Recent PIC simulations of relativistic electron-positron (electron-ion) jets injected into a stationary medium show that particle acceleration occurs in the shocked regions. Simulations show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields and for particle acceleration. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the shock. The “jitter” radiation from deflected electrons in turbulent magnetic fields has properties different from synchrotron radiation calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important for understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure of gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets in general, and supernova remnants. In order to calculate radiation from first principles and go beyond the standard synchrotron model, we have used PIC simulations. We present synthetic spectra to compare with the spectra obtained from Fermi observations.

Several claims have been put forward that an essential fraction of long-duration BATSE gamma-ray bursts should lie at redshifts larger than 5. This point-of-view follows from the natural assumption that fainter objects should, on average, lie at larger redshifts. However, redshifts larger than 5 are rare for bursts observed by Swift. The purpose of this article is to show that the most distant bursts in general need not be the faintest ones. We derive the cosmological relationships between the observed and emitted quantities, and arrive at a prediction that is tested on the ensembles of BATSE, Swift and Fermi bursts. This analysis is independent on the assumed cosmology, on the observational biases, as well as on any gamma-ray burst model. We arrive to the conclusion that apparently fainter bursts need not, in general, lie at large redshifts. Such a behaviour is possible, when the luminosities (or emitted energies) in a sample of bursts increase more than the dimming of the observed values with redshift. In such a case dP(z)/dz > 0 can hold, where P(z) is either the peak-flux or the fluence. This also means that the hundreds of faint, long-duration BATSE bursts need not lie at high redshifts, and that the observed redshift distribution of long Swift bursts might actually represent the actual distribution.

We consider supernova shock breakout in aspherical core-collapse supernovae. We perform hydrodynamical calculations to investigate the propagation of a strong shock wave in a compact star and the subsequent emergence from the surface. Using the results combined with a simple emission model based on blackbody radiation, we clarify how aspherical energy depositions affect shock breakout light curves.

The properties of the Supernovae discovered in coincidence with long-duration Gamma-ray Bursts and X-Ray Flashes are reviewed, and compared to those of SNe for which GRBs are not observed. The SNe associated with GRBs are of Type Ic, they are brighter than the norm, and show very broad absorption lines in their spectra, indicative of high expansion velocities and hence of large explosion kinetic energies. This points to a massive star origin, and to the birth of a black hole at the time of core collapse. There is strong evidence for gross asymmetries in the SN ejecta. The observational evidence seems to suggest that GRB/SNe are more massive and energetic than XRF/SNe, and come from more massive stars. While for GRB/SNe the collapsar model is favoured, XRF/SNe may host magnetars.

We report a polarization measurement in prompt γ-ray emission of GRB 100826A with the Gamma-Ray Burst Polarimeter (GAP) aboard the small solar power sail demonstrator IKAROS. We detected a firm change of polarization angle (PA) during the prompt emission with 99.9% (3.5 σ) confidence level, and an average polarization degree (Π) of 27 ± 11% with 99.4% (2.9 σ) confidence level. Here the quoted errors are given at 1 σ confidence level for two parameters of interest. Non-axisymmetric (e.g., patchy) structures of the magnetic fields and/or brightness inside the relativistic jet are therefore required within the observable angular scale of ~ Γ−1. Our observation strongly indicates that the polarization measurement is a powerful tool to constrain the GRB production mechanism, and more theoretical works are needed to discuss the data in more details.

The sources of the highest energy cosmic rays remain an enigma half a century after their discovery. Understanding their origin is a crucial step in probing new physics at energies unattainable by terrestrial accelerators. They must be accelerated in the local universe as otherwise interaction with cosmic background radiations would severely deplete the flux of protons and nuclei at energies above the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin (GZK) limit. Hypernovae, nearby GRBs, AGNs and their flares have all been suggested and debated in the literature as possible sources. Type Ibc supernovae have a local sub-population with mildly relativistic ejecta which are known to be sub-energetic GRBs or X-Ray Flashes for sometime and more recently as those with radio afterglows but without detected GRB counterparts, such as SN 2009bb. In this talk we present the size-magnetic field evolution, baryon loading and energetics of SN 2009bb using its radio spectra obtained with VLA and GMRT. We show that the engine-driven SNe lie above the Hillas line and they can explain the characteristics of post-GZK UHECRs.

Type II-plateau supernovae (SNe II-P) are fainter than Type Ia SNe and thus have so far been observed only at z < 1. We introduce shock breakout and propose a distant SN II-P survey at z > 1 with shock breakout. The first observation of shock breakout from the rising phase is reported in 2008. We first construct a theoretical model reproducing the UV-optical light curves (LCs) of the first example and demonstrate that the peak apparent g-band magnitude of the shock breakout would be mg ~ 26.4 mag if an identical SN occurs at a redshift z = 1, which can be reached by 8m-class telescopes. Furthermore, we present LCs of shock breakout of SN explosions with various main-sequence masses, metallicities, and explosion energies and derive the observable SN rate and reachable redshift as functions of filter and limiting magnitude by taking into account an initial mass function, cosmic star formation history, intergalactic absorption, and host galaxy extinction. The g-band observable SN rate with limiting magnitude 27.5 mag is 3.3 SNe deg−2 day−1 and half of them are located at z > 1.2.

Asymmetry in the innermost part of the supernova (SN) ejecta is a key to understanding their explosion mechanisms. Late-time spectroscopy is a powerful tool to investigate the issue. We show what kind of geometry is inferred for different types of SNe – core-collapse SNe Ib/c, those associated with Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs), and thermonuclear SNe Ia –, and discuss implications for the explosion mechanisms, observational diversities, and cosmological applications. For SNe Ib/c, the data show the clear deviation from spherical symmetry, and they are most consistent with the bipolar-type explosion as the characteristic geometry. Detailed modeling of optical emissions from SN 1998bw associated with GRB980425 indicates that this SN was in the extreme end of the bipolar explosion, suggesting that the explosion mechanisms of canonical SNe Ib/c and GRB-SNe are different. The situation is different for SNe Ia. Late-time spectra indicate the deviation from spherical symmetry, but for SNe Ia the explosion is asymmetric between two hemispheres, i.e., one-sided explosions. The diversities arising from different viewing directions can nicely explain (a part of) observational diversities of SNe Ia, and correcting this effect may improve the standard-candle calibration of SNe Ia for cosmology.

We report the Suzaku follow-up observations of the Gamma-ray pulsars, 1FGL J0614,13328, J1044.55737, J1741.82101, and J1813.31246, which were discovered by the Fermi Gamma-ray observatory. Analysing Suzaku/XIS data, we detected X-ray counterparts of these pulsars in the Fermi error circle and interpreted their spectra with absorbed power-law functions. These results indicate that the origin of these X-ray sources is non-thermal emission from the pulsars or from Pulsar Wind Nebulae (PWNe) surrounding them. Moreover we found that J1741.82101 exhibits a peculiar profile: spin-down luminosity vs flux ratio between X- and gamma-rays is unusually large compared to usual radio pulsars.

Ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) are the most energetic particles flying from space and their source is not clarified yet. Recently, the Pierre Auger Observatory (PAO) suggests that UHECRs involve heavy nuclei. The PAO results require that a considerable fraction of metal nuclei must exist in the accelerating site, which can be realized only in the stellar interior. This puts strong constraints on the origin of UHECRs. In order to definitize the constraints from PAO results, we investigate the fraction of metal nuclei in a relativistic jet in gamma-ray burst associated with core-collapse supernova. If the jet is initially dominated by radiation field, quasi-statistical equilibrium (QSE) is established and heavy nuclei are dissociated to light particles such as 4He during the acceleration and expansion. On the other hand, if the jet is mainly accelerated by magnetic field heavy or intermediate mass nuclei can survive. The criterion to contain the metal nuclei is that the temperature at the launch site is below 4.5 × 109K. Therefore, if the composition of UHECRs is dominated by metal nuclei, a GRB with the magnetized jet is the most plausible candidate of the accelerating site.

Studying a multi-dimensional structure of supernovae (SNe) gives important constraints on the mechanism of the SN explosion. Polarization measurement is one of the most powerful methods to study the explosion geometry of extragalactic SNe. Especially, Type Ib/c SNe are the ideal targets because the core of the explosion is bare. We have performed spectropolarimetric observations of Type Ib/c SNe with the Subaru telescope. We detect a rotation of the polarization angle across the line, which is seen as a loop in the Q - U plane. This indicates that axisymmetry is broken in the SN ejecta. Adding our new data to the sample of stripped-envelope SNe with high-quality spectropolarimetric data, five SNe out of six show a loop in the Q - U plane. This implies that the SN explosion commonly has a non-axisymmetric, three-dimensional geometry.

H and He features in photospheric spectra have rarely been used to constrain the structure of Type IIb/Ib/Ic supernovae (SNe IIb/Ib/Ic). The lines have to be modelled with a detailed non-local-thermodynamic-equilibrium (NLTE) treatment, including effects uncommon in stars. Once this is done, however, one obtains valuable hints on the characteristics of progenitors and explosions (composition, explosion energy, . . .). We have extended a radiative transfer code to compute synthetic spectra of SNe IIb, Ib and Ic. Here, we discuss our first larger set of models, focusing on the question: How much H/He can be hidden (i.e. remain undetected in photospheric spectra) in SNe Ib/Ic? For the SNe studied (relatively low Mej = 1. . .3 M⊙), we find a limit of MHe ≲ 0.1 M⊙ in SNe Ic (no unambiguous He lines). Stellar evolution models for single stars normally always yield higher masses. We suggest that low- or moderate-mass SNe Ic result from efficient envelope stripping in binaries. We propose similar studies on H/He in high-mass and extremely aspherical SNe, and observations covering the region of He I λ 20581.

Some theoretical studies on the origin of long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) using stellar evolution models suggest that a low metallicity environment may be a necessary condition for a GRB to occur. However, recent discoveries of high-metallicity host galaxies of some GRBs cast doubt on the requirement of low-metallicity in GRB occurrence. In this study, we predict the metallicity distribution of GRB host galaxies, assuming empirical formulations of galaxy properties. We take internal dispersion of metallicity within each galaxy into account. Assuming GRBs trace low-metallicity star formation 12+log(O/H) < 8.2, we find that ≳ 10% of GRB host galaxies may have Z > Z⊙, depending on the internal dispersion of metallicity within galaxies.

Observing TeV photons from GRBs can greatly enhance our understanding of their emission mechanisms. Under-sea/ice neutrino telescopes—such as ANTARES in the Mediterranean Sea or IceCube at the South Pole—can also operate as a γ-ray observatory by detecting downgoing muons from the electromagnetic cascade induced by the interaction of the photons with the Earth's atmosphere. Theoretical calculations of the number of detectable muons from single GRB events, located at different redshifts and zenith distances, have been performed. The attenuation by pair production of TeV photons with cosmic infrared background photons has also been included.

The fate of massive stars up to 300M⊙ is highly uncertain. Do these objects produce pair-instability explosions, or normal Type Ic supernovae? In order to address these questions, we need to know their mass-loss rates during their lives. Here we present mass-loss predictions for very massive stars (VMS) in the range of 60-300M⊙. We use a novel method that simultaneously predicts the wind terminal velocities v∞ and mass-loss rate Ṁ as a function of the stellar parameters: (i) luminosity/mass Γ, (ii) metallicity Z, and (iii) effective temperature Teff. Using our results, we evaluate the likely outcomes for the most massive stars.

The canonical classification of GRBs establishes two types of bursts, long and short. Although an intermediate class of GRBs was suggested, its existence is not yet conclusive. In the present work, we explore the temporal classification of GRBs in the burst frame, because in recent years the statistics of bursts with known redshifts has increased. We studied a sample of Swift GRBs with known redshifts to determine three different time estimators: autocorrelation functions, emission times and duration times. In order to look for a subclass in long GRBs, we studied the distribution of the cosmologically corrected time estimators. The distribution of time estimators of the sample suggests an internal division of long GRBs. The proposed bimodality is also supported in the isotropic luminosity - time estimator planes and we discuss some possible implications of the classification of GRBs in the burst frame.

We studied optical and near-infrared (NIR) light curves, and optical spectra of Supernovae (SNe) 2006V and 2006au, two objects monitored by the Carnegie Supernova Project (CSP) and displaying remarkable similarity to SN 1987A, although they were brighter, bluer and with higher expansion velocities. SN 2006au also shows an initial dip in the light curve, which we have interpreted as the cooling tail of the shock break-out. By fitting semi-analytic models to the UVOIR light curve of each object, we derive the physical properties of the progenitors and we conclude that SNe 2006V and 2006au were most likely Blue Supergiant (BSG) stars that exploded with larger energies as compared to that of SN 1987A. We are currently investigating the host galaxies of a few BSG SNe, in order to understand the role played by the metallicity in the production of these rare exploding BSG stars.

Massive Population III stars die as pair-instability supernovae (PI SNe), the most energetic thermonuclear explosions in the universe with energies up to 100 times those of Type Ia or Type II SNe. Their extreme luminosities may allow them to be observed from the earliest epochs, revealing the nature of Pop III stars and the primitive galaxies in which they reside. We present numerical simulations of Pop III PI SNe done with the radiation hydrodynamics code RAGE and calculations of their light curves and spectra performed with the SPECTRUM code. We find that 150 - 250 M⊙ PI SNe will be visible to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) out to z ~ 30 and to z ~ 15 - 20 in all-sky NIR surveys by the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST).

We perform hydrodynamical simulations of core collapse supernovae (CCSNe) with a cylindrically-symmetrical numerical code (FLASH) to study the inflation of bubbles and the initiation of the explosion within the frame of the jittering-jets model. We study the typical time-scale of the model and compare it to the typical time-scale of the delayed neutrino mechanism. Our analysis shows that the explosion energy of the delayed neutrino mechanism is an order of magnitude less than the required 1051 erg.

The detection principle of ANTARES and its sensitivity to GRB neutrinos will be discussed. Latest analysis of ANTARES data in coincidence with GRB direction and time of occurence will also be presented, as well as the prospects of neutrino detection with KM3NeT, the km3 neutrino telescope that will succeed ANTARES.