The Nucleosynthetic Yields of Core-collapse Supernovae: Prospects for the Next Generation of Gamma-Ray Astronomy

Journal Article · Mon Feb 10 04:00:00 EST 2020 · The Astrophysical Journal (Online)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab64f8· OSTI ID:1819142

Andrews, S. ^[1]; Fryer, C. ^[2]; Even, W. ^[3]; Jones, S. ^[4]; Pignatari, M. ^[5]

---

1. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Center for Theoretical Astrophysics; Stony Brook Univ., NY (United States)
2. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Center for Theoretical Astrophysics; Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States)
3. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Center for Theoretical Astrophysics; Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Southern Utah Univ., Cedar City, UT (United States)
4. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Center for Theoretical Astrophysics; Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
5. Univ. of Hull (United Kingdom); Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest (Hungary). Konkoly Observatory, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences; Joint Inst. for Nuclear Astrophysics (JINA), East Lansing, MI (United States). Center for the Evolution of the Elements (JINA-CEE); NuGrid Collaboration

Though the neutrino-driven convection model for the core-collapse explosion mechanism has received strong support in recent years, there are still many uncertainties in the explosion parameters—such as explosion energy, remnant mass, and end-of-life stellar abundances as initial conditions. Using a broad set of spherically symmetric core-collapse simulations we examine the effects of these key parameters on explosive nucleosynthesis and final explosion yields. The post-bounce temperature and density evolution of zero-age main-sequence 15, 20, and 25 solar mass progenitors are post-processed through the Nucleosynthesis Grid nuclear network to obtain detailed explosive yields. In particular, this study focuses on radio isotopes that are of particular interest to the next generation of gamma-ray astronomical observations: ⁴³K, ⁴⁷Ca, ⁴⁴Sc, ⁴⁷Sc, ⁴⁸V, ⁴⁸Cr, ⁵¹Cr, ⁵²Mn, ⁵⁹Fe, ⁵⁶Co, ⁵⁷Co, and ⁵⁷Ni. Furthermore, these nuclides may be key in advancing our understanding of the inner workings of core-collapse supernovae by probing the parameters of the explosion engine. We find that the isotopes that are strong indicators of explosion energy are ⁴³K, ⁴⁷Ca, ⁴⁴Sc, ⁴⁷Sc, and ⁵⁹Fe, those that are dependent on the progenitor structure are ⁴⁸V, ⁵¹Cr, and ⁵⁷Co, and those that probe neither are ⁴⁸Cr, ⁵²Mn, ⁵⁷Ni, and ⁵⁶Co. We discuss the prospects of observing these radionuclides in supernova remnants.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); National Science Foundation (NSF); National Institutes of Health (NIH); STFC
• Grant/Contract Number: 89233218CNA000001
• OSTI ID: 1819142
• Alternate ID(s): OSTI ID: 23080101
• Report Number(s): LA-UR--19-30411
• Journal Information: The Astrophysical Journal (Online), Journal Name: The Astrophysical Journal (Online) Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 890; ISSN 1538-4357
• Publisher: IOP Publishing
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
gamma ray
nucleosynthesis
supernovae