Gamma-Ray Burst Jets in Circumstellar Material: Dynamics, Breakout, and Diversity of Transients
Mar 20, 2025Citations per year
Abstract: (arXiv)
Recent observations indicate that stripped-envelope core-collapse supernovae are often surrounded by dense circumstellar material (CSM). Motivated by this, we develop an analytic model to systematically study the dynamics of long gamma-ray burst (LGRB) jet propagation in various CSM environments. We derive a general expression for the jet head velocity () and breakout time () valid across Newtonian, relativistic, and intermediate regimes, accounting for a previously unrecognized dependence on . Our results highlight a fundamental distinction between jet propagation in massive stars, where , and in extended CSM, where . We establish an analytic success/failure criterion for jets and express it in terms of jet and CSM parameters, revealing a strong dependence on CSM radius. To quantify the relativistic nature of the jet-cocoon system, we introduce the energy-weighted proper velocity . We identify three possible jet outcomes-(a) successful jets (), (b) barely failed jets (), and (c) completely failed jets ()-and constrain their respective jet/CSM parameter spaces. We show that in (b) and (c), large CSM radii can result in luminous fast blue optical transients via cocoon cooling emission. This theoretical framework provides a basis for future observational and theoretical studies to understand the link between LGRBs, intermediate GRBs, low-luminosity LGRBs, and their environments.Note:
- 20 pages, 8 figures. Submitted to ApJ
References(121)
Figures(9)