A VLT/FLAMES survey for massive binaries in Westerlund 1 IV. Wd1-5 – binary product and a pre-supernova companion for the magnetar CXOU J1647-45?

Context. The first soft gamma-ray repeater was discovered over three decades ago, and was subsequently identified as a magnetar, a class of highly magnetised neutron star. It has been hypothesised that these stars power some of the brightest supernovae known, and that they may form the central engines of some long duration gamma-ray bursts. However there is currently no consenus on the formation channel(s) of these objects.Aims. The presence of a magnetar in the starburst cluster Westerlund 1 implies a progenitor with a mass ≥40 M⊙, which favours its formation in a binary that was disrupted at supernova. To test this hypothesis we conducted a search for the putative pre-SN companion.Methods. This was accomplished via a radial velocity survey to identify high-velocity runaways, with subsequent non-LTE model atmosphere analysis of the resultant candidate, Wd1-5.Results. Wd1-5 closely resembles the primaries in the short-period binaries, Wd1-13 and 44, suggesting a similar evolutionary history, although it currently appears single. It is overluminous for its spectroscopic mass and we find evidence of He- and N-enrichement, O-depletion, and critically C-enrichment, a combination of properties that is difficult to explain under single star evolutionary paradigms. We infer a pre-SN history for Wd1-5 which supposes an initial close binary comprising two stars of comparable (~ 41 M⊙ + 35 M⊙) masses. Efficient mass transfer from the initially more massive component leads to the mass-gainer evolving more rapidly, initiating luminous blue variable/common envelope evolution. Reverse, wind-driven mass transfer during its subsequent WC Wolf-Rayet phase leads to the carbon pollution of Wd1-5, before a type Ibc supernova disrupts the binary system. Under the assumption of a physical association between Wd1-5 and J1647-45, the secondary is identified as the magnetar progenitor; its common envelope evolutionary phase prevents spin-down of its core prior to SN and the seed magnetic field for the magnetar forms either in this phase or during the earlier episode of mass transfer in which it was spun-up.Conclusions. Our results suggest that binarity is a key ingredient in the formation of at least a subset of magnetars by preventing spin-down via core-coupling and potentially generating a seed magnetic field. The apparent formation of a magnetar in a Type Ibc supernova is consistent with recent suggestions that superluminous Type Ibc supernovae are powered by the rapid spin-down of these objects

The detection of extragalactic 15^{15}N: Consequences for nitrogen nucleosynthesis and chemical evolution

Detections of extragalactic $^{15}$N are reported from observations of the rare hydrogen cyanide isotope HC$^{15}$N toward the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the core of the (post-) starburst galaxy NGC 4945. Accounting for optical depth effects, the LMC data from the massive star-forming region N113 infer a $^{14}N/^{15}$N ratio of 111 $\pm$ 17, about twice the $^{12}C/^{13}$C value. For the LMC star-forming region N159HW and for the central region of NGC 4945, $^{14}N/^{15}$N ratios are also $\approx$ 100. The $^{14}N/^{15}$N ratios are smaller than all interstellar nitrogen isotope ratios measured in the disk and center of the Milky Way, strongly supporting the idea that $^{15}$N is predominantly of `primary' nature, with massive stars being its dominant source. Although this appears to be in contradiction with standard stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis calculations, it supports recent findings of abundant $^{15}$N production due to rotationally induced mixing of protons into the helium-burning shells of massive stars.Comment: 15 pages including one postscript figure, accepted for publication by ApJ Letter, further comments: please contact Yi-nan Chi

Competitive nucleation in reversible Probabilistic Cellular Automata

The problem of competitive nucleation in the framework of Probabilistic Cellular Automata is studied from the dynamical point of view. The dependence of the metastability scenario on the self--interaction is discussed. An intermediate metastable phase, made of two flip--flopping chessboard configurations, shows up depending on the ratio between the magnetic field and the self--interaction. A behavior similar to the one of the stochastic Blume--Capel model with Glauber dynamics is found

BONNSAI: a Bayesian tool for comparing stars with stellar evolution models

Powerful telescopes equipped with multi-fibre or integral field spectrographs combined with detailed models of stellar atmospheres and automated fitting techniques allow for the analysis of large number of stars. These datasets contain a wealth of information that require new analysis techniques to bridge the gap between observations and stellar evolution models. To that end, we develop BONNSAI (BONN Stellar Astrophysics Interface), a Bayesian statistical method, that is capable of comparing all available observables simultaneously to stellar models while taking observed uncertainties and prior knowledge such as initial mass functions and distributions of stellar rotational velocities into account. BONNSAI can be used to (1) determine probability distributions of fundamental stellar parameters such as initial masses and stellar ages from complex datasets, (2) predict stellar parameters that were not yet observationally determined and (3) test stellar models to further advance our understanding of stellar evolution. An important aspect of BONNSAI is that it singles out stars that cannot be reproduced by stellar models through $\chi^{2}$ hypothesis tests and posterior predictive checks. BONNSAI can be used with any set of stellar models and currently supports massive main-sequence single star models of Milky Way and Large and Small Magellanic Cloud composition. We apply our new method to mock stars to demonstrate its functionality and capabilities. In a first application, we use BONNSAI to test the stellar models of Brott et al. (2011a) by comparing the stellar ages inferred for the primary and secondary stars of eclipsing Milky Way binaries. Ages are determined from dynamical masses and radii that are known to better than 3%. We find that the stellar models reproduce the Milky Way binaries well. BONNSAI is available through a web-interface at http://www.astro.uni-bonn.de/stars/bonnsai.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A; 15 pages, 10 figures, 4 tables; BONNSAI is available through a web-interface at http://www.astro.uni-bonn.de/stars/bonnsa

Auger Resonant Raman Spectroscopy Used to Study the Angular Distributions of the Xe 4d5/2 → 6p Decay Spectrum

The Auger resonant Raman effect can be used as a method to eliminate natural lifetime broadening in resonant Auger spectra. We have coupled this method with high-resolution photons from the Advanced Light Source to study angular distributions and decay rates of the Xe4d5/2→6p resonant Auger lines. The angular distribution parameters β of almost all possible final ionic 5p4(3P, 1D, 1S)6p states have been determined. Our data, which remove the discrepancy between previous lower-resolution experimental results, are compared to different theoretical results

The s-Process in Rotating Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars

(abridged) We model the nucleosynthesis during the thermal pulse phase of a rotating, solar metallicity AGB star of 3M_sun. Rotationally induced mixing during the thermal pulses produces a layer (~2E-5M_sun) on top of the CO-core where large amounts of protons and C12 co-exist. We follow the abundance evolution in this layer, in particular that of the neutron source C13 and of the neutron poison N14. In our AGB model mixing persists during the entire interpulse phase due to the steep angular velocity gradient at the core-envelope interface. We follow the neutron production during the interpulse phase, and find a resulting maximum neutron exposure of tau_max =0.04 mbarn^-1, which is too small to produce any significant s-process. In parametric models, we then investigate the combined effects of diffusive overshooting from the convective envelope and rotationally induced mixing. Models with overshoot and weaker interpulse mixing - as perhaps expected from more slowly rotating stars - yield larger neutron exposures. We conclude that the incorporation of rotationally induce mixing processes has important consequences for the production of heavy elements in AGB stars. Through a distribution of initial rotation rates it may lead to a natural spread in the neutron exposures obtained in AGB stars of a given mass - as appears to be required by observations. Our results suggest that both processes, diffusive overshoot and rotational mixing, may be required to obtain a consistent description of the s-process in AGB stars which fulfils all observational constraints. Finally, we find that mixing due to rotation within our current framework does increase the production of N15 in the partial mixing zone, however still falling short of what seems required by observations.Comment: 50 pages, 13 figures, ApJ in press, tentatively scheduled for v593 n2 August 20, 200

Presupernova Evolution of Rotating Massive Stars I: Numerical Method and Evolution of the Internal Stellar Structure

The evolution of rotating stars with zero-age main sequence (ZAMS) masses in the range 8 to 25 M_sun is followed through all stages of stable evolution. The initial angular momentum is chosen such that the star's equatorial rotational velocity on the ZAMS ranges from zero to ~ 70 % of break-up. Redistribution of angular momentum and chemical species are then followed as a consequence of rotationally induced circulation and instablities. The effects of the centrifugal force on the stellar structure are included. Uncertain mixing efficiencies are gauged by observations. We find, as noted in previous work, that rotation increases the helium core masses and enriches the stellar envelopes with products of hydrogen burning. We determine, for the first time, the angular momentum distribution in typical presupernova stars along with their detailed chemical structure. Angular momentum loss due to (non-magnetic) stellar winds and the redistribution of angular momentum during core hydrogen burning are of crucial importance for the specific angular momentum of the core. Neglecting magnetic fields, we find angular momentum transport from the core to the envelope to be unimportant after core helium burning. We obtain specific angular momenta for the iron core and overlaying material of 1E16...1E17 erg s. These values are insensitive to the initial angular momentum. They are small enough to avoid triaxial deformations of the iron core before it collapses, but could lead to neutron stars which rotate close to break-up. They are also in the range required for the collapsar model of gamma-ray bursts. The apparent discrepancy with the measured rotation rates of young pulsars is discussed.Comment: 62 pages, including 7 tables and 19 figures. Accepted by Ap

Scattering theory for Klein-Gordon equations with non-positive energy

We study the scattering theory for charged Klein-Gordon equations: \{{array}{l} (\p_{t}- \i v(x))^{2}\phi(t,x) \epsilon^{2}(x, D_{x})\phi(t,x)=0,[2mm] \phi(0, x)= f_{0}, [2mm] \i^{-1} \p_{t}\phi(0, x)= f_{1}, {array}. where: \epsilon^{2}(x, D_{x})= \sum_{1\leq j, k\leq n}(\p_{x_{j}} \i b_{j}(x))A^{jk}(x)(\p_{x_{k}} \i b_{k}(x))+ m^{2}(x), describing a Klein-Gordon field minimally coupled to an external electromagnetic field described by the electric potential $v(x)$ and magnetic potential $\vec{b}(x)$. The flow of the Klein-Gordon equation preserves the energy: h[f, f]:= \int_{\rr^{n}}\bar{f}_{1}(x) f_{1}(x)+ \bar{f}_{0}(x)\epsilon^{2}(x, D_{x})f_{0}(x) - \bar{f}_{0}(x) v^{2}(x) f_{0}(x) \d x. We consider the situation when the energy is not positive. In this case the flow cannot be written as a unitary group on a Hilbert space, and the Klein-Gordon equation may have complex eigenfrequencies. Using the theory of definitizable operators on Krein spaces and time-dependent methods, we prove the existence and completeness of wave operators, both in the short- and long-range cases. The range of the wave operators are characterized in terms of the spectral theory of the generator, as in the usual Hilbert space case

Semiclassical wave equation and exactness of the WKB method

The exactness of the semiclassical method for three-dimensional problems in quantum mechanics is analyzed. The wave equation appropriate in the quasiclassical region is derived. It is shown that application of the standard leading-order WKB quantization condition to this equation reproduces exact energy eigenvalues for all solvable spherically symmetric potentials.Comment: 13 page