Multipeaked non-thermal light curves from magnetar-powered gamma-ray bursts

Omand, CMB, Sarin, N and Lamb, GP (2025) Multipeaked non-thermal light curves from magnetar-powered gamma-ray bursts. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 539 (3). pp. 1908-1921. ISSN 0035-8711

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Abstract

Binary neutron star mergers and collapsing massive stars can both create millisecond magnetars. Such magnetars are candidate engines to power gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). The non-thermal light curve of the resulting transients can exhibit multiple components, including the GRB afterglow, pulsar wind nebula (PWN), and ejecta afterglow. We derive the time-scales for the peak of each component and show that the PWN is detectable at radio frequencies, dominating the emission for 6 yr for supernova/long GRBs (SN/LGRBs) and 100 d for kilonova/short GRBs (KN/SGRBs) at 1 GHz, and 1 yr for SN/LGRBs and 15 d for KN/SGRBs at 100 GHz. The PWN emission has an exponential, frequency-dependent rise to peak that cannot be replicated by an ejecta afterglow. We show that PWNe in SN/LGRBs can be detected out to with current instruments and with next-generation instruments and PWNe in KN/SGRBs can be detected out to with current instruments and with next-generation instruments. We find that the optimal strategy for detecting PWNe in these systems is a multiband, high cadence radio follow-up of nearby KN/SGRBs with an X-ray plateau or extended prompt emission from 10 to 100 d post-burst.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	5101 Astronomical Sciences; 51 Physical Sciences; 0201 Astronomical and Space Sciences; Astronomy & Astrophysics; 5101 Astronomical sciences; 5107 Particle and high energy physics; 5109 Space sciences
Subjects:	Q Science > QB Astronomy Q Science > QC Physics
Divisions:	Astrophysics Research Institute
Publisher:	Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date of acceptance:	27 March 2025
Date of first compliant Open Access:	15 May 2025
Date Deposited:	15 May 2025 11:36
Last Modified:	15 May 2025 11:45
DOI or ID number:	10.1093/mnras/staf565
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/26363

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