Gamma-Ray Bursts via the Neutrino Emission from Heated Neutron Stars

A model is proposed for gamma-ray bursts based upon a neutrino burst of about 10^52 ergs lasting a few seconds above a heated collapsing neutron star. This type of thermal neutrino burst is suggested by relativistic hydrodynamic studies of the compression, heating, and collapse of close binary neutron stars as they approach their last stable orbit, but may arise from other sources as well. We present a hydrodynamic simulation of the formation and evolution of the pair plasma associated with such a neutrino burst. This pair plasma leads to the production of ~10^51 - 10^52 ergs in gamma-rays with spectral and temporal properties consistent with observed gamma-ray bursts.