March 25
Magnetosphere Structure and Precursor High-Energy Emission in Inspiraling Binary Neutron Stars
Speaker: Dr. Dimitrios Skiathas, GSFC
Abstract: Precursor electromagnetic outflows may arise from magnetospheric interactions between binary neutron stars during their inspiral motion prior to a merger. In this study, a multidimensional parameter space involving the relative strengths and orientations of the two magnetic dipole moments, as well as their orientation relative to the orbital axis, is thoroughly explored using near-force-free MHD numerical simulations. By modeling the resulting magnetospheric structures and electromagnetic outflows, the dependence of the Poynting flux on these specific parameters is examined. The diverse dependence of the Poynting flux on the orbital frequency is investigated, and the results of anisotropic and asymmetric electromagnetic outflows are explored. Assuming curvature radiation in the approximation of the radiation reaction limit and identifying the regions where high-energy emissions take place, high-energy emission sky maps and light curves are constructed. Finally, the spectral properties of that emission are discussed, noting that while high-energy spectra can extend up to several TeV in the final moments before the merger, interaction with the magnetic field may restrict the energies of escaping photons.
Host: Ankita Bera