The collimation and evolution of relativistic outflows in $γ$-ray bursts (GRBs) are determined by their interaction with the stellar envelope through which they travel before reaching the much larger distance where the energy is dissipated and $γ$-rays are produced. We consider the case of a Poynting flux dominated relativistic outflow and show that it suffers strong inverse-Compton (IC) scattering drag near the stellar surface and the jet is slowed down to sub-relativistic speed if its initial magnetization parameter ($σ_0$) is larger than about 10$^5$. If the temperature of the cocoon surrounding the jet were to be larger than about 10 keV, then an optically thick layer of electrons and positrons forms at the interface of the cocoon and the jet, and one might expect this pair screen to protect the interior of the jet from IC drag. However, the pair screen turns out to be ephemeral, and instead of shielding the jet it speeds up the IC drag on it. Although a high $σ_0$ jet might not survive its passage through the star, a fraction of its energy is converted to 1-100 MeV radiation that escapes the star and appears as a bright flash lasting for about 10 s.
The process of photon splitting is investigated in the presence of strongly magnetized electron-positron plasma. The amplitude of the process is calculated in general case of plasma with nonzero chemical potential and temperature. The polarization selection rules and corresponding partial amplitudes for allowed splitting channels are obtained in the case of charge-symmetric plasma. It is found that the new splitting channel forbidden in magnetized vacuum becomes allowed. The absorption rates of the photon splitting are calculated with taking into account of the photon dispersion and wave funct…
Hard, non-thermal, persistent pulsed X-ray emission extending between 10 keV and $\sim 150$ keV has been observed in nearly ten magnetars. For inner-magnetospheric models of such emission, resonant inverse Compton scattering of soft thermal photons by ultra-relativistic charges is the most efficient production mechanism. We present angle-dependent upscattering spectra and pulsed intensity maps for uncooled, relativistic electrons injected in inner regions of magnetar magnetospheres, calculated using collisional integrals over field loops. Our computations employ a new formulation of the QED Co…
The dynamics of a dissipative Poynting dominated flow subject to a radiation drag due to Compton scattering of ambient photons by relativistic electrons accelerated in reconnecting current sheets is studied. It is found that the efficiency at which magnetic energy is converted to radiation is limited to a maximum value of $ε_c=3l_{dis}\,σ_0/4(σ_0+1)$, where $σ_0$ is the initial magnetization of the flow and $l_{dis}\le1$ the fraction of initial Poynting flux that can dissipate. The asymptotic Lorentz factor satisfies $Γ_\infty\geΓ_0(1+l_{dis}\,σ_0/4)$, where $Γ_0$ is the initial Lorentz factor…
We present an extension to the general relativistic radiation magnetohydrodynamic code HARMRAD to account for emission and absorption by thermal cyclo-synchrotron, double Compton, bremsstrahlung, low-temperature OPAL opacities as well as Thomson and Compton scattering. We approximate the radiation field as a Bose-Einstein distribution and evolve it using the radiation number-energy-momentum conservation equations in order to track photon hardening. We perform various simulations to study how these extensions affect the radiative properties of magnetically-arrested disks accreting at Eddington …
We examine the effect of Compton drag on the dynamics of a relativistic shock wave. Similarity solutions describing a radiation-supported shock are obtained for certain profiles of the external radiation intensity and the density of the unshocked ejecta, and are compared with 1D numerical simulations of a blast wave expanding into an ambient medium containing isotropic seed radiation. Both the analytic model and the simulations indicate that under realistic conditions the radiation drag should strongly affect the dynamics and structure of the shocked layer. In particular, our calculations show…
One-dimensional PIC Simulation of Induced Compton Scattering in Magnetized Electron-Positron Pair Plasma
Center for Gravitational Physics and Quantum Information, Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics, Kyoto University（京都大学汤川理论物理研究所引力物理与量子信息中心）；Department of Physics, Kyoto University（京都大学物理学系）；Graduate School of System Informatics, Kobe University（神户大学系统信息学研究）
Shocks around clusters of galaxies accelerate electrons which upscatter the Cosmic Microwave Background photons to higher-energies. We use an analytical model to calculate this inverse Compton (IC) emission, taking into account the effects of additional energy losses via synchrotron and Coulomb scattering. We find that the surface brightness of the optical IC emission increases with redshift and halo mass. The IC emission surface brightness, 32--34~mag~arcsec$^{-2}$, for massive clusters is potentially detectable by the newly developed Dragonfly Telephoto Array.
We consider delayed, volumetric heating in a magnetized outflow that has broken out of a confining medium and expanded to a high Lorentz factor ($Γ\sim 10^2-10^3$) and low optical depth to scattering ($τ_{\rm T} \sim 10^{-3}-10^{-2}$). The energy flux at breakout is dominated by the magnetic field, with a modest contribution from quasi-thermal gamma rays whose spectrum was calculated in Paper I. We focus on the case of extreme baryon depletion in the magnetized material, but allow for a separate baryonic component that is entrained from a confining medium. Dissipation is driven by relativistic…
One of the most energetic gamma-ray bursts GRB 110731A, was observed from optical to GeV energy range by Fermi and Swift Observatories, and by the MOA and GROND optical telescopes. The multiwavelength observations over different epochs (from trigger time to more than 800 s) showed that the spectral energy distribution was better fitted by a wind afterglow model. We present a leptonic model based on an early afterglow that evolves in a stellar wind to describe the multiwavelength light curves observations. In particular, the origin of the LAT emission is explained through the superposition of s…
We report multi-color optical imaging and polarimetry observations of the afterglow of the first TeV- detected gamma-ray burst, GRB 190114C, using RINGO3 and MASTER II polarimeters. Observations begin 31 s after the onset of the GRB and continue until $\sim 7000\,$s post-burst. The light curves reveal a chromatic break at $\sim 400- 500\,$s, with initial temporal decay $α= 1.669 \pm 0.013$ flattening to $α\sim 1$ post-break, which we model as a combination of reverse and forward-shock components, with magnetization parameter $R_{\rm B} \sim 70$. The observed polarization degree decreases from …
The inverse Compton catastrophe is defined as a dramatic rise in the luminosity of inverse Compton scattered photons. It is described by a non-linear loop of radiative processes that sets in for high values of the electron compactness and is responsible for the efficient transfer of energy from electrons to photons, predominantly through inverse Compton scatterings. We search for the conditions that drive a magnetized non-thermal source to the inverse Compton catastrophe regime and study its multi-wavelength (MW) photon spectrum. We develop a generic analytical framework and use numerical calc…
Galactic black hole coronae are composed of a hot, magnetized plasma. The spectral energy distribution produced in this component of X-ray binaries can be strongly affected by different interactions between locally injected relativistic particles and the matter, radiation and magnetic fields in the source. We study the non-thermal processes driven by the injection of relativistic particles into a strongly magnetized corona around an accreting black hole. We compute in a self-consistent way the effects of relativistic bremsstrahlung, inverse Compton scattering, synchrotron radiation, and the pa…
For inner magnetospheric models of hard X-ray and gamma-ray emission in high-field pulsars and magnetars, resonant Compton upscattering is anticipated to be the most efficient process for generating continuum radiation. This is due in part to the proximity of a hot soft photon bath from the stellar surface to putative radiation dissipation regions in the inner magnetosphere. Moreover, because the scattering process becomes resonant at the cyclotron frequency, the effective cross section exceeds the classical Thomson value by over two orders of magnitude, thereby enhancing the efficiency of con…
We examine the possible role of turbulence in feeding the emission of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Turbulence may develop in a GRB jet as the result of hydrodynamic or current-driven instabilities. The jet carries dense radiation and the turbulence cascade can be damped by Compton drag, passing kinetic fluid energy to photons through scattering. We identify two regimes of turbulence dissipation: (1) "Viscous" - the turbulence cascade is Compton damped on a scale $\ell_{\rm damp}$ greater than the photon mean free path $\ell_\star$. Then turbulence energy is passed to photons via bulk Comptonizatio…
We present results from deep (70 ks) Chandra ACIS observations and Hubble Space Telescope ACS F475W observations of two highly optically polarized quasars belonging to the MOJAVE blazar sample, viz., PKS B0106+013 and 1641+399 (3C345). These observations reveal X-ray and optical emission from the jets in both sources. X-ray emission is detected from the entire length of the 0106+013 radio jet, which shows clear bends or wiggles - the X-ray emission is brightest at the first prominent kpc jet bend. A picture of a helical kpc jet with the first kpc-scale bend representing a jet segment moving cl…
A part of early type stars is characterised by strong dipole magnetic field that is modified by the outflow of dense wind from the stellar surface. At some distance from the surface (above the Alfven radius), the wind drives the magnetic field into the reconnection in the equatorial region of the dipole magnetic field. We propose that electrons accelerated in these reconnection regions can be responsible for efficient comptonization of stellar radiation producing gamma-ray emission. We investigate the propagation of electrons in the equatorial region of the magnetosphere by including their adv…
We make a time-dependent characterization of pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) surrounding some of the highest spin-down pulsars that have not yet been detected at TeV. Our aim is assessing their possible level of magnetization. We analyze the nebulae driven by J2022+3842 in G76.9+1.0, J0540-6919 in N158A (the Crab twin), J1400--6325 in G310.6--1.6, and J1124--5916 in G292.0+0.18, none of which have been found at TeV energies. For comparison we refer to published models of G54.1+0.3, the Crab nebula, and develop a model for N157B in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). We conclude that further observati…
Accreting highly magnetized pulsars in binary systems are among the brightest X-ray emitters in our Galaxy. Although a number of high statistical quality broad-band (0.1-100 keV) X-ray observations are available, the spectral energy distribution of these sources is usually investigated by adopting pure phenomenological models, rather than models linked to the physics of accretion. In this paper, a detailed spectral study of the X-ray emission recorded from the high-mass X-ray binary pulsars Cen X-3, 4U 0115+63, and Her X-1 is carried out by using BeppoSAX and joined Suzaku+NuStar data, togethe…
We derive the relativistic kinetic equation for Compton scattering of polarized radiation in strong magnetic field using the Bogolyubov method. The induced scattering and the Pauli exclusion principle are taken into account. The electron polarization is also considered in the general form of the kinetic equation. The special forms of the equation for the cases of the non-polarized electrons, the rarefied electron gas and the two polarization mode description of radiation are found. The derived equations are valid for any photon and electron energies and the magnetic field strength below about …
Modeling of gamma-ray burst (GRB) prompt emission spectra sometimes requires a (quasi-) thermal spectral component in addition to the Band function. In photospheric emission models, a prominent thermal component broadened by sub-photospheric dissipation is expected to be released at the photospheric radius, $r_{\rm ph}\sim10^{12}\,$cm. We consider an ultra-relativistic strongly magnetized outflow with a striped-wind magnetic-field structure undergoing gradual and continuous magnetic energy dissipation at $r<r_s$ that heats and accelerates the flow, leading to a bulk Lorentz factor $Γ(r)=Γ_\inf…
One of the most energetic gamma-ray burst GRB 110731A was observed from optical to GeV energy range. Previous analysis on the prompt phase revealed similarities with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) bursts observed by Fermi: i) a delayed onset of the high-energy emission ($> 100$ MeV), ii) a short-lasting bright peak at later times and iii) a temporally extended component from this phase and lasting hundreds of seconds. Additionally to the prompt phase, multiwavelength observations over different epochs showed that the spectral energy distribution was better fitted by a wind afterglow model. We …
GRB 160625B, one of the brightest bursts in recent years, was simultaneously observed by Fermi and Swift satellites, and ground-based optical telescopes in three different events separated by long periods of time. In this paper the non-thermal multiwavelength observations of GRB 160625B are described and a transition phase from wind-type-like medium to interstellar medium between the early (event II) and the late (event III) afterglow is found. The multiwavelength observations of the early afterglow are consistent with the afterglow evolution starting at $\sim$ 150 s in a stellar wind medium w…
The low-frequency peaked BL Lac object (LBL) AP Librae exhibits very-high-energy (VHE, $E>100$GeV) $γ$-ray emission and hosts an extended jet, which has been detected in radio and X-rays. The jet X-ray spectral index implies an inverse Compton origin. These observations are unusual for LBLs calling for a consistent explanation of this extraordinary source. The observationally constrained parameters necessary to describe the core emission within the standard one-zone model are unable to explain the broad-band spectrum, even if observationally unconstrained external photon fields are taken into …
Compton scattering is a key process shaping spectra formation and accretion flow dynamics in accreting strongly magnetized neutron stars. A strong magnetic field affects the scattering cross section and makes it dependent on photon energy, momentum, and polarization state. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we investigate statistical features of Compton scattering of polarized X-ray radiation in a strong magnetic field. Our analysis is focused on photon gas behaviour well inside the scattering region. We take into account the resonant scattering at the fundamental cyclotron frequency, thermal dist…
Aims: In light of recent discoveries of pulsating ULXs and recently introduced models, that propose neutron stars (NSs) as the central engines of ULXs, we revisit the (XMM-Newton and NuSTAR) spectra of eighteen well known ULXs, in search of indications that favor this new hypothesis. Results: We confirm the, previously noted, presence of the low energy (<6 keV) spectral rollover and argue that it could be interpreted as thermal emission. The spectra are well described by a double thermal model consisting of a "hot" (>1 keV) and a "cool" (<0.7 keV) multicolor black body (MCB). Under the assumpt…
Despite being hard to measure, GRB prompt $γ$-ray emission polarization is a valuable probe of the dominant emission mechanism and the outflow's composition and angular structure. During the prompt emission the outflow is ultra-relativistic with Lorentz factors $Γ\gg1$. We describe in detail the linear polarization properties of various emission mechanisms: synchrotron radiation from different magnetic field structures (ordered: toroidal $B_{\rm tor}$ or radial $B_\parallel$, and random: normal to the radial direction $B_\perp$), Compton drag, and photospheric emission. We calculate the polari…
Observations of SNRs in X-ray and gamma-ray bands promise to contribute with important information in our understanding on the nature of galactic cosmic rays. The analysis of SNRs images collected in different energy bands requires the support of theoretical modeling of synchrotron and inverse Compton (IC) emission. We develop a numerical code (REMLIGHT) to synthesize, from MHD simulations, the synchrotron radio, X-ray and IC gamma-ray emission from SNRs expanding in non-uniform interstellar medium (ISM) and/or non-uniform interstellar magnetic field (ISMF). As a first application, the code is…
We describe a new hybrid framework to model non-thermal spectral signatures from highly energetic particles embedded in a large-scale classical or relativistic MHD flow. Our method makes use of \textit{Lagrangian} particles moving through an Eulerian grid where the (relativistic) MHD equations are solved concurrently. Lagrangian particles follow fluid streamlines and represent ensembles of (real) relativistic particles with a finite energy distribution. The spectral distribution of each particle is updated in time by solving the relativistic cosmic ray transport equation based on local fluid c…
Under the framework of the magnetized accretion ejection structures, we analyze the energy balance properties, and study the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of the Jet Emitting Disc (JED) model for black hole X-ray transients. Various radiative processes are considered, i.e. synchrotron, bremsstrahlung, and their Comptonizations, and external Comptonization of radiation from outer thin disc. With these cooling terms taken into account, we solve the thermal equilibrium equation self-consistently and find three solutions, of which the cold and the hot solutions are stable. Subsequently we i…
Relativistic magnetic reconnection is a powerful agent through which magnetic energy can be tapped in astrophysics, energizing particles that then produce observed radiation. In some systems, the highest energy photons come from particles Comptonizing an ambient radiation bath supplied by an external source. If the emitting particle energies are high enough, this inverse Compton (IC) scattering enters the Klein-Nishina regime, which differs from the low-energy Thomson IC limit in two significant ways. First, radiative losses become inherently discrete, with particles delivering an order-unity …
Fast and "lossless" propagation of relativistic electrons along magnetized non-thermal filaments in galaxy clusters and the Galactic Center region
Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics（马克斯·普朗克天体物理研究所）；Space Research Institute (IKI)（空间研究所）；University of Minnesota（明尼苏达大学）；Universitäts-Sternwarte, Fakultät für Physik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München（慕尼黑大学物理学院天文台）；Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF) - Istituto di Radioastronomia (IRA)（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文研究所）；Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford（牛津大学理论物理鲁道夫·派尔斯中心）；Merton College, Oxford（牛津大学默顿学院）
Astrophysical disks are likely embedded in an ambient vertical magnetic field. This ambient field is known to drive magneto-rotational turbulence in the disk bulk but is also responsible for the launching of magnetized outflows at the origin of astrophysical jets. The vertical structure and long-term (secular) evolution of such a system lack quantitative predictions. It is nevertheless this secular evolution that is proposed to explain time variability in many accreting systems such as X-ray binaries. We compute and analyze global 3D ideal-MHD simulations of an accretion disk threaded by a lar…
