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Article Contents

ABSTRACT

1.INTRODUCTION

2.OBSERVATIONS

2.1.Prompt Emission

2.2.The Afterglow

2.3.Hosts and Distribution

2.4.Energetics

3.THE GLOBAL PICTURE - GENERALLY ACCEPTED INGREDIENTS

4.RELATIVISTIC EFFECTS

4.1.Compactness and relativistic motion

4.2.Relativistic time effects

4.3.Relativistic Beaming and the Patchy Shell Model

5.PHYSICAL PROCESSES

5.1.Relativistic Shocks

5.2.Particle Acceleration

5.3.Synchrotron

5.4.Inverse Compton

5.5.Quasi-Thermal Comptonization

5.6.Polarization from Relativistically Moving Sources

6.THE GRB AND THE PROMPT EMISSION

6.1.Internal vs. External Shocks

6.2.Internal Shocks

6.3.External Shocks

6.4.The Transition from Internal Shocks to External Shocks

6.5.Prompt Polarization

7.THE AFTERGLOW

7.1.Relativistic Blast Waves and the Blandford-McKee solution

7.2.Light Curves for the "Standard" Adiabatic Synchrotron Model

7.3.Light Curves for the early radiative phase

7.4.Light Curve During the Newtonian transition

7.5.Generalizations: I. Winds

7.6.Generalizations: II. Energy injection and refreshed shocks

7.7.Generalizations: III. Inhomogeneous density profiles

7.8.Generalizations: IV. Jets

7.9.Generalizations: V. Angular Dependent Jets and the Structured Jet Model

7.10Afterglow Polarization - a tool that distinguished between the different jet models

7.11.Orphan Afterglows

7.12.Generalizations: VI. Additional Physical Processes

8.ADDITIONAL EMISSION FROM GRBs

8.1.TeV -rays

8.2.Neutrinos

8.3.Cosmic Rays and Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays

8.4.Gravitational Radiation

9.MODELS OF INNER ENGINES

9.1Black hole accretion

9.2.The Pulsar Model

9.3.Rotating black holes and the Blandford Znajek mechanism

9.4.The Collapsar Model

9.5.The Supranova Model

9.6.Merging neutron stars

10.OPEN QUESTIONS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS

REFERENCES