Testing the Millisecond Magnetar Model for Gamma-Ray Bursts and Superluminous Supernovae

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This award supports theoretical astrophysical studies of magnetars, which are a rarely observed type of neutron star. Neutron stars are city-sized objects that form out of the gravitational collapse of massive stars during a supernova explosion. Magnetars are fast-spinning and highly magnetic neutron stars that may have ultra-powerful eruptions in just a few hours. Their formation is still a mystery, but these short-lived outbursts are proposed to be the cause of many mysterious gamma-ray bursts and superluminous supernova explosions in the universe. The main focus of this work is to develop a prediction from the theoretical models that will be tested by observations. The PI will train and mentor undergraduate students in research and organize a two week long international summer school on ?theoretical modeling of astrophysical transients,? which will teach students how to analyze the physical properties of short-lived observed astronomical phenomena. The PI and his team will develop models of the neutrino-heated outflows from newly-formed protomagnetars. They will also solve the neutrino-heated magnetohydrodynamic wind equations along open field lines set by the force-free geometry of the magnetosphere. Finding new sites for the heavy r-process to operate is important for nucleosynthesis models, in general. The work will also study the observational signatures of the birth of millisecond magnetars by providing optical, X-ray and gamma-ray spectral predictions for comparison with observations. The work will also inform our understanding of the nuclear equation of state especially near the high-mass limit, which will probe the most extreme physical conditions in the universe.