Non-spherical core collapse supernovae and nucleosynthesis

Motivated by observations of supernova SN 1987A, various authors have simulated Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instabilities in the envelopes of core collapse supernovae (for a review, see Mueller 1998). The non-radial motion found in these simulations qualitatively agreed with observations in SN 1987A, but failed to explain the extent of mixing of newly synthesized 56Ni quantitatively. Here we present results of a 2D hydrodynamic simulation which re-addresses this failure and covers the entire evolution of the first 5 hours after core bounce.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, LaTeX, requires espcrc1.sty. To appear in Nucl. Phys. A., the proceedings of the conference "Nuclei in the Cosmos 2000", held in Aarhus, Denmark, June 27-July 1, 200

The core helium flash revisited: II. Two and three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations

We study turbulent convection during the core helium flash close to its peak by comparing the results of two and three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations. We use a multidimensional Eulerian hydrodynamics code based on state-of-the-art numerical techniques to simulate the evolution of the helium core of a $1.25 M_{\odot}$ Pop I star. Our three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of the evolution of a star during the peak of the core helium flash do not show any explosive behavior. The convective flow patterns developing in the three-dimensional models are structurally different from those of the corresponding two-dimensional models, and the typical convective velocities are smaller than those found in their two-dimensional counterparts. Three-dimensional models also tend to agree better with the predictions of mixing length theory. Our hydrodynamic simulations show the presence of turbulent entrainment that results in a growth of the convection zone on a dynamic time scale. Contrary to mixing length theory, the outer part of the convection zone is characterized by a sub-adiabatic temperature gradient.Comment: 19 pages, 18 figure

Two-Dimensional Hydrodynamic Core-Collapse Supernova Simulations with Spectral Neutrino Transport II. Models for Different Progenitor Stars

1D and 2D supernova simulations for stars between 11 and 25 solar masses are presented, making use of the Prometheus/Vertex neutrino-hydrodynamics code, which employs a full spectral treatment of the neutrino transport. Multi-dimensional transport aspects are treated by the ``ray-by-ray plus'' approximation described in Paper I. Our set of models includes a 2D calculation for a 15 solar mass star whose iron core is assumed to rotate rigidly with an angular frequency of 0.5 rad/s before collapse. No important differences were found depending on whether random seed perturbations for triggering convection are included already during core collapse, or whether they are imposed on a 1D collapse model shortly after bounce. Convection below the neutrinosphere sets in about 40 ms p.b. at a density above 10**12 g/cm^3 in all 2D models, and encompasses a layer of growing mass as time goes on. It leads to a more extended proto-neutron star structure with accelerated lepton number and energy loss and significantly higher muon and tau neutrino luminosities, but reduced mean energies of the radiated neutrinos, at times later than ~100 ms p.b. In case of an 11.2 solar mass star we find that low (l = 1,2) convective modes cause a probably rather weak explosion by the convectively supported neutrino-heating mechanism after ~150 ms p.b. when the 2D simulation is performed with a full 180 degree grid, whereas the same simulation with 90 degree wedge fails to explode like all other models. This sensitivity demonstrates the proximity of our 2D models to the borderline between success and failure, and stresses the need of simulations in 3D, ultimately without the axis singularity of a polar grid. (abridged)Comment: 42 pages, 44 figures; revised according to referee comments; accepted to Astronomy & Astrophysic

Global Anisotropies in Supernova Explosions and Pulsar Recoil

We show by two-dimensional and first three-dimensional simulations of neutrino-driven supernova explosions that low (l=1,2) modes can dominate the flow pattern in the convective postshock region on timescales of hundreds of milliseconds after core bounce. This can lead to large global anisotropy of the supernova explosion and pulsar kicks in excess of 500 km/s.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures, contribution to Procs. 12th Workshop on Nuclear Astrophysics, Ringberg Castle, March 22-27, 200

Core Collapse and Then? The Route to Massive Star Explosions

The rapidly growing base of observational data for supernova explosions of massive stars demands theoretical explanations. Central of these is a self-consistent model for the physical mechanism that provides the energy to start and drive the disruption of the star. We give arguments why the delayed neutrino-heating mechanism should still be regarded as the standard paradigm to explain most explosions of massive stars and show how large-scale and even global asymmetries can result as a natural consequence of convective overturn in the neutrino-heating region behind the supernova shock. Since the explosion is a threshold phenomenon and depends sensitively on the efficiency of the energy transfer by neutrinos, even relatively minor differences in numerical simulations can matter on the secular timescale of the delayed mechanism. To enhance this point, we present some results of recent one- and two-dimensional computations, which we have performed with a Boltzmann solver for the neutrino transport and a state-of-the-art description of neutrino-matter interactions. Although our most complete models fail to explode, the simulations demonstrate that one is encouragingly close to the critical threshold because a modest variation of the neutrino transport in combination with postshock convection leads to a weak neutrino-driven explosion with properties that fulfill important requirements from observations.Comment: 14 pages; 3 figures. Invited Review, in: ``From Twilight to Highlight: The Physics of Supernovae'', Eds. W. Hillebrandt and B. Leibundgut, Springer Series ``ESO Astrophysics Symposia'', Berli

Non-spherical core collapse supernovae III. Evolution towards homology and dependence on the numerical resolution

(abridged) We study the hydrodynamic evolution of a non-spherical core-collapse supernova in two spatial dimensions. We find that our model displays a strong tendency to expand toward the pole. We demonstrate that this expansion is a physical property of the low-mode, SASI instability. The SASI leaves behind a large lateral velocity gradient in the post shock layer which affects the evolution for minutes and hours later. This results in a prolate deformation of the ejecta and a fast advection of Ni-rich material from moderate latitudes to the polar regions. This effect might actually be responsible for the global asymmetry of the nickel lines in SN 1987A. The simulations demonstrate that significant radial and lateral motions in the post-shock region, produced by convective overturn and the SASI during the early explosion phase, contribute to the evolution for minutes and hours after shock revival. They lead to both later clump formation, and a significant prolate deformation of the ejecta which are observed even as late as one week after the explosion. As pointed out recently by Kjaer et al., such an ejecta morphology is in good agreement with the observational data of SN 1987A. Systematic future studies are needed to investigate how the SASI-induced late-time lateral expansion depends on the dominant mode of the SASI, and to which extent it is affected by the dimensionality of the simulations. The impact on and importance of the SASI for the distribution of iron group nuclei and the morphology of the young SNR argues for future three-dimensional explosion and post-explosion studies on singularity-free grids that cover the entire sphere. Given the results of our 2D resolution study, present 3D simulations must be regarded as underresolved, and their conclusions must be verified by a proper numerical convergence analysis in three dimensions.Comment: 16 pages, 20 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic

Nucleosynthesis and Clump Formation in a Core Collapse Supernova

High-resolution two-dimensional simulations were performed for the first five minutes of the evolution of a core collapse supernova explosion in a 15 solar mass blue supergiant progenitor. The computations start shortly after bounce and include neutrino-matter interactions by using a light-bulb approximation for the neutrinos, and a treatment of the nucleosynthesis due to explosive silicon and oxygen burning. We find that newly formed iron-group elements are distributed throughout the inner half of the helium core by Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities at the Ni+Si/O and C+O/He interfaces, seeded by convective overturn during the early stages of the explosion. Fast moving nickel mushrooms with velocities up to about 4000 km/s are observed. This offers a natural explanation for the mixing required in light curve and spectral synthesis studies of Type Ib explosions. A continuation of the calculations to later times, however, indicates that the iron velocities observed in SN 1987 A cannot be reproduced because of a strong deceleration of the clumps in the dense shell left behind by the shock at the He/H interface.Comment: 8 pages, LaTeX, 2 postscript figures, 2 gif figures, shortened and slightly revised text and references, accepted by ApJ Letter

Multidimensional supernova simulations with approximative neutrino transport. II. Convection and the advective-acoustic cycle in the supernova core

By 2D hydrodynamic simulations including a detailed equation of state and neutrino transport, we investigate the interplay between different non-radial hydrodynamic instabilities that play a role during the postbounce accretion phase of collapsing stellar cores. The convective mode of instability, which is driven by negative entropy gradients caused by neutrino heating or by time variations of the shock strength, can be identified clearly by the development of typical Rayleigh-Taylor mushrooms. However, in cases where the gas in the postshock region is rapidly advected towards the gain radius, the growth of such a buoyancy instability can be suppressed. In such a situation the shocked flow nevertheless can develop non-radial asymmetry with an oscillatory growth of the amplitude. This phenomenon has been termed ``standing accretion shock instability'' (SASI). It is shown here that the SASI oscillations can trigger convective instability and like the latter they lead to an increase of the average shock radius and of the mass in the gain layer. Both hydrodynamic instabilities in combination stretch the advection time of matter through the neutrino-heating layer and thus enhance the neutrino energy deposition in support of the neutrino-driven explosion mechanism. A rapidly contracting and more compact nascent NS turns out to be favorable for explosions, because the accretion luminosity and neutrino heating are larger and the growth rate of the SASI is higher. Moreover, we show that the oscillation period of the SASI and a variety of other features in our simulations agree with estimates for the advective-acoustic cycle (AAC), in which perturbations are carried by the accretion flow from the shock to the neutron star and pressure waves close an amplifying global feedback loop. (abridged)Comment: 23 pages, 20 figures; revised version with extended Sect.5, accepted by Astronomy & Astrophysics; high-resolution images can be obtained upon reques