Probing the very high redshift universe with the broadband emission of GRBS

Due to their high luminosities and close association with massive stars, gamma-ray bursts hold the promise of being unique and crucial probes of the very high redshift universe. The following topics will be discussed. 1) Dispersion in the low frequency radio emission of GRBs may offer an important probe of the cosmic reionization history. The observational prospects can be particularly interesting for facilities such as LOFAR, if GRBs emit strong, coherent radio emission (Inoue 2004, MNRAS, 348, 999). 2) Due to the contribution of the reverse shock, GRBs at a few hours after the burst are brightest in the millimeter to infrared band, with peak fluxes reaching ∼ mJy from z ∼ 5--30. Atomic and molecular absorption lines in these bands are potentially observable by telescopes such as ALMA, providing an important probe of early star-forming regions (Inoue, Omukai & Ciardi, in prep). 3) The possibility of probing the high redshift UV background utilizing gamma-ray absorption in the GeV-TeV emission of GRBs is briefly discussed (Inoue & Miniati, in prep).