TYPE Ia SUPERNOVAE FROM MERGING WHITE DWARFS. I. PROMPT DETONATIONS

Moll, R.; Raskin, Cody; Kasen, Daniel; Woosley, S. E.

doi:10.1088/0004-637x/785/2/105

Cited by 116 publications

(183 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Rather, signatures of atomic species form a highly blended spectrum that nature is frequently capable of reproducing, such that we have a few distinct SN Ia subtypes and a number of outliers that suggest a continuum. Yet a cross examination of spectra computed for super-M Ch merging WDs (e.g., Pakmor et al 2012;Moll et al 2014;Raskin et al 2014) reveals that, while these spectra resemble SN Ia-like events, they are not well-matched to observations of super-M Ch candidates SN 2006gz and 2012dn, nor have they been shown to consistently predict the spectroscopic evolution of more normal SN Ia. Namely, Moll et al (2014) and Raskin et al (2014) find line velocities that are too high for both normal SN Ia and events similar to SN 2012dn (upwards of 20,000 km s −1 near maximum light, and depending on the viewing-angle).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Carbon-rich regions may also be associated with the remains of a degenerate secondary star that is distributed amorphously at the time of the explosion, where signatures of C II may not be physically associated with C I deeper within the ejecta of the primary WD (cf. Taubenberger et al 2011Taubenberger et al , 2013Moll et al 2014;Raskin et al 2014). Adding to this complexity is whether normal SN Ia originate from a sub-Chandrasekhar mass primary WD (Woosley & Weaver 1994;Liu et al 1998;van Kerkwijk et al 2010;Pakmor et al 2012;Raskin & Kasen 2013;Scalzo et al 2014c;Chiosi et al 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Comparative analysis of SN 2012dn optical spectra: days −14 to +114

Parrent¹,

Howell²,

Fesen³

et al. 2016

Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc.

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SN 2012dn is a super-Chandrasekhar mass candidate in a purportedly normal spiral (SAcd) galaxy, and poses a challenge for theories of type Ia supernova diversity. Here we utilize the fast and highly parameterized spectrum synthesis tool, SYNAPPS, to estimate relative expansion velocities of species inferred from optical spectra obtained with six facilities. As with previous studies of normal SN Ia, we find that both unburned carbon and intermediate mass elements are spatially coincident within the ejecta near and below 14,000 km s −1 . Although the upper limit on SN 2012dn's peak luminosity is comparable to some of the most luminous normal SN Ia, we find a progenitor mass exceeding ∼ 1.6 M is not strongly favored by leading merger models since these models do not accurately predict spectroscopic observations of SN 2012dn and more normal events. In addition, a comparison of light curves and host-galaxy masses for a sample of literature and Palomar Transient Factory SN Ia reveals a diverse distribution of SN Ia subtypes where carbon-rich material remains unburned in some instances. Such events include SN 1991T, 1997br, and 1999aa where trace signatures of C III at optical wavelengths are presumably detected.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative analysis of SN 2012dn optical spectra: days −14 to +114

Parrent¹,

Howell²,

Fesen³

et al. 2016

Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc.

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“…Nevertheless, they still determined that a carbon-oxygen detonation would occur, in line with their earlier results. Moll et al (2014) and Kashyap et al (2015) were also able to find a detonation in similarly massive systems. Notably, the detonation occurred self-consistently and did not need to be intentionally triggered using an external source term.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 87%

White Dwarf Mergers on Adaptive Meshes. I. Methodology and Code Verification

Katz

Zingale

Calder

et al. 2016

ApJ

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The Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) progenitor problem is one of the most perplexing and exciting problems in astrophysics, requiring detailed numerical modeling to complement observations of these explosions. One possible progenitor that has merited recent theoretical attention is the white dwarf (WD) merger scenario, which has the potential to naturally explain many of the observed characteristics of SNe Ia. To date there have been relatively few self-consistent simulations of merging WD systems using mesh-based hydrodynamics. This is the first paper in a series describing simulations of these systems using a hydrodynamics code with adaptive mesh refinement. In this paper we describe our numerical methodology and discuss our implementation in the compressible hydrodynamics code CASTRO, which solves the Euler equations, and the Poisson equation for self-gravity, and couples the gravitational and rotation forces to the hydrodynamics. Standard techniques for coupling gravitation and rotation forces to the hydrodynamics do not adequately conserve the total energy of the system for our problem, but recent advances in the literature allow progress and we discuss our implementation here. We present a set of test problems demonstrating the extent to which our software sufficiently models a system where large amounts of mass are advected on the computational domain over long timescales. Future papers in this series will describe our treatment of the initial conditions of these systems and will examine the early phases of the merger to determine its viability for triggering a thermonuclear detonation.

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“…WD rotation has been proposed as a means of supporting such massive progenitors. On the other hand, Hillebrandt, Sim & Röpke (2007) and Hachinger et al (2013) have argued that the explosion of a rotating super-M Ch WD will not necessarily produce the inferred nickel mass, or other characteristics, of such bright events, and they have suggested asymmetric explosions instead (see also Moll et al 2013). Chamel, Fantina & Davis (2013) have shown that another proposed means of supporting super-M Ch WDs, via ultra-strong quantizing magnetic fields, is impractical, due to electron-capture reactions that would make the WD unstable.…”

Section: Double Detonations and Rotating Super-chandrasekhar-mass Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observational Clues to the Progenitors of Type Ia Supernovae

Maoz

Mannucci

Nelemans

2014

Annu. Rev. Astron. Astrophys.

965

894

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Type-Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are important distance indicators, element factories, cosmic-ray accelerators, kinetic-energy sources in galaxy evolution, and endpoints of stellar binary evolution. It has long been clear that a SN Ia must be the runaway thermonuclear explosion of a degenerate carbon-oxygen stellar core, most likely a white dwarf (WD). However, the specific progenitor systems of SNe Ia, and the processes that lead to their ignition, have not been identified. Two broad classes of progenitor binary systems have long been considered: single-degenerate (SD), in which a WD gains mass from a non-degenerate star; and doubledegenerate (DD), involving the merger of two WDs. New theoretical work has enriched these possibilities with some interesting updates and variants. We review the significant recent observational progress in addressing the progenitor problem. We consider clues that have emerged from the observed properties of the various proposed progenitor populations, from studies of their sites -pre-and post-explosion, from analysis of the explosions themselves, and from the measurement of event rates. The recent nearby and well-studied event, SN 2011fe, has been particularly revealing. The observational results are not yet conclusive, and sometimes prone to competing theoretical interpretations. Nevertheless, it appears that DD progenitors, long considered the underdog option, could be behind some, if not all, SNe Ia. We point to some directions that may lead to future progress.

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TYPE Ia SUPERNOVAE FROM MERGING WHITE DWARFS. I. PROMPT DETONATIONS

Cited by 116 publications

References 57 publications

Comparative analysis of SN 2012dn optical spectra: days −14 to +114

Comparative analysis of SN 2012dn optical spectra: days −14 to +114

White Dwarf Mergers on Adaptive Meshes. I. Methodology and Code Verification

Observational Clues to the Progenitors of Type Ia Supernovae

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