skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: PROGENITORS OF RECOMBINING SUPERNOVA REMNANTS

Abstract

Usual supernova remnants have either ionizing plasma or plasma in collisional ionization equilibrium, i.e., the ionization temperature is lower than or equal to the electron temperature. However, the existence of recombining supernova remnants, i.e., supernova remnants with ionization temperature higher than the electron temperature, has been recently confirmed. One suggested way to have recombining plasma in a supernova remnant is to have a dense circumstellar medium at the time of the supernova explosion. If the circumstellar medium is dense enough, collisional ionization equilibrium can be established in the early stage of the evolution of the supernova remnant and subsequent adiabatic cooling, which occurs after the shock wave gets out of the dense circumstellar medium, makes the electron temperature lower than the ionization temperature. We study the circumstellar medium around several supernova progenitors and show which supernova progenitors can have a circumstellar medium dense enough to establish collisional ionization equilibrium soon after the explosion. We find that the circumstellar medium around red supergiants (especially massive ones) and the circumstellar medium dense enough to make Type IIn supernovae can establish collisional ionization equilibrium soon after the explosion and can evolve to become recombining supernova remnants. Wolf-Rayet stars and white dwarfs have themore » possibility to be recombining supernova remnants but the fraction is expected to be very small. As the occurrence rate of the explosions of red supergiants is much higher than that of Type IIn supernovae, the major progenitors of recombining supernova remnants are likely to be red supergiants.« less

Authors:
 [1]
  1. Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe, Todai Institutes for Advanced Study, University of Tokyo, Kashiwanoha 5-1-5, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8583 (Japan)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22047859
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Astrophysical Journal Letters
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 750; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 2041-8205
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
79 ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY; ASTROPHYSICS; ELECTRON TEMPERATURE; EQUILIBRIUM; IONIZATION; PLASMA; RED GIANT STARS; SHOCK WAVES; STAR EVOLUTION; SUPERNOVA REMNANTS; SUPERNOVAE; WHITE DWARF STARS; WOLF-RAYET STARS

Citation Formats

Moriya, Takashi J., E-mail: takashi.moriya@ipmu.jp. PROGENITORS OF RECOMBINING SUPERNOVA REMNANTS. United States: N. p., 2012. Web. doi:10.1088/2041-8205/750/1/L13.
Moriya, Takashi J., E-mail: takashi.moriya@ipmu.jp. PROGENITORS OF RECOMBINING SUPERNOVA REMNANTS. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/750/1/L13
Moriya, Takashi J., E-mail: takashi.moriya@ipmu.jp. 2012. "PROGENITORS OF RECOMBINING SUPERNOVA REMNANTS". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/750/1/L13.
@article{osti_22047859,
title = {PROGENITORS OF RECOMBINING SUPERNOVA REMNANTS},
author = {Moriya, Takashi J., E-mail: takashi.moriya@ipmu.jp},
abstractNote = {Usual supernova remnants have either ionizing plasma or plasma in collisional ionization equilibrium, i.e., the ionization temperature is lower than or equal to the electron temperature. However, the existence of recombining supernova remnants, i.e., supernova remnants with ionization temperature higher than the electron temperature, has been recently confirmed. One suggested way to have recombining plasma in a supernova remnant is to have a dense circumstellar medium at the time of the supernova explosion. If the circumstellar medium is dense enough, collisional ionization equilibrium can be established in the early stage of the evolution of the supernova remnant and subsequent adiabatic cooling, which occurs after the shock wave gets out of the dense circumstellar medium, makes the electron temperature lower than the ionization temperature. We study the circumstellar medium around several supernova progenitors and show which supernova progenitors can have a circumstellar medium dense enough to establish collisional ionization equilibrium soon after the explosion. We find that the circumstellar medium around red supergiants (especially massive ones) and the circumstellar medium dense enough to make Type IIn supernovae can establish collisional ionization equilibrium soon after the explosion and can evolve to become recombining supernova remnants. Wolf-Rayet stars and white dwarfs have the possibility to be recombining supernova remnants but the fraction is expected to be very small. As the occurrence rate of the explosions of red supergiants is much higher than that of Type IIn supernovae, the major progenitors of recombining supernova remnants are likely to be red supergiants.},
doi = {10.1088/2041-8205/750/1/L13},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22047859}, journal = {Astrophysical Journal Letters},
issn = {2041-8205},
number = 1,
volume = 750,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue May 01 00:00:00 EDT 2012},
month = {Tue May 01 00:00:00 EDT 2012}
}