Spectral index-flux relation for investigating the origins of steep decay in γ-ray bursts

Samuele Ronchini (), Gor Oganesyan, Marica Branchesi, Stefano Ascenzi, Maria Grazia Bernardini, Francesco Brighenti, Simone Dall’Osso, Paolo D’Avanzo, Giancarlo Ghirlanda, Gabriele Ghisellini, Maria Edvige Ravasio and Om Sharan Salafia
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Samuele Ronchini: Gran Sasso Science Institute
Gor Oganesyan: Gran Sasso Science Institute
Marica Branchesi: Gran Sasso Science Institute
Stefano Ascenzi: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Maria Grazia Bernardini: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Francesco Brighenti: Gran Sasso Science Institute
Simone Dall’Osso: Gran Sasso Science Institute
Paolo D’Avanzo: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Giancarlo Ghirlanda: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Gabriele Ghisellini: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Maria Edvige Ravasio: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera
Om Sharan Salafia: INAF—Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract γ-ray bursts (GRBs) are short-lived transients releasing a large amount of energy (1051 − 1053 erg) in the keV-MeV energy range. GRBs are thought to originate from internal dissipation of the energy carried by ultra-relativistic jets launched by the remnant of a massive star’s death or a compact binary coalescence. While thousands of GRBs have been observed over the last thirty years, we still have an incomplete understanding of where and how the radiation is generated in the jet. Here we show a relation between the spectral index and the flux found by investigating the X-ray tails of bright GRB pulses via time-resolved spectral analysis. This relation is incompatible with the long standing scenario which invokes the delayed arrival of photons from high-latitude parts of the jet. While the alternative scenarios cannot be firmly excluded, the adiabatic cooling of the emitting particles is the most plausible explanation for the discovered relation, suggesting a proton-synchrotron origin of the GRB emission.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24246-x

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