Magnetar Flare-Driven Bumpy Declining Light Curves in Hydrogen-poor Superluminous Supernovae

Abstract

Recent observations indicate that hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae often display bumpy declining light curves. However, the cause of these undulations remains unclear. In this paper, we have improved the magnetar model, which includes flare activities. We present a systematic analysis of a well-observed SLSNe-I sample with bumpy light curves in the late-phase. These SLSNe-I were identified from multiple transient surveys, such as the Pan-STARRS1 Medium Deep Survey (PS1 MDS) and the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF). Our study provides a set of magnetar-powered model light curve fits for five SLSNe-I, which accurately reproduce observed light curves using reasonable physical parameters. By extracting essential characteristics of both explosions and central engines, these fits provide valuable insights into investigating their potential association with gamma ray burst engines. We found that the SLSN flares tend to be the dim and long extension of the GRB flares in the peak luminosity versus peak time plane. Conducting large-scale, high cadence surveys in the near future could enhance our comprehension of both SLSN undulation properties and their potential relationship with GRBs by modeling their light curve characteristics.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa