Evidence for Sub-Chandrasekhar Mass Type Ia Supernovae from an Extensive Survey of Radiative Transfer Models

Abstract

There are two classes of viable progenitors for normal Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia): systems in which a white dwarf explodes at the Chandrasekhar mass ($M_{ch}$), and systems in which a white dwarf explodes below the Chandrasekhar mass (sub-$M_{ch}$). It is not clear which of these channels is dominant; observations and light curve modeling have provided evidence for both. Here we use an extensive grid of 4500 time-dependent, multiwavelength radiation transport simulations to show that the sub-$M_{ch}$ model can reproduce the entirety of the width-luminosity relation (WLR), while the $M_{ch}$ model can only produce the brighter events $(0.8<\Delta M_{15}(B)<1.55)$, implying that fast-declining SNe Ia come from sub-$M_{ch}$ explosions. We do not assume a particular theoretical paradigm for the progenitor or explosion mechanism, but instead construct parameterized models that vary the mass, kinetic energy, and compositional structure of the ejecta, thereby realizing a broad range of possible outcomes of white dwarf explosions. We provide fitting functions based on our large grid of detailed simulations that map observable properties of SNe Ia such as peak brightness and light curve width to physical parameters such as ${}^{56}\mathrm{Ni}$ and total ejected mass. These can be used to estimate the physical properties of observed SNe Ia.

Accepted to ApJL

References in corpus (14)

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• Double detonations: variations in Type Ia supernovae due to different core and He shell masses -- II: synthetic observables
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• Exploring the diversity of double detonation explosions for type Ia supernovae: Effects of the post-explosion helium shell composition
• Observational constraints on the origin of the elements. V. Non-LTE abundance ratios of [Ni/Fe] in Galactic stars and enrichment by sub-Chandrasekhar mass SNe
• A Physical Basis for the H-band Blue-edge Velocity and Light-Curve Shape Correlation in Context of Type Ia Supernova Explosion Physics
• The Whisper of a Whimper of a Bang: 2400 Days of the Type Ia SN 2011fe Reveals the Decay of ${}^{55}$Fe
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• Initial 56Ni Masses in Type Ia Supernovae
• SN 2017hpa: A carbon-rich type Ia supernova
• The Search for Stable Nickel: Investigating the Origins of Type Ia Supernovae with Late-time NIR Spectroscopy from the Carnegie Supernova Project-II
• Constraining Type Ia Supernova Asymmetry with the Gamma-Ray Escape Timescale