Bibcode
Schulze, S.; Klose, S.; Björnsson, G.; Jakobsson, P.; Kann, D. A.; Rossi, A.; Krühler, T.; Greiner, J.; Ferrero, P.
Bibliographical reference
GAMMA RAY BURSTS 2010. AIP Conference Proceedings, Volume 1358, pp. 165-168 (2011).
Advertised on:
8
2011
Citations
1
Refereed citations
1
Description
Observational and theoretical evidence suggest that long gamma-ray
bursts (GRBs) originate from the collapse of massive stars, while short
bursts are caused by the coalescence of stellar compact objects. Finding
direct evidence for both scenarios is challenging. Intriguingly, the
afterglow evolution depends on the density profile of the circumburst
medium (CBM). We use this property to find the most probable CBM for a
large number of Swift-detected bursts with well-sampled optical and
X-ray light curves. In our study we distinguish between a constant
density medium, n(r) = const., and a free stellar wind,
n(r)~r-2. After applying several selection criteria, our
sample consists of 27 bursts, including one short burst. The majority
(18) of the 27 afterglows favor an ISM profile; in only six bursts a
wind medium at late times is preferred. Furthermore, we set limits on
the wind-termination shock radius. Bursts favoring a constant density
environment also favor smaller wind-termination shock radii than bursts
traversing a free stellar wind at late times.