High-energy γ-ray emission from gamma-ray bursts — before GLAST
Abstract
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are short and intense emission of soft γ-rays, which have fascinated astronomers and astrophysicists since their unexpected discovery in 1960s. The X-ray/optical/radio afterglow observations confirm the cosmological origin of GRBs, support the fireball model, and imply a long-activity of the central engine. The high-energy γ-ray emission (> 20 MeV) from GRBs is particularly important because they shed some lights on the radiation mechanisms and can help us to constrain the physical processes giving rise to the early afterglows. In this work, we review observational and theoretical studies of the high-energy emission from GRBs. Special attention is given to the expected high-energy emission signatures accompanying the canonical early-time X-ray afterglow that was observed by the Swift X-ray Telescope. We also discuss the detection prospect of the upcoming GLAST satellite and the current ground-based Cerenkov detectors.
- Publication:
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Frontiers of Physics in China
- Pub Date:
- September 2008
- DOI:
- 10.1007/s11467-008-0033-z
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0805.2221
- Bibcode:
- 2008FrPhC...3..306F
- Keywords:
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- Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- An invited review article to appear in Front. Phys. China., typos corrected (Possible prompt and very early GeV-TeV emission from GRB 080319B are discussed in Sec. V)