Implications of the Flat Decay Phase in the Early X-Ray Afterglows of Swift GRBs
Abstract
Early X-ray afterglows of Swift gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) frequently show a phase of very shallow flux decay lasting from 300 to 10^4 seconds. Different possible explanations for this surprising new discovery are discussed, as well as their potential implications for the gamma-ray efficiency, the afterglow kinetic energy, and the physics of collisionless relativistic shocks.
- Publication:
-
AAS/High Energy Astrophysics Division #9
- Pub Date:
- September 2006
- Bibcode:
- 2006HEAD....9.1604G