Core-collapse supernovae and the equation of state (original) (raw)
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Comparison of Statistical Treatments for the Equation of State for Core-Collapse Supernovae
The Astrophysical Journal, 2009
Neutrinos emitted during the collapse, bounce and subsequent explosion provide information about supernova dynamics. The neutrino spectra are determined by weak interactions with nuclei and nucleons in the inner regions of the star, and thus the neutrino spectra are determined by the composition of matter. The composition of stellar matter at temperature ranging from T = 1 − 3 MeV and densities ranging from 10 −5 to 0.1 times the saturation density is explored. We examine the single-nucleus approximation commonly used in describing dense matter in supernova simulations and show that, while the approximation is accurate for predicting the energy and pressure at most densities, it fails to predict the composition accurately. We find that as the temperature and density increase, the single nucleus approximation systematically overpredicts the mass number of nuclei that are actually present and underestimates the contribution from lighter nuclei which are present in significant amounts.
Toward Realistic Models of Core Collapse Supernovae: A Brief Review
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union, 2020
Motivated by their role as the direct or indirect source of many of the elements in the Universe, numerical modeling of core collapse supernovae began more than five decades ago. Progress toward ascertaining the explosion mechanism(s) has been realized through increasingly sophisticated models, as physics and dimensionality have been added, as physics and numerical modeling have improved, and as the leading computational resources available to modelers have become far more capable. The past five to ten years have witnessed the emergence of a consensus across the core collapse supernova modeling community that had not existed in the four decades prior. For the majority of progenitors-i.e., slowly rotating progenitors-the efficacy of the delayed shock mechanism, where the stalled supernova shock wave is revived by neutrino heating by neutrinos emanating from the proto-neutron star, has been demonstrated by all core collapse supernova modeling groups, across progenitor mass and metallicity. With this momentum, and now with a far deeper understanding of the dynamics of these events, the path forward is clear. While much progress has been made, much work remains to be done, but at this time we have every reason to be optimistic we are on track to answer one of the most important outstanding questions in astrophysics: How do massive stars end their lives?
arXiv (Cornell University), 2014
We summarize the results of core collapse supernova theory from one-, two-, and three-dimensional models and provide a snapshot of the field at this time. We also present results from the "Oak Ridge" group in this context. Studies in both one and two spatial dimensions define the necessary physics that must be included in core collapse supernova models: a general relativistic treatment of gravity (at least an approximate one), spectral neutrino transport, including relativistic effects such as gravitational redshift, and a complete set of neutrino weak interactions that includes stateof-the-art electron capture on nuclei and energy-exchanging scattering on electrons and nucleons. Whether or not the necessarily approximate treatment of this physics in current models that include it is sufficient remains to be determined in the context of future models that remove the approximations. We summarize the results of the Oak Ridge group's two-dimensional supernova models. In particular, we demonstrate that robust neutrino-driven explosions can be obtained. We also demonstrate that our predictions of the explosion energies and remnant neutron star masses are in agreement with observations, although a much larger number of models must be developed before more confident conclusions can be made. We provide preliminary results from our ongoing three-dimensional model with the same physics. Finally, we speculate on future outcomes and directions.
The State of Matter in Simulations of Core-Collapse supernovae—Reflections and Recent Developments
Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia
In this review article, we discuss selected developments regarding the role of the equation of state in simulations of core-collapse supernovae. There are no first-principle calculations of the state of matter under supernova conditions since a wide range of conditions is covered, in terms of density, temperature, and isospin asymmetry. Instead, model equation of state are commonly employed in supernova studies. These can be divided into regimes with intrinsically different degrees of freedom: heavy nuclei at low temperatures, inhomogeneous nuclear matter where light and heavy nuclei coexist together with unbound nucleons, and the transition to homogeneous matter at high densities and temperatures. In this article, we discuss each of these phases with particular view on their role in supernova simulations.
The essential character of the neutrino mechanism of core-collapse supernova explosions
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Calibrating with detailed 2D core-collapse supernova (CCSN) simulations, we derive a simple CCSN explosion condition based solely upon the terminal density profiles of state-of-the-art stellar evolution calculations of the progenitor massive stars. This condition captures the vast majority of the behaviour of the one hundred 2D state-of-the-art models we performed to gauge its usefulness. The goal is to predict, without resort to detailed simulation, the explodability of a given massive star. We find that the simple maximum fractional ram pressure jump discriminant we define works well ∼90 per cent of the time and we speculate on the origin of the few false positives and false negatives we witness. The maximum ram pressure jump generally occurs at the time of accretion of the silicon/oxygen interface, but not always. Our results depend upon the fidelity with which the current implementation of our code F ornax adheres to Nature and issues concerning the neutrino–matter interaction, ...
Evaluating nuclear physics inputs in core-collapse supernova models
arXiv (Cornell University), 2010
Core-collapse supernova models depend on the details of the nuclear and weak interaction physics inputs just as they depend on the details of the macroscopic physics (transport, hydrodynamics, etc.), numerical methods, and progenitors. We present preliminary results from our ongoing comparison studies of nuclear and weak interaction physics inputs to core collapse supernova models using the spherically-symmetric, general relativistic, neutrino radiation hydrodynamics code Agile-Boltztran. We focus on comparisons of the effects of the nuclear EoS and the effects of improving the opacities, particularly neutrino-nucleon interactions. * Speaker.
2021
We investigate observable signatures of a first-order quantum chromodynamics (QCD) phase transition in the context of core collapse supernovae. To this end, we conduct axially symmetric numerical relativity simulations with multi-energy neutrino transport, using a hadron-quark hybrid equation of state (EOS). We consider four non-rotating progenitor models, whose masses range from 9.6 to 70M⊙. We find that the two less massive progenitor stars (9.6 and 11.2 M⊙) show a successful explosion, which is driven by the neutrino heating. They do not undergo the QCD phase transition and leave behind a neutron star (NS). As for the more massive progenitor stars (50 and 70 M⊙), the proto-neutron star (PNS) core enters the phase transition region and experiences the second collapse. Because of a sudden stiffening of the EOS entering to the pure quark matter regime, a strong shock wave is formed and blows off the PNS envelope in the 50 M⊙ model. Consequently the remnant becomes a quark core surro...
Equation of state and neutrino transfer in supernovae and neutron stars
The European Physical Journal A, 2021
We overview the progress of the tables of the equation of state for astrophysical simulations and the numerical methods of neutrino transfer. Hot and dense matter play essential roles in core-collapse supernovae and neutron stars. Equation of state determines the structure of compact objects and their dynamics through its behavior of thermodynamic quantities. In addition, neutrinos are trapped in supernova cores and neutron star mergers and frequently interact with matter to crucially affect dynamics in determining the explosion mechanism and the final form of compact objects. Therefore, it is essential to implement detailed processes of nuclear and neutrino physics in numerical simulations by having reliable data set of the equation of state and reaction rates. We show examples of developments of the equation of state and the neutrino transfer and discuss research directions toward understanding the explosive phenomena by the first principle calculation.
Computational models of stellar collapse and core-collapse supernovae
Arxiv preprint arXiv: …, 2009
Core-collapse supernovae are among Nature's most energetic events. They mark the end of massive star evolution and pollute the interstellar medium with the life-enabling ashes of thermonuclear burning. Despite their importance for the evolution of galaxies and life in the universe, the details of the core-collapse supernova explosion mechanism remain in the dark and pose a daunting computational challenge. We outline the multi-dimensional, multi-scale, and multi-physics nature of the core-collapse supernova problem and discuss computational strategies and requirements for its solution. Specifically, we highlight the axisymmetric (2D) radiation-MHD code VULCAN/2D and present results obtained from the first full-2D angledependent neutrino radiation-hydrodynamics simulations of the post-core-bounce supernova evolution. We then go on to discuss the new code Zelmani which is based on the open-source HPC Cactus framework and provides a scalable AMR approach for 3D fully general-relativistic modeling of stellar collapse, core-collapse supernovae and black hole formation on current and future massively-parallel HPC systems. We show Zelmani's scaling properties to more than 16,000 compute cores and discuss first 3D general-relativistic core-collapse results.