Lensing and the luminosity of Gamma-ray bursts and their hosts

Abstract

The quoted intrinsic luminosity of objects has a dependency on the assumed cosmology, and the (less often considered) assumed gravitational lensing due to the matter content of the viewing beam; the so called `filled' or `empty' beam cases. We consider the implications of filled vs empty beam assumptions for the derived total luminosities of recent gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) in which counterparts at cosmological distances have been confirmed. Conversion factors between filled and empty beam bolometric luminosities are presented graphically for a range of cosmologies and redshifts. The tendency for sources to be most probably demagnified further supports the need for non-isotropic GRB emission in neutron star merger models, or the need for at least one massive star in other models. In the most extreme case the true energy of GRB971214 at z=3.418 could be as high as ~ 8 x 10^53 ergs, a factor ~ 2 more than previously estimated. Similarly, the effect may account for some of the observed bias towards fainter host magnitudes.