects. Being built upon self-gravitating fermions at finite temperatures, the RAR solutions develop a characteristic \textit{dense quantum core-diluted halo} morphology which, for fermion masses in the range $mc^2 \approx 10-345$ keV, was shown to provide good fits to the Milky Way rotation curve. We study here for the first time the applicability of the extended RAR model to other structures from dwarfs to ellipticals to galaxy clusters, pointing out the relevant case of $mc^2 = 48$ keV. By making a full coverage of the remaining free parameters of the theory, and for each galactic structure, we present a complete family of astrophysical RAR profiles which satisfy realistic halo boundary conditions inferred from observations. Each family-set of RAR solutions predicts given windows of total halo masses and central quantum-core masses, the latter opening the interesting possibility to interpret them as alternatives either to intermediate-mass BHs (for dwarf galaxies), or to supermassive BHs (SMBHs, in the case of larger galaxy types). The model is shown to be in good agreement with different observationally inferred scaling relations such as: (1) the Ferrarese relation connecting DM halos with supermassive dark central objects; and (2) the nearly constant DM surface density of galaxies. Finally, the theory provides a natural mechanism for the formation of SMBHs of few $10^8 M_\odot$ via the gravitational collapse of unstable DM quantum-cores.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2018

SPH simulations of the induced gravitational collapse scenario of long gamma-ray bursts associated with supernovae

We present the first three-dimensional (3D) smoothed-particle-hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations of the induced gravitational collapse (IGC) scenario of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) associated with supernovae (SNe). We simulate the SN explosion of a carbon-oxygen core (CO$_{\rm core}$) forming a binary system with a neutron star (NS) companion. We follow the evolution of the SN ejecta, including their morphological structure, subjected to the gravitational field of both the new NS ($ν$NS) formed at the center of the SN, and the one of the NS companion. We compute the accretion rate of the SN ejecta onto the NS companion as well as onto the $ν$NS from SN matter fallback. We determine the fate of the binary system for a wide parameter space including different CO$_{\rm core}$ and NS companion masses, orbital periods and SN explosion geometry and energies. We identify, for selected NS nuclear equations-of-state, the binary parameters leading the NS companion, by hypercritical accretion, either to the mass-shedding limit, or to the secular axisymmetric instability for gravitational collapse to a black hole (BH), or to a more massive, fast rotating, stable NS. We also assess whether the binary remains or not gravitationally bound after the SN explosion, hence exploring the space of binary and SN explosion parameters leading to $ν$NS-NS and $ν$NS-BH binaries. The consequences of our results for the modeling of long GRBs, i.e. X-ray flashes and binary-driven hypernovae, are discussed.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

On the ultra-relativistic Prompt Emission (UPE), the Hard and Soft X-ray Flares, and the extended thermal emission (ETE) in GRB 151027A

We analyze GRB 151027A within the binary-driven hypernova (BdHN) approach, with progenitor a carbon-oxygen core on the verge of a supernova (SN) explosion and a binary companion neutron star (NS). The hypercritical accretion of the SN ejecta onto the NS leads to its gravitational collapse into a black hole (BH), to the emission of the GRB and to a copious $e^+e^-$ plasma. The impact of this $e^+e^-$ plasma on the SN ejecta explains {the} early soft X-ray flare observed in long GRBs. We here apply this approach to the UPE and to the hard X-ray flares. We use GRB 151027A as a prototype. From the time-integrated and the time-resolved analysis we identify a double component in the UPE and confirm its ultra-relativistic nature. We confirm the mildly-relativistic nature of the soft X-ray flare, of the hard X-ray flare and of the ETE. We show that the ETE identifies the transition from a SN to the HN. We then address the theoretical justification of these observations by integrating the hydrodynamical propagation equations of the $e^+ e^-$ into the SN ejecta, the latter independently obtained from 3D smoothed-particle-hydrodynamics simulations. We conclude that the UPE, the hard X-ray flare and the soft X-ray flare do not form a causally connected sequence: Within our model they are the manifestation of \textbf{the same} physical process of the BH formation as seen through different viewing angles, implied by the morphology and the $\sim 300$~s rotation period of the HN ejecta.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

On a GRB afterglow model consistent with hypernovae observations

We describe the afterglows of the long gamma-ray-burst (GRB) 130427A within the context of a binary-driven hypernova (BdHN). The afterglows originate from the interaction between a newly born neutron star ($ν$NS), created by an Ic supernova (SN), and a mildly relativistic ejecta of a hypernova (HN). Such a HN in turn results from the impact of the GRB on the original SN Ic. The mildly relativistic expansion velocity of the afterglow ($Γ\sim 3$) is determined, using our model independent approach, from the thermal emission between $196$~s and $461$~s. The power-law in the optical and X-ray bands of the afterglow is shown to arise from the synchrotron emission of relativistic electrons in the expanding magnetized HN ejecta. Two components contribute to the injected energy: the kinetic energy of the mildly relativistic expanding HN and the rotational energy of the fast rotating highly magnetized $ν$NS. We reproduce the afterglow in all wavelengths from the optical ($10^{14}$~Hz) to the X-ray band ($10^{19}$~Hz) over times from $604$~s to $5.18\times 10^6$~s relative to the Fermi-GBM trigger. Initially, the emission is dominated by the loss of kinetic energy of the HN component. After $10^5$~s the emission is dominated by the loss of rotational energy of the $ν$NS, for which we adopt an initial rotation period of $2$~ms and a dipole plus quadrupole magnetic field of $\lesssim \! 7\times 10^{12}$~G or $\sim \! 10^{14}$~G. This scenario with a progenitor composed of a CO$_{\rm core}$ and a NS companion differs from the traditional ultra-relativistic-jetted treatments of the afterglows originating from a single black hole.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

New constraints on sterile neutrino dark matter from the Galactic Center

We calculate the most stringent constraints up to date on the parameter space for sterile neutrino warm dark matter models possessing a radiative decay channel into X-rays. These constraints arise from the X-ray flux observations from the Galactic center (central parsec), taken by the XMM and NuSTAR missions. We compare the results obtained from using different dark matter density profiles for the Milky Way, such as NFW, Burkert or Einasto, to that produced by the Ruffini-Argüelles-Rueda (RAR) fermionic model, which has the distinct feature of depending on the particle mass. We show that due to the novel core-halo morphology present in the RAR profile, the allowed particle mass window is narrowed down to $m_s\sim 10-15$ keV, when analyzed within the $ν$MSM sterile neutrino model. We further discuss on the possible effects in the sterile neutrino parameter-space bounds due to a self-interacting nature of the dark matter candidates.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2018

GRB 170817A-GW170817-AT 2017gfo and the observations of NS-NS, NS-WD and WD-WD mergers

The LIGO-Virgo Collaboration has announced the detection of GW170817 and has associated it with GRB 170817A. These signals have been followed after 11 hours by the optical and infrared emission of AT 2017gfo. The origin of this complex phenomenon has been attributed to a neutron star-neutron star (NS-NS) merger. In order to probe this association we confront our current understanding of the gravitational waves and associated electromagnetic radiation with four observed GRBs originating in binaries composed of different combinations NSs and white dwarfs (WDs). We consider 1) GRB 090510 the prototype of NS-NS merger leading to a black hole (BH); 2) GRB 130603B the prototype of a NS-NS merger leading to massive NS (MNS) with an associated kilonova; 3) GRB 060614 the prototype of a NS-WD merger leading to a MNS with an associated kilonova candidate; 4) GRB 170817A the prototype of a WD-WD merger leading to massive WD with an associated AT 2017gfo-like emission. None of these systems support the above mentioned association. The clear association between GRB 170817A and AT 2017gfo has led to introduce a new model based on on a new subfamily of GRBs originating from WD-WD mergers. We show how this novel model is in agreement with the exceptional observations in the optical, infrared, X- and gamma-rays of GRB 170817A-AT 2017gfo.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Novel constraints on fermionic dark matter from galactic observables I: The Milky Way

We have recently introduced a new model for the distribution of dark matter (DM) in galaxies based on a self-gravitating system of massive fermions at finite temperatures, the Ruffini-Argüelles-Rueda (RAR) model. We show that this model, for fermion masses in the keV range, explains the DM halo of the Galaxy and predicts the existence of a denser quantum core at the center. We demonstrate here that the introduction of a cutoff in the fermion phase-space distribution, necessary to account for the finite Galaxy size, defines a new solution with a central core which represents an alternative to the black hole (BH) scenario for SgrA*. For a fermion mass in the range $mc^2 = 48$ -- $345$~keV, the DM halo distribution is in agreement with the Milky Way rotation curve data, while harbors a dense quantum core of about $4\times10^6 M_\odot$ within the S2-star pericenter.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2018

On the Short GRB GeV emission from a Kerr Black hole

It has recently become clear that in both short and long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) it coexists a sequence of different events, each characterized by specific physical processes and corresponding values of the Lorentz gamma factors. The ultra-relativistic prompt emission (UPE) phase, with Lorentz factor $Γ\leq10^4$, is followed by a mildly relativistic plateau-afterglow phase with $Γ\lesssim2$. The GeV radiation, with $Γ\lesssim50$, coexists with the above two phases. It is shown that: a) the GeV radiation originates at the onset of the formation of a black hole (BH), b) its luminosity follows specific power-law dependence when measured in the rest frame of the source with a decay index $γ=-1.29\pm0.06$ in the case of the short GRBs, and $γ=-1.20\pm0.04$ in the case of the long GRBs, c) these energetics requirements are used to derive the mass and spin of the BH originating this extended GeV emission. We present these conceptual results for the case of short GRBs in this article and give the extended analysis for long GRBs in a companion article. A direct astrophysical application of these results is that the merger of binary neutron stars leading to BH formation emits GeV radiation: the GeV emission is a necessary and sufficient condition to indicate the creation of a BH in S-GRBs.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

On the rate and on the gravitational wave emission of short and long GRBs

On the ground of the large number of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected with cosmological redshift, we classified GRBs in seven subclasses, all with binary progenitors originating gravitational waves (GWs). Each binary is composed by combinations of carbon-oxygen cores (CO$_{\rm core}$), neutron stars (NSs), black holes (BHs) and white dwarfs (WDs). The long bursts, traditionally assumed to originate from a BH with an ultra-relativistic jetted emission, not emitting GWs, have been subclassified as (I) X-ray flashes (XRFs), (II) binary-driven hypernovae (BdHNe), and (III) BH-supernovae (BH-SNe). They are framed within the induced gravitational collapse (IGC) paradigm with progenitor a CO$_{\rm core}$-NS/BH binary. The supernova (SN) explosion of the CO$_{\rm core}$ triggers an accretion process onto the NS/BH. If the accretion does not lead the NS to its critical mass, an XRF occurs, while when the BH is present or formed by accretion, a BdHN occurs. When the binaries are not disrupted, XRFs lead to NS-NS and BdHNe lead to NS-BH. The short bursts, originating in NS-NS, are subclassified as (IV) short gamma-ray flashes (S-GRFs) and (V) short GRBs (S-GRBs), the latter when a BH is formed. There are (VI) ultra-short GRBs (U-GRBs) and (VII) gamma-ray flashes (GRFs), respectively formed in NS-BH and NS-WD. We use the occurrence rate and GW emission of these subclasses to assess their detectability by Advanced LIGO-Virgo, eLISA, and resonant bars. We discuss the consequences of our results in view of the announcement of the LIGO-Virgo Collaboration of the source GW 170817 as being originated by a NS-NS.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Strong-field gravitational-wave emission in Schwarzschild and Kerr geometries: some general considerations

We show how the concurrent implementation of the exact solutions of the Einstein equations, of the equations of motion of the test particles, and of the relativistic estimate of the emission of gravitational waves from test particles, can establish a priori constraints on the possible phenomena occurring in Nature. Two examples of test particles starting at infinite distance or from finite distance in a circular orbit around a Kerr black hole are considered: the first leads to a well defined gravitational wave burst the second to a smooth merging into the black hole. This analysis is necessary for the study of the waveforms in merging binary systems.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2018

Comparison and contrast of test-particle and numerical-relativity waveform templates

We compare and contrast the emission of gravitational waves and waveforms for the recently established "helicoidal-drifting-sequence" of a test particle around a Kerr black hole with the publicly available waveform templates of numerical-relativity. The merger of two black holes of comparable mass are considered. We outline a final smooth merging of the test particle into the final Kerr black hole. We find a surprising and unexpected agreement between the two treatments if we adopt, for the mass of the particle and the Kerr black hole a Newtonian-center-of-mass description, and for the Kerr black hole spin an effective value whose nature remains to be clarified.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Revisiting the Statistics of X-ray Flares in Gamma-ray Bursts

The statistics of X-ray flares in the afterglow of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) have been studied extensively without considering the possible different origins of each flare. By satisfying six observational criteria, we find a sample composed of $16$ long GRBs observed by \textit{Swift} satellite may share a same origin. By applying the Markov chain Monte Carlo iteration and the machine learning algorithms (locally weighted regression and Gaussian process regression), impressively, the flares in these GRBs show strong correlations with the energy released in the prompt emission. These correlations were never discovered in previous papers, and they could not be well explained by previous models. These correlations imply that the prompt emission and the X-ray flare are not independent, they may be originated following a same sequence. The new THESUS satellite will provide us a larger sample and more detailed spectra to refine the results we obtained in this article.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

Early X-ray Flares in GRBs

We analyze the early X-ray flares in the GRB "flare-plateau-afterglow" (FPA) phase observed by Swift-XRT. The FPA occurs only in one of the seven GRB subclasses: the binary-driven hypernovae (BdHNe). This subclass consists of long GRBs with a carbon-oxygen core and a neutron star (NS) binary companion as progenitors. The hypercritical accretion of the supernova (SN) ejecta onto the NS can lead to the gravitational collapse of the NS into a black hole. Consequently, one can observe a GRB emission with isotropic energy $E_{iso}\gtrsim10^{52}$~erg, as well as the associated GeV emission and the FPA phase. Previous work had shown that gamma-ray spikes in the prompt emission occur at $\sim 10^{15}$--$10^{17}$~cm with Lorentz gamma factor $Γ\sim10^{2}$--$10^{3}$. Using a novel data analysis we show that the time of occurrence, duration, luminosity and total energy of the X-ray flares correlate with $E_{iso}$. A crucial feature is the observation of thermal emission in the X-ray flares that we show occurs at radii $\sim10^{12}$~cm with $Γ\lesssim 4$. These model independent observations cannot be explained by the "fireball" model, which postulates synchrotron and inverse Compton radiation from a single ultra relativistic jetted emission extending from the prompt to the late afterglow and GeV emission phases. We show that in BdHNe a collision between the GRB and the SN ejecta occurs at $\simeq10^{10}$~cm reaching transparency at $\sim10^{12}$~cm with $Γ\lesssim4$. The agreement between the thermal emission observations and these theoretically derived values validates our model and opens the possibility of testing each BdHN episode with the corresponding Lorentz gamma factor.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

Expansion of magnetic neutron stars in an energy (in)dependent spacetime

Regarding the strong magnetic field of neutron stars and high energy regime scenario which is based on high curvature region near the compact objects, one is motivated to study magnetic neutron stars in an energy dependent spacetime. In this paper, we show that such strong magnetic field and energy dependency of spacetime have considerable effects on the properties of neutron stars. We examine the variations of maximum mass and related radius, Schwarzschild radius, average density, gravitational redshift, Kretschmann scalar and Buchdahl theorem due to magnetic field and also energy dependency of metric. First, it will be shown that the maximum mass and radius of neutron stars are increasing function of magnetic field while average density, redshift, the strength of gravity and Kretschmann scalar are decreasing functions of it. These results are due to a repulsive-like force behavior for the magnetic field. Next, the effects of the gravity's rainbow will be studied and it will be shown that by increasing the rainbow function, the neutron stars could enjoy an expansion in their structures. Then, we obtain a new relation for the upper mass limit of a static spherical neutron star with uniform density in gravity's rainbow (Buchdahl limit) in which such upper limit is modified as $M_{eff}<\frac{4c^{2}R}{9G}$. In addition, stability and energy conditions for the equation of state of neutron star matter are also investigated and a comparison with empirical results is done. It is notable that the numerical study in this paper is conducted by using the lowest order constrained variational (LOCV) approach in the presence of magnetic field employing AV18 potential.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

GRB 081024B and GRB 140402A: two additional short GRBs from binary neutron star mergers

Theoretical and observational evidences have been recently gained for a two-fold classification of short bursts: 1) short gamma-ray flashes (S-GRFs), with isotropic energy $E_{iso}<10^{52}$~erg and no BH formation, and 2) the authentic short gamma-ray bursts (S-GRBs), with isotropic energy $E_{iso}>10^{52}$~erg evidencing a BH formation in the binary neutron star merging process. The signature for the BH formation consists in the on-set of the high energy ($0.1$--$100$~GeV) emission, coeval to the prompt emission, in all S-GRBs. No GeV emission is expected nor observed in the S-GRFs. In this paper we present two additional S-GRBs, GRB 081024B and GRB 140402A, following the already identified S-GRBs, i.e., GRB 090227B, GRB 090510 and GRB 140619B. We also return on the absence of the GeV emission of the S-GRB 090227B, at an angle of $71^{\rm{o}}$ from the \textit{Fermi}-LAT boresight. All the correctly identified S-GRBs correlate to the high energy emission, implying no significant presence of beaming in the GeV emission. The existence of a common power-law behavior in the GeV luminosities, following the BH formation, when measured in the source rest-frame, points to a commonality in the mass and spin of the newly-formed BH in all S-GRBs.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

General classification of charged test particle circular orbits in Reissner--Nordström spacetime

We investigate charged particles circular motion in the gravitational field of a charged mass distribution described by the Reissner-Nordström spacetime. We introduce a set of independent parameters completely characterizing the different spatial regions in which circular motion is allowed. We provide most complete classification of circular orbits for different sets of particle and source charge-to-mass ratios. We study both black holes and naked singularities and show that the behavior of charged particles depend drastically on the type of source. Our analysis shows in an alternative manner that the behavior of circular orbits can in principle be used to distinguish between black holes and naked singularities. From this analysis, special limiting values for the dimensionless charge of black hole and naked singularity emerge, namely, Q/M=1/2, $Q/M=\sqrt{13}/5$ and $Q/M=\sqrt{2/3}$ for the black hole case and Q/M=1, $Q/M=5/ (2 \sqrt{6})$, $Q/M=3 \sqrt{6}/7$, and finally $Q/M= \sqrt{9/8}$ for the naked singularity case. Similarly and surprisingly, analogue limits emerge for the orbiting particles charge-to-mass ratio $ε$, for positive charges $ε=1$, $ε=2$ and $ε=M/Q$. These limits play an important role in the study of the coupled electromagnetic and gravitational interactions, and the investigation of the role of the charge in the gravitational collapse of compact objects.

gr-qc↗