A Pulsar Wind Nebula Model Applied to Short GRB 050724
arXiv:1801.09157 · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aaab68
Abstract
A subset of short gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs) have been found to be characterized by near-infrared/optical bumps at days, some of which exhibit almost concurrent X-ray flares. Although the near-infrared/optical bumps may be a signature of kilonovae, the X-ray flares are not consistent with kilonovae. It is widely believed that sGRBs are produced by the mergers of double compact objects, during which sub-relativistic ejecta are launched. In this paper we propose that the above optical/X-ray features are indicative of the formation of long-lived magnetars following the mergers of double neutron stars. Observations and theoretical works imply that the spin-down power of the magnetars is injected into the ejecta as ultra-relativistic electron-positron pairs, i.e. pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe). Here we suggest such a PWN model and find that the optical bump and X-ray flare observed in GRB 050724 can be well understood in this PWN model. We show that the optical bump and X-ray flare may have different origins. Our results strengthen the evidence for the formation of magnetars in double neutron star mergers and justify the validity of the PWN model.
8 pages, 5 figures, 1 table, published in The Astrophysical Journal
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