Self-Similar Temporal Behavior of Gamma-Ray Bursts

Abstract
We apply Fourier analysis to 214 light curves of long gamma-ray bursts and study the statistical properties of their power density spectra (PDSs). The averaged PDS is found to follow a power law of index -5/3 over almost two decades of frequency, with a break at ~2 Hz. Individual PDSs are exponentially distributed around the power law. It provides evidence that the diversity of the bursts is due to random realizations of the same process that is self-similar over the full range of timescales. The -5/3 slope of the average spectrum may indicate that gamma-ray bursts are related to a phenomenon well studied in hydrodynamics—fully developed turbulence.

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