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Title: NO STRIPPED HYDROGEN IN THE NEBULAR SPECTRA OF NEARBY TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA 2011fe

Abstract

A generic prediction of the single-degenerate model for Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) is that a significant amount of material will be stripped from the donor star ({approx}0.5 M{sub Sun} for a giant donor and {approx}0.15 M{sub Sun} for a main-sequence donor) by the supernova ejecta. This material, excited by gamma-rays from radioactive decay, would then produce relatively narrow ({approx}<1000 km s{sup -1}) emission features observable once the supernova enters the nebular phase. Such emission has never been detected, which already provides strong constraints on Type Ia progenitor models. In this Letter, we report the deepest limit yet on the presence of H{alpha} emission originating from the stripped hydrogen in the nebular spectrum of an SN Ia obtained using a high signal-to-noise spectrum of the nearby normal SN Ia 2011fe 274 days after B-band maximum light with the Large Binocular Telescope's Multi-Object Double Spectrograph. We put a conservative upper limit on the H{alpha} flux of 3.14 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -17} erg s{sup -1} cm{sup -2}, which corresponds to a luminosity of 1.57 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 35} erg s{sup -1}. By scaling models from the literature, our flux limit translates into an upper limit of {approx}<0.001 M{sub Sun} of stripped material. This ismore » an order of magnitude stronger than previous limits. SN 2011fe was a typical SN Ia, special only in its proximity, and we argue that lack of hydrogen emission in its nebular spectrum adds yet another strong constraint on the single-degenerate class of models for SNe Ia.« less

Authors:
; ;  [1]
  1. Department of Astronomy, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22078359
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Astrophysical Journal Letters
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 762; 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; EMISSION; GAMMA RADIATION; HYDROGEN; LUMINOSITY; NUCLEAR DECAY; SCALING LAWS; SIGNAL-TO-NOISE RATIO; SPECTRA; SUPERNOVAE; TELESCOPES; VISIBLE RADIATION; WHITE DWARF STARS

Citation Formats

Shappee, Benjamin J, Stanek, K Z, Pogge, R W, and Garnavich, P. M., E-mail: shappee@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: kstanek@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pgarnavi@nd.edu. NO STRIPPED HYDROGEN IN THE NEBULAR SPECTRA OF NEARBY TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA 2011fe. United States: N. p., 2013. Web. doi:10.1088/2041-8205/762/1/L5.
Shappee, Benjamin J, Stanek, K Z, Pogge, R W, & Garnavich, P. M., E-mail: shappee@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: kstanek@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pgarnavi@nd.edu. NO STRIPPED HYDROGEN IN THE NEBULAR SPECTRA OF NEARBY TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA 2011fe. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/762/1/L5
Shappee, Benjamin J, Stanek, K Z, Pogge, R W, and Garnavich, P. M., E-mail: shappee@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: kstanek@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pgarnavi@nd.edu. 2013. "NO STRIPPED HYDROGEN IN THE NEBULAR SPECTRA OF NEARBY TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA 2011fe". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/762/1/L5.
@article{osti_22078359,
title = {NO STRIPPED HYDROGEN IN THE NEBULAR SPECTRA OF NEARBY TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA 2011fe},
author = {Shappee, Benjamin J and Stanek, K Z and Pogge, R W and Garnavich, P. M., E-mail: shappee@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: kstanek@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pogge@astronomy.ohio-state.edu, E-mail: pgarnavi@nd.edu},
abstractNote = {A generic prediction of the single-degenerate model for Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) is that a significant amount of material will be stripped from the donor star ({approx}0.5 M{sub Sun} for a giant donor and {approx}0.15 M{sub Sun} for a main-sequence donor) by the supernova ejecta. This material, excited by gamma-rays from radioactive decay, would then produce relatively narrow ({approx}<1000 km s{sup -1}) emission features observable once the supernova enters the nebular phase. Such emission has never been detected, which already provides strong constraints on Type Ia progenitor models. In this Letter, we report the deepest limit yet on the presence of H{alpha} emission originating from the stripped hydrogen in the nebular spectrum of an SN Ia obtained using a high signal-to-noise spectrum of the nearby normal SN Ia 2011fe 274 days after B-band maximum light with the Large Binocular Telescope's Multi-Object Double Spectrograph. We put a conservative upper limit on the H{alpha} flux of 3.14 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -17} erg s{sup -1} cm{sup -2}, which corresponds to a luminosity of 1.57 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 35} erg s{sup -1}. By scaling models from the literature, our flux limit translates into an upper limit of {approx}<0.001 M{sub Sun} of stripped material. This is an order of magnitude stronger than previous limits. SN 2011fe was a typical SN Ia, special only in its proximity, and we argue that lack of hydrogen emission in its nebular spectrum adds yet another strong constraint on the single-degenerate class of models for SNe Ia.},
doi = {10.1088/2041-8205/762/1/L5},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22078359}, journal = {Astrophysical Journal Letters},
issn = {2041-8205},
number = 1,
volume = 762,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2013},
month = {Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2013}
}