273 research outputs found
Neutron and proton drip lines using the modified Bethe-Weizsacker mass formula
Proton and neutron separation energies have been calculated using the
extended Bethe-Weizsacker mass formula. This modified Bethe-Weizsacker mass
formula describes minutely the positions of all the old and the new magic
numbers. It accounts for the disappearance of some traditional magic numbers
for neutrons and provides extra stability for some new neutron numbers. The
neutron and proton drip lines have been predicted using this extended
Bethe-Weizsacker mass formula. The implications of the proton drip line on the
astrophysical rp-process and of the neutron drip line on the astrophysical
r-process have been discussed.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure
2D simulations of the double-detonation model for thermonuclear transients from low-mass carbon-oxygen white dwarfs
Thermonuclear explosions may arise in binary star systems in which a carbon–oxygen (CO) white dwarf (WD) accretes helium-rich material from a companion star. If the accretion rate allows a sufficiently large mass of helium to accumulate prior to ignition of nuclear burning, the helium surface layer may detonate, giving rise to an astrophysical transient. Detonation of the accreted helium layer generates shock waves that propagate into the underlying CO WD. This might directly ignite a detonation of the CO WD at its surface (an edge-lit secondary detonation) or compress the core of the WD sufficiently to trigger a CO detonation near the centre. If either of these ignition mechanisms works, the two detonations (helium and CO) can then release sufficient energy to completely unbind the WD. These ‘double-detonation’ scenarios for thermonuclear explosion of WDs have previously been investigated as a potential channel for the production of Type Ia supernovae from WDs of ∼ 1 M⊙. Here we extend our 2D studies of the double-detonation model to significantly less massive CO WDs, the explosion of which could produce fainter, more rapidly evolving transients. We investigate the feasibility of triggering a secondary core detonation by shock convergence in low-mass CO WDs and the observable consequences of such a detonation. Our results suggest that core detonation is probable, even for the lowest CO core masses that are likely to be realized in nature. To quantify the observable signatures of core detonation, we compute spectra and light curves for models in which either an edge-lit or compression-triggered CO detonation is assumed to occur. We compare these to synthetic observables for models in which no CO detonation was allowed to occur. If significant shock compression of the CO WD occurs prior to detonation, explosion of the CO WD can produce a sufficiently large mass of radioactive iron-group nuclei to significantly affect the light curves. In particular, this can lead to relatively slow post-maximum decline. If the secondary detonation is edge-lit, however, the CO WD explosion primarily yields intermediate-mass elements that affect the observables more subtly. In this case, near-infrared observations and detailed spectroscopic analysis would be needed to determine whether a core detonation occurred. We comment on the implications of our results for understanding peculiar astrophysical transients including SN 2002bj, SN 2010X and SN 2005E
On the small-scale stability of thermonuclear flames in Type Ia supernovae
We present a numerical model which allows us to investigate thermonuclear
flames in Type Ia supernova explosions. The model is based on a finite-volume
explicit hydrodynamics solver employing PPM. Using the level-set technique
combined with in-cell reconstruction and flux-splitting schemes we are able to
describe the flame in the discontinuity approximation. We apply our
implementation to flame propagation in Chandrasekhar-mass Type Ia supernova
models. In particular we concentrate on intermediate scales between the flame
width and the Gibson-scale, where the burning front is subject to the
Landau-Darrieus instability. We are able to reproduce the theoretical
prediction on the growth rates of perturbations in the linear regime and
observe the stabilization of the flame in a cellular shape. The increase of the
mean burning velocity due to the enlarged flame surface is measured. Results of
our simulation are in agreement with semianalytical studies.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, Uses AASTEX, emulateapj5.sty, onecolfloat.sty.
Replaced with accepted version (ApJ), Figures 1 and 3 are ne
On duality for nonsmooth Lipschitz optimization problems
We present some duality theorems for a non-smooth Lipschitz vector optimization problem. Under generalized invexity assumptions on the functions the duality theorems do not require constraint qualifications
From femtonova to supernova: Heavy-ion collisions and the supernova equation of state
AB Calculations using astrophysical equations of state at low densities comparable to that of the neutrino emission surface in supernovae and accretion disks are confronted with experimental results from heavy ion collisions. An extension of previous work shows that it is important to include all of the measured experimental data to draw conclusions about the astrophysical equation of state. Armed with this information, the calculations of the astrophysical equation of state are significantly constrained. Predictions of temperatures and densities sampled in black hole accretion disks are compared to those sampled in the experimental data
Predicting polarization signatures for double-detonation and delayed-detonation models of Type Ia supernovae
Calculations of synthetic spectropolarimetry are one means to test multidimensional explosion models for Type Ia supernovae. In a recent paper, we demonstrated that the violent merger of a 1.1 and 0.9 M⊙ white dwarf binary system is too asymmetric to explain the low polarization levels commonly observed in normal Type Ia supernovae. Here, we present polarization simulations for two alternative scenarios: the sub-Chandrasekhar mass double-detonation and the Chandrasekhar mass delayed-detonation model. Specifically, we study a 2D double-detonation model and a 3D delayed-detonation model, and calculate polarization spectra for multiple observer orientations in both cases. We find modest polarization levels (<1 per cent) for both explosion models. Polarization in the continuum peaks at ˜0.1-0.3 per cent and decreases after maximum light, in excellent agreement with spectropolarimetric data of normal Type Ia supernovae. Higher degrees of polarization are found across individual spectral lines. In particular, the synthetic Si II λ6355 profiles are polarized at levels that match remarkably well the values observed in normal Type Ia supernovae, while the low degrees of polarization predicted across the O I λ7774 region are consistent with the non-detection of this feature in current data. We conclude that our models can reproduce many of the characteristics of both flux and polarization spectra for well-studied Type Ia supernovae, such as SN 2001el and SN 2012fr. However, the two models considered here cannot account for the unusually high level of polarization observed in extreme cases such as SN 2004dt
Three-dimensional delayed-detonation models with nucleosynthesis for type ia supernovae
We present results for a suite of 14 three-dimensional, high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations of delayed-detonation models of Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) explosions. This model suite comprises the first set of three-dimensional SN Ia simulations with detailed isotopic yield information. As such, it may serve as a data base for Chandrasekhar-mass delayed-detonation model nucleosynthetic yields and for deriving synthetic observables such as spectra and light curves. We employ a physically motivated, stochastic model based on turbulent velocity fluctuations and fuel density to calculate in situ the deflagration-to-detonation transition probabilities. To obtain different strengths of the deflagration phase and thereby different degrees of pre-expansion, we have chosen a sequence of initial models with 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 40, 100, 150, 200, 300 and 1600 (two different realizations) ignition kernels in a hydrostatic white dwarf with a central density of 2.9 × 109 g cm−3, as well as one high central density (5.5 × 109 g cm−3) and one low central density (1.0 × 109 g cm−3) rendition of the 100 ignition kernel configuration. For each simulation, we determined detailed nucleosynthetic yields by post-processing 106 tracer particles with a 384 nuclide reaction network. All delayed-detonation models result in explosions unbinding the white dwarf, producing a range of 56Ni masses from 0.32 to 1.11 M⊙. As a general trend, the models predict that the stable neutron-rich iron-group isotopes are not found at the lowest velocities, but rather at intermediate velocities (∼3000–10 000 km s−1) in a shell surrounding a 56Ni-rich core. The models further predict relatively low-velocity oxygen and carbon, with typical minimum velocities around 4000 and 10 000 km s−1, respectively
500 Days of SN 2013dy: spectra and photometry from the ultraviolet to the infrared
SN 2013dy is a Type Ia supernova for which we have compiled an extraordinary
dataset spanning from 0.1 to ~ 500 days after explosion. We present 10 epochs
of ultraviolet (UV) through near-infrared (NIR) spectra with HST/STIS, 47
epochs of optical spectra (15 of them having high resolution), and more than
500 photometric observations in the BVrRiIZYJH bands. SN 2013dy has a broad and
slowly declining light curve (delta m(B) = 0.92 mag), shallow Si II 6355
absorption, and a low velocity gradient. We detect strong C II in our earliest
spectra, probing unburned progenitor material in the outermost layers of the SN
ejecta, but this feature fades within a few days. The UV continuum of SN
2013dy, which is strongly affected by the metal abundance of the progenitor
star, suggests that SN 2013dy had a relatively high-metallicity progenitor.
Examining one of the largest single set of high-resolution spectra for a SN Ia,
we find no evidence of variable absorption from circumstellar material.
Combining our UV spectra, NIR photometry, and high-cadence optical photometry,
we construct a bolometric light curve, showing that SN 2013dy had a maximum
luminosity of 10.0^{+4.8}_{-3.8} * 10^{42} erg/s. We compare the synthetic
light curves and spectra of several models to SN 2013dy, finding that SN 2013dy
is in good agreement with a solar-metallicity W7 model.Comment: 22 pages, 18 figures, replaced with version accecpted for publication
in MNRA
Relativistic quantum kinetic equation of the Vlasov type for systems with internal degrees of freedom
We present an approach to derive a relativistic kinetic equation of the
Vlasov type. Our approach is especially reliable for the description of quantum
field systems with many internal degrees of freedom. The method is based on the
Heisenberg picture and leads to a kinetic equation which fulfills the
conservation laws. We apply the approach to the standard Walecka Lagrangian and
an effective chiral Lagrangian.Comment: 11 pages, LaTeX, uses ijmpel.st
Electrical conductivity of plasmas of DB white dwarf atmospheres
The static electrical conductivity of non-ideal, dense, partially ionized
helium plasma was calculated over a wide range of plasma parameters:
temperatures and mass density . Calculations of
electrical conductivity of plasma for the considered range of plasma parameters
are of interest for DB white dwarf atmospheres with effective temperatures
.
Electrical conductivity of plasma was calculated by using the modified random
phase approximation and semiclassical method, adapted for the case of dense,
partially ionized plasma. The results were compared with the unique existing
experimental data, including the results related to the region of dense
plasmas. In spite of low accuracy of the experimental data, the existing
agreement with them indicates that results obtained in this paper are correct
- …