Delay times and rates for Type Ia supernovae and thermonuclear explosions from double-detonation sub-Chandrasekhar mass models

A. J. Ruiter*, K. Belczynski, S. A. Sim, W. Hillebrandt, C. L. Fryer, M. Fink, M. Kromer

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    131 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    We present theoretical delay times and rates of thermonuclear explosions that are thought to produce Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), including the double-detonation sub-Chandrasekhar mass model, using the population synthesis binary evolution code startrack. If detonations of sub-Chandrasekhar mass carbon-oxygen white dwarfs following a detonation in an accumulated layer of helium on the white dwarf's surface ('double-detonation' models) are able to produce thermonuclear explosions which are characteristically similar to those of SNe Ia, then these sub-Chandrasekhar mass explosions may account for at least some substantial fraction of the observed SN Ia rate. Regardless of whether all double-detonations look like 'normal' SNe Ia, in any case the explosions are expected to be bright and thus potentially detectable. Additionally, we find that the delay time distribution of double-detonation sub-Chandrasekhar mass SNe Ia can be divided into two distinct formation channels: the 'prompt' helium-star channel with delay times <500Myr (13 per cent of all sub-Chandras), and the 'delayed' double white dwarf channel, with delay times ≳800 Myr spanning up to a Hubble time (87 per cent). These findings coincide with recent observationally derived delay time distributions which have revealed that a large number of SNe Ia are prompt with delay times <500Myr, while a significant fraction also have delay times spanning ∼1 Gyr to a Hubble time.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)408-419
    Number of pages12
    JournalMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
    Volume417
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Oct 2011

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