Determining the dust composition of GRB host galaxies
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Publication Title
Proceedings of Science
Publication Date
1-1-2014
Abstract
Gamma ray burst (GRB) spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are typically fit with a dust extinction template with pre-determined graphite-to-silicate ratios (see Figure 1) to extract the approximate dust composition. These templates are an oversimplification of composition and often rely on non-physical fitting parameters. We instead propose a model that allows for the ratio of graphite to silicate to vary, enabling us to detect smaller amounts of graphite in GRB host galaxies than previously determined with physical model parameters relying on fixed ratios of graphite to silicate column densities. Data from the literature was used to construct GRB SEDs. The optical depths of astronomical silicates and graphite were calculated for a typical size distribution of dust particles and fit to the SEDs using our fitting function. A linear regression produced the best-fit and errors to the dust column densities.
Recommended Citation
Updike, A., & Hartmann, D. (2014). Determining the dust composition of GRB host galaxies. Proceedings of Science Retrieved from https://docs.rwu.edu/fcas_fp/781
E-ISSN
18248039
