Cosmological Evolution of Gamma-Ray Bursts
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are among the most powerful electromagnetic events in the universe, luminous enough to be detected across vast stretches of space and time. This makes them invaluable cosmological probes of the early universe. However, to use GRBs as probes, we must first determine the evolution of their characteristics, such as the co-moving density rate and the luminosity function. This process is complicated by an extensive collection of observational biases, truncations, and questionable assumptions about the parametric forms of the various functions. We apply non-parametric methods, developed by Efron & Petrosian for truncated data, directly to a sample of Swift long GRBs with known redshifts, and obtain the co-moving density rate evolution and luminosity function and evolution. Furthermore, we derive a GRB rate which is very different from star formation rate, particularly below redshift z~2, indicating perhaps a distinct class of low-z GRBs.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Date created | June 15, 2013 |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Kitanidis, Ellie |
|---|---|
| Primary advisor | Petrosian, Vahe |
| Advisor | Church, Sarah |
| Degree granting institution | Stanford University, Department of Physics |
Subjects
| Subject | gamma-ray bursts |
|---|---|
| Subject | cosmology |
| Subject | high-energy astrophysics |
| Genre | Thesis |
Bibliographic information
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Kitanidis, Ellie. (2013). Cosmological Evolution of Gamma-Ray Bursts. Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: http://purl.stanford.edu/xp981bq5003
Collection
Undergraduate Theses, Department of Physics
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- Contact
- elliek@stanford.edu
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