Aoyama Gakuin University

About: Aoyama Gakuin University is a education organization based out in Tokyo, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Superconductivity & Thin film. The organization has 3494 authors who have published 6419 publications receiving 115648 citations. The organization is also known as: Aoyama gakuin daigaku.

Three-dimensional Simulations of Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence Behind Relativistic Shock Waves and Their Implications for Gamma-Ray Bursts

Abstract: Relativistic astrophysical phenomena such as gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and active galactic nuclei often require long-lived strong magnetic fields that cannot be achieved by shock compression alone. Here, we report on three-dimensional special-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations that we performed using a second-order Godunov-type conservative code to explore the amplification and decay of macroscopic turbulence dynamo excited by the so-called Richtmyer-Meshkov instability (RMI; a Rayleigh-Taylor-type instability). This instability is an inevitable outcome of interactions between shock and ambient density fluctuations. We find that the magnetic energy grows exponentially in a few eddy-turnover times because of field-line stretching and then, following the decay of kinetic turbulence, decays with a temporal power-law exponent of ?0.7. The magnetic energy fraction can reach B ~ 0.1 but depends on the initial magnetic field strength, which can diversify the observed phenomena. We find that the magnetic energy grows by at least two orders of magnitude compared to the magnetic energy immediately behind the shock, provided the kinetic energy of turbulence injected by the RMI is greater than the magnetic energy. This minimum degree of amplification does not depend on the amplitude of the initial density fluctuations, while the growth timescale and the maximum magnetic energy depend on the degree of inhomogeneity in the density. The transition from Kolmogorov cascade to MHD critical balance cascade occurs at ~1/10th the initial inhomogeneity scale, which limits the maximum synchrotron polarization to less than ~2%. We derive analytical formulas for these numerical results and apply them to GRBs. New results include the avoidance of electron cooling with RMI turbulence, the turbulent photosphere model via RMI, and the shallow decay of the early afterglow from RMI. We also perform a simulation of freely decaying turbulence with relativistic velocity dispersion. We find that relativistic turbulence begins to decay much more quickly than one eddy-turnover time because of rapid shock dissipation, which does not support the relativistic turbulence model by Narayan & Kumar.

On the Spectrum and Spectropolarimetry of Type Ic Hypernova SN 2003dh/GRB 030329*

Abstract: Spectroscopic and spectropolarimetric observations of SN 2003dh/GRB 030329 obtained in 2003 May using the Subaru 8.2 m Telescope are presented. The properties of the supernova (SN) are investigated through a comparison with spectra of the Type Ic hypernovae SN 1997ef and SN 1998bw (hypernovae being a tentatively defined class of SNe with very broad absorption features: these features suggest a large velocity of the ejected material and possibly a large explosion kinetic energy). Comparison with spectra of other hypernovae shows that the spectrum of SN 2003dh obtained on 2003 May 8 and 9, i.e., 34-35 rest-frame days after the gamma-ray burst (GRB; for z = 0.1685), are similar to those of SN 1997ef obtained ~34-42 days after the fiducial time of explosion of that SN. The match with SN 1998bw spectra is not as good (at rest 7300-8000 A), but again spectra obtained ~33-43 days after GRB 980425 are preferred. This indicates that the SN may have intermediate properties between SNe 1997ef and 1998bw. On the basis of the analogy with the other hypernovae, the time of explosion of SN 2003dh is then constrained to be between -8 and +2 days of the GRB. The Si and O P Cygni lines of SN 2003dh seem comparable to those of SN 1997ef, which suggests that the ejected mass in SN 2003dh may match that in SN 1997ef. Polarization was marginally detected at optical wavelengths. This is consistent with measurements of the late afterglow, implying that it originated mostly in the interstellar medium of the host galaxy.

Radioactive decay products in neutron star merger ejecta: heating efficiency and γ-ray emission

Abstract: The radioactive decay of the freshly synthesized r-process nuclei ejected in compact binary mergers powers optical/infrared macronovae (kilonovae) that follow these events. The light curves depend critically on the energy partition among the different decay products and it plays an important role in estimates of the amount of ejected r-process elements from a given observed signal. We show that 20–50 per cent of the total radioactive energy is released in γ-rays on time-scales from hours to a month. The number of emitted γ-rays per unit energy interval has roughly a flat spectrum between a few dozen keV and 1 MeV so that most of the energy is carried by ∼1 MeV γ-rays. However, at the peak of macronova emission the optical depth of the γ-rays is ∼0.02 and most of the γ-rays escape. The loss of these γ-rays reduces the heat deposition into the ejecta and hence reduces the expected macronova signals if those are lanthanides dominated. This implies that the ejected mass is larger by a factor of 2–3 than what was previously estimated. Spontaneous fission heats up the ejecta and the heating rate can increase if a sufficient amount of transuranic nuclei are synthesized. Direct measurements of these escaping γ-rays may provide the ultimate proof for the macronova mechanisms and an identification of the r-process nucleosynthesis sites. However, the chances to detect these signals are slim with current X-ray and γ-ray missions. New detectors, more sensitive by at least a factor of 10, are needed for a realistic detection rate.

Direct Measurement of the Cosmic-Ray Proton Spectrum from 50 GeV to 10 TeV with the Calorimetric Electron Telescope on the International Space Station

Abstract: In this paper, we present the analysis and results of a direct measurement of the cosmic-ray proton spectrum with the CALET instrument onboard the International Space Station, including the detailed assessment of systematic uncertainties. The observation period used in this analysis is from October 13, 2015 to August 31, 2018 (1054 days). We have achieved the very wide energy range necessary to carry out measurements of the spectrum from 50 GeV to 10 TeV covering, for the first time in space, with a single instrument the whole energy interval previously investigated in most cases in separate subranges by magnetic spectrometers (BESS-TeV, PAMELA, and AMS-02) and calorimetric instruments (ATIC, CREAM, and NUCLEON). The observed spectrum is consistent with AMS-02 but extends to nearly an order of magnitude higher energy, showing a very smooth transition of the power-law spectral index from -2.81±0.03 (50-500 GeV) neglecting solar modulation effects (or -2.87±0.06 including solar modulation effects in the lower energy region) to -2.56±0.04 (1-10 TeV), thereby confirming the existence of spectral hardening and providing evidence of a deviation from a single power law by more than 3σ.

Very High Column Density and Small Reddening toward GRB 020124 at z = 3.20*

Abstract: We present optical and near-infrared observations of the dim afterglow of GRB 020124, obtained between 2 and 68 hr after the gamma-ray burst. The burst occurred in a very faint (R 29.5) damped Lyα absorber (DLA) at a redshift of z = 3.198 ± 0.004. The derived column density of neutral hydrogen is log(N) = 21.7 ± 0.2, and the rest-frame reddening is constrained to be E(B-V) < 0.065, i.e., AV < 0.20 for standard extinction laws with RV ≈ 3. The resulting dust-to-gas ratio is less than 11% of that found in the Milky Way but consistent with the SMC and high-redshift QSO DLAs, indicating a low metallicity and/or a low dust-to-metal ratio in the burst environment. A gray extinction law (large RV), produced through preferential destruction of small dust grains by the gamma-ray burst, could increase the derived AV and dust-to-gas ratio. The dimness of the afterglow is, however, fully accounted for by the high redshift: if GRB 020124 had been at z = 1, it would have been approximately 1.8 mag brighter—in the range of typical bright afterglows.