Chemical Stratification in a Long Gamma-Ray Burst Cocoon and Early-time Spectral Signatures of Supernovae Associated with Gamma-Ray Bursts

We present the results of 3D hydrodynamic simulations of a gamma-ray burst (GRB) jet emanating from a massive star with a particular focus on the formation of high-velocity quasi-spherical ejecta and the jet-induced chemical mixing. Recent early-time optical observations of supernovae associated with GRBs (e.g., GRB 171205A/SN 2017iuk) indicate a considerable amount of heavy metals in the high-velocity outer layers of the ejecta. Using our jet simulations, we show that the density and chemical structure of the outer ejecta implied by observations can be naturally reproduced by a powerful jet penetrating the progenitor star. We consider three representative jet models with a stripped massive star, a standard jet, a weak jet, and a jet choked by an extended circumstellar medium, to clarify the differences in the dynamical evolution and the chemical properties of the ejected materials. The standard jet successfully penetrates the progenitor star and creates a quasi-spherical ejecta component (cocoon). The jet-induced mixing significantly contaminates the cocoon with heavy elements that have been otherwise embedded in the inner layer of the ejecta. The weak and choked jet models fail to produce an ultrarelativistic jet but produce a quasi-spherical cocoon with different chemical properties. We discuss the impact of the different jet-star interactions on the expected early-time electromagnetic signatures of long GRBs and how to probe the jet dynamics from observations.

Automated summary

This study presents the results of 3D hydrodynamic simulations of a gamma-ray burst (GRB) jet, focusing on the formation of high-velocity quasi-spherical ejecta and the jet-induced chemical mixing. The simulations show that a powerful jet can naturally reproduce the density and chemical structure of the observed outer ejecta. The different interactions between the jet and the progenitor star have an impact on the expected early-time electromagnetic signatures of long GRBs, which can be probed through observations.