Magnetar giant flare originating from GRB 200415A: transient GeV emission, time-resolved <i> E _p </i> – <i>L</i> _iso correlation and implications

Abstract Giant flares (GFs) are unusual bursts from soft gamma-ray repeaters (SGRs) that release an enormous amount of energy in a fraction of a second. The afterglow emission of these SGR-GFs or GF candidates is a highly beneficial means of discerning their composition, relativistic speed and emission mechanisms. GRB 200415A is a recent GF candidate observed in a direction coincident with the nearby Sculptor galaxy at 3.5 Mpc. In this work, we searched for transient gamma-ray emission in past observations by Fermi -LAT in the direction of GRB 200415A. These observations confirm that GRB 200415A is observed as a transient GeV source only once. A pure pair-plasma fireball cannot provide the required energy for the interpretation of GeV afterglow emission and a baryonic poor outflow is additionally needed to explain the afterglow emission. A baryonic rich outflow is also viable, as it can explain the variability and observed quasi-thermal spectrum of the prompt emission if dissipation is happening below the photosphere via internal shocks. Using the peak energy ( E p ) of the time-resolved prompt emission spectra and their fluxes ( F p ), we found a correlation between E p and F p or isotropic luminosity L iso for GRB 200415A. This supports the intrinsic nature of E p - L iso correlation found in SGRs-GFs, hence favoring a baryonic poor outflow. Our results also indicate a different mechanism at work during the initial spike, and that the evolution of the prompt emission spectral properties in this outflow would be intrinsically due to the injection process.