Relativistic radiative transfer in relativistic spherical flows

Abstract

Relativistic radiative transfer in relativistic spherical flows is numerically examined under the fully special relativistic treatment. We first derive relativistic formal solutions for the relativistic radiative transfer equation in relativistic spherical flows. We then iteratively solve the relativistic radiative transfer equation, using an impact parameter method/tangent ray method, and obtain specific intensities in the inertial and comoving frames, as well as moment quantities, and the Eddington factor. We consider several cases; a scattering wind with a luminous central core, an isothermal wind without a core, a scattering accretion on to a luminous core, and an adiabatic accretion on to a dark core. In the typical wind case with a luminous core, the emergent intensity is enhanced at the center due to the Doppler boost, while it reduces at the outskirts due to the transverse Doppler effect. In contrast to the plane-parallel case, the behavior of the Eddington factor is rather complicated in each case, since the Eddington factor depends on the optical depth, the flow velocity, and other parameters.