Testing extended theories of gravity with GRBs

TL;DR

This paper investigates how extended theories of gravity alter neutrino annihilation processes near neutron stars, potentially explaining higher energy outputs in gamma-ray bursts and serving as observational signatures of modified gravity.

Contribution

It introduces a framework for testing extended gravity theories through neutrino annihilation near neutron stars, highlighting significant differences from General Relativity.

Findings

Enhanced energy deposition rates near the photon sphere in extended gravity models

Potential explanation for the high energies observed in gamma-ray bursts

Modified gravity effects could serve as astrophysical signatures

Abstract

We present our studies on the neutrino pairs annihilation into electron-positron pairs ($\nu{\bar \nu}\to e^-e^+$) near the surface of a neutron star in the framework of extended theories of gravity. The latter modifies the maximum energy deposition rate near to the photonsphere and it might be several orders of magnitude greater than that computed in the framework of General Relativity. These results provide a rising in the Gamma-Ray Bursts energy emitted from a close binary neutron star system and might be a fingerprint of modified theories of gravity, changing our view of astrophysical phenomena.