Can Precessing Jets Explain the Light Curves of Gamma‐Ray Bursts?

Abstract

We present a phenomenological model to explain the light curves of gamma-ray bursts. In the model, a black hole is orbited by a precessing accretion disk that is fed by a neutron star. Gamma rays are produced in a highly collimated beam via the Blandford-Znajek mechanism. The gamma-ray beam sweeps through space because of the precession of the slaved accretion disk. The light curve expected from such a precessing luminosity cone can explain the complex temporal behavior of observed bright gamma-ray bursts.