Theoretical Interpretation of GRB 031203 and URCA-3
We present an analysis of the late time X-ray emission (URCA-3) connected with GRB 031203 and SN 2003lw.
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Publications and source records attributed to She-Sheng Xue.
We present an analysis of the late time X-ray emission (URCA-3) connected with GRB 031203 and SN 2003lw.
Using the Swift data of GRB 050315, we progress in proving the uniqueness of our theoretically predicted Gamma-Ray Burst (GRB) structure as composed by a proper-GRB, emitted at the transparency of an electron-positron plasma with suitable baryon loading, and an afterglow comprising the "prompt radiation" as due to external shocks. Detailed light curves for selected energy bands are theoretically fitted in the entire temporal region of the Swift observations ranging over 10^6 seconds.
The X and gamma-ray observations of the source GRB 031203 by INTEGRAL are interpreted within our theoretical model. In addition to a complete space-time parametrization of the GRB, we specifically assume that the afterglow emission originates from a thermal spectrum in the co-moving frame of the expanding baryonic matter shell. By determining the two free parameters of the model and estimating the density and filamentary structure of the ISM, we reproduce the observed luminosity in the 20-200 keV energy band. As in previous sources, the prompt radiation is shown to coincide with the peak of the afterglow and the luminosity substructure are shown to originate in the filamentary structure of the ISM. We predict a clear hard-to-soft behavior in the instantaneous spectra. The time-integrated spectrum over 20 seconds observed by INTEGRAL is well fitted. Despite this source has been considered "unusual", it appears to us a normal low energetic GRB.
The issue of the possible presence or absence of jets in GRBs is here re-examined for GRB991216. We compare and contrast our theoretically predicted afterglow luminosity in the 2-10 keV band for spherically symmetric versus jetted emission. At these wavelenghts the jetted emission can be excluded and data analysis confirms spherical symmetry. These theoretical fits are expected to be improved by the forthcoming data of the Swift mission.
The introduction of the three interpretational paradigms for Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) and recent progress in understanding the X- and gamma ray luminosity in the afterglow allow us to make assessments about the astrophysical settings of GRBs. In particular, we evidence the distinct possibility that some GRBs occur in a binary system. This subclass of GRBs manifests itself in a "tryptich": one component formed by the collapse of a massive star to a black hole, which originates the GRB; a second component by a supernova and a third one by a young neutron star born in the supernova event. Similarly, the understanding of the physics of quantum relativistic processes during the gravitational collapse makes possible precise predictions about the structure of short GRBs.
Semiconductor's energy band and its degeneracy are altered when an external magnetic field varies, analogously to the appearance of Landau levels. Such alternation leads to the variation of energy levels and thus quantum-mechanical instability. As a consequence, spontaneous photon emission and/or paramagnetically screening effect take place. By computing total energy variation, we discuss why these effects are bound to occur. In addition, we calculate the rate and spectrum of spontaneous photon emission, which can be experimentally tested.
[...] We turn then to the theoretical developments in the short GRBs: we first report some progress in the understanding the dynamical phase of collapse, the mass-energy formula and the extraction of blackholic energy which have been motivated by the analysis of the short GRBs. In this context progress has also been accomplished on establishing an absolute lower limit to the irreducible mass of the black hole as well as on some critical considerations about the relations of general relativity and the second law of thermodynamics. We recall how this last issue has been one of the most debated in theoretical physics in the past thirty years due to the work of Bekenstein and Hawking. Following these conceptual progresses we analyze the vacuum polarization process around an overcritical collapsing shell. We evidence the existence of a separatrix and a dyadosphere trapping surface in the dynamics of the electron-positron plasma generated during the process of gravitational collapse. We then analyze, using recent progress in the solution of the Vlasov-Boltzmann-Maxwell system, the oscillation regime in the created electron-positron plasma and their rapid convergence to a thermalized spectrum. We conclude by making precise predictions for the spectra, the energy fluxes and characteristic time-scales of the radiation for short-bursts. If the precise luminosity variation and spectral hardening of the radiation we have predicted will be confirmed by observations of short-bursts, these systems will play a major role as standard candles in cosmology. These considerations will also be relevant for the analysis of the long-bursts when the baryonic matter contribution will be taken into account.
We outline the confluence of three novel theoretical fields in our modeling of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs): 1) the ultrarelativistic regime of a shock front expanding with a Lorentz gamma factor $\sim 300$; 2) the quantum vacuum polarization process leading to an electron-positron plasma originating the shock front; and 3) the general relativistic process of energy extraction from a black hole originating the vacuum polarization process. There are two different classes of GRBs: the long GRBs and the short GRBs. We here address the issue of the long GRBs. [...] We are specially interested, in this report, to a subclass of long GRBs which appear to be accompanied by a supernova explosion. We are considering two specific examples: GRB980425/SN1998bw and GRB030329/SN2003dh [...].
The EMBH model, previously developed using GRB 991216 as a prototype, is here applied to GRB 980425. We fit the luminosity observed in the 40-700 keV, 2-26 keV and 2-10 keV bands by the BeppoSAX satellite. In addition we present a novel scenario in which the supernova SN1998bw is the outcome of an ``induced gravitational collapse'' triggered by GRB 980425, in agreement with the GRB-Supernova Time Sequence (GSTS) paradigm (Ruffini et al. 2001c). A further outcome of this astrophysically exceptional sequence of events is the formation of a young neutron star generated by the SN1998bw event. A coordinated observational activity is recommended to further enlighten the underlying scenario of this most unique astrophysical system.
It is shown that the concept of a fireball with a definite filamentary structure naturally emerges from the analysis of the spectra of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). These results, made possible by the recently obtained analytic expressions of the equitemporal surfaces in the GRB afterglow, depend crucially on the single parameter R describing the effective area of the fireball emitting the X- and gamma ray radiation. The X- and gamma ray components of the afterglow radiation are shown to have a thermal spectrum in the co-moving frame of the fireball and originate from a stable shock front described self-consistently by the Rankine-Hugoniot equations. Precise predictions are presented on a correlations between spectral changes and intensity variations in the prompt radiation verifiable, e.g., by the Swift and future missions. The highly variable optical and radio emission depends instead on the parameters of the surrounding medium. The GRB 991216 is used as a prototype for this model.
Quantum fluctuation of unstable modes about gravitational instantons causes the instability of flat space at finite temperature, leading to the spontaneous process of nucleating quantum black holes. The density of vacuum energy-gain in such process gives the cosmological term in the Einstein equation. This naturally results in the inflationary phase of Early Universe. While the reheating phase is attributed to the Hawking radiation of these quantum black holes. In the Standard cosmology era, this cosmological term depends on the reheating temperature and asymptotically approaches to the cosmological constant in matter domination phase, consistently with current observations.
We study a possible gravitational vacuum-effect, in which vacuum-energy variation is due to variation of gravitational field, vacuum state gains gravitational energy and releases it by spontaneous photon emissions. Based on the path-integral representation, we present a general formulation of vacuum transition matrix and energy-momentum tensor of a quantum scalar field theory in curved spacetime. Using analytical continuation of dimensionality of the phase space, we calculate the difference of vacuum-energy densities in the presence and absence of gravitational field. Using the dynamical equation of gravitational collapse, we compute the rate of vacuum state gaining gravitational energy. Computing the transition amplitude from initial vacuum state to final vacuum state in gravitational collapsing process, we show the rate and spectrum of spontaneous photon emissions for releasing gravitational energy. The possible connection of our study to the genuine origin of gamma ray bursts is discussed. We compare our idea with the Schwinger idea for Sonoluminiescence and contrast our scenario with the Hawking effect.
In the context of quantum field theories in curved spacetime, we compute the effective action of the transition amplitude from vacuum to vacuum in the presence of an external gravitational field. The imaginary part of resulted effective action determines the probability of vacuum decay via quantum tunneling process, giving the rate and spectrum of particle creations. We show that gravitational field polarizes vacuum and discretizes its spectrum for such a polarization gains gravitational energy. On the basis of gravitational vacuum polarization, we discuss the quantum origin of vacuum decay in curved spacetime as pair-creations of particles and anti-particles. The thermal spectrum of particle creations is attributed to (i) the CPT invariance of pair-creations(annihilations) from(into) vacuum and (ii) vacuum acts as a reserve with the temperature determined by gravitational energy-gain.
Motivated by the theoretical paradox between the parity-violating gauge symmetries of the standard model and the fundamental regulator, we propose that the extension of the standard model to the high-energy region should be made by adding effective high-dimension operators whose dynamics gives an infrared scaling region, where not only the standard model appears as an asymptotic chiral-gauge theory, but also vectorlike one-particle-irreducible functions are induced to describe ``new physics''. We formulate the standard model on a lattice by introducing a right-handed neutrino and a sterile left-handed neutrino to form the high-dimension operators. Analyzing spectra and one-particle-irreducible functions induced by these high-dimension operators, we find that in the low-energy region, the parity-violating standard model is consistently defined, while the parity-conservation gauge-symmetry is restored in the high-energy region.
Based on the Pauli principle and Heisenberg uncertainty relationship, we show that the phenomenon of vectorlike fermion-doubling in quantum field theories on a lattice is related to the phenomenon of pair-creation of massless fermions, due to quantum-field fluctuations upon the zero-energy level of the ground state of regularized quantum field theories on the lattice.
We study the fermionic vacuum energy of vacua with and without being applied an external magnetic field. The energetic difference of two vacua leads to the vacuum decaying and the vacuum-energy releasing. In the context of quantum field theories, we discuss why and how the vacuum energy can be released by spontaneous photon emissions and/or paramagnetically screening the external magnetic field. In addition, we quantitatively compute the vacuum energy released, the paramagnetic screening effect and the rate and spectrum of spontaneous photon emissions. The possibilities of experimentally detecting such an effect of vacuum-energy releasing and this effect accounting for the anormalous X-ray pulsar are discussed.
On the analogy with the Lamb shift, we study the vacuum effect that proton's electric field interacts with virtual particles in the vacuum. We find a possible quantum instability that triggered by an external force, proton's electric field interacting with virtual particles spontaneously induces a quantum force that back reacts on the proton in the direction of the external trigger force. Such a quantum-induced force accelerates the proton runaway, by gaining the zero-point energy from the vacuum (~10^{-5} eV/cm). This effect possibly accounts for the mysterious origin and spectrum of ultra high-energy cosmic ray (UHECR) events above 10^{20}eV, and explains the puzzle why the GZK cutoff is absent. The candidates of these events could be primary protons from the early Universe.
On the analogy of the Casimir effect, we present an effect of quantum-field fluctuations, attributed to gravitational field coupling to the zero-point energy of virtual particles in the vacuum. In the process of black hole's formation, such an effect could cause tremendous energy release, possibly describing a scenario of energetic sources for observed gamma ray bursts.