Light Curve Powering Mechanisms of Superluminous Supernovae
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Light Curve Powering Mechanisms of Superluminous Supernovae A dissertation presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Science of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy Kornpob Bhirombhakdi May 2019 © 2019 Kornpob Bhirombhakdi. All Rights Reserved. 2 This dissertation titled Light Curve Powering Mechanisms of Superluminous Supernovae by KORNPOB BHIROMBHAKDI has been approved for the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the College of Arts and Science by Ryan Chornock Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy Joseph Shields Interim Dean, College of Arts and Science 3 Abstract BHIROMBHAKDI, KORNPOB, Ph.D., May 2019, Physics Light Curve Powering Mechanisms of Superluminous Supernovae (111 pp.) Director of Dissertation: Ryan Chornock The power sources of some superluminous supernovae (SLSNe), which are at peak 10{ 100 times brighter than typical SNe, are still unknown. While some hydrogen-rich SLSNe that show narrow Hα emission (SLSNe-IIn) might be explained by strong circumstellar interaction (CSI) similar to typical SNe IIn, there are some hydrogen-rich events without the narrow Hα features (SLSNe-II) and hydrogen-poor ones (SLSNe-I) that strong CSI has difficulties to explain. In this dissertation, I investigate the power sources of these two SLSN classes. SN 2015bn (SLSN-I) and SN 2008es (SLSN-II) are the targets in this study. I perform late-time multi-wavelength observations on these objects to determine their power sources. Evidence supports that SN 2008es was powered by strong CSI, while the late-time X-ray non-detection we observed neither supports nor denies magnetar spindown as the most preferred power origin of SN 2015bn. Interestingly, we identify the missing energy problem for SN 2015bn: >97 % of the total spindown luminosity must be in other forms besides the UV/optical/infrared and 0.3{10 keV X-rays. This dissertation also contains a preliminary study of the UV/optical photometric properties of CSI motivated by SN 2008es. In future studies, I aim to understand the UV excess phase of CSI SNe, and hope to be able to develop a better way to describe the spectral energy distribution (SED) and its evolution. Preliminary systematic study of 15 SNe IIn reveals interesting features, and shows promising results that would lead to interesting implications such as a better description for the SED of CSI SNe during the UV excess. 4 Dedication To everyone who dares to stand up against all odds, and does what is right. 5 Acknowledgments I would like to thank my advisor, Prof. Ryan Chornock, for his great mentorship, expertise, and collaboration. I thank all individuals who supported me through the graduate program, and whom I worked with. Orangi, Silver, Ronald Abram, and Gregory Janson, I thank for your great emotional support. 6 Table of Contents Page Abstract...........................................3 Dedication.........................................4 Acknowledgments.....................................5 List of Tables........................................8 List of Figures.......................................9 List of Acronyms...................................... 12 1 INTRODUCTION................................... 13 2 REVIEW........................................ 17 2.1 Supernovae.................................... 17 2.2 Superluminous Supernovae........................... 19 2.3 Power Sources of Superluminous Supernovae................. 20 2.3.1 General Picture of SLSN Light Curves................. 20 2.3.2 Radioactive 56Ni............................. 22 2.3.3 Circumstellar Interaction........................ 23 2.3.4 Magnetar Spindown........................... 26 2.4 Light Curve Fitting Software.......................... 28 2.4.1 TigerFit.................................. 28 2.4.2 MOSFiT................................. 29 2.5 Mechanisms of Infrared Emission........................ 32 2.5.1 Dust Emission.............................. 32 2.5.2 Echo.................................... 33 2.6 SN 2008es..................................... 35 2.7 SN 2015bn..................................... 37 3 SN 2008ES: STRONG CIRCUMSTELLAR INTERACTION WITHOUT NARROW FEATURES................................ 39 3.1 Data........................................ 40 3.2 Analysis and Discussion............................. 44 3.2.1 Spectroscopy: Strong CSI and CDS Dust Condensation....... 44 3.2.1.1 Hα Emission and Strong CSI................. 45 3.2.1.2 Blueshifted Hα and CDS Dust Condensation........ 46 3.2.2 NIR Excess: CDS Dust Emission.................... 47 3.2.3 Powering Mechanisms.......................... 50 3.2.3.1 Evolution of the Light Curve of SN 2008es......... 50 3.2.3.2 CSI............................... 52 7 3.2.3.3 Magnetar Spindown...................... 58 3.3 Conclusion.................................... 60 4 MAGNETAR SPINDOWN & MISSING ENERGY PROBLEM in SLSNE-I: A CASE STUDY OF SN 2015BN............................ 63 4.1 Data........................................ 63 4.2 Analysis and Discussion............................. 65 4.2.1 Constraining Magnetar Spindown.................... 65 4.2.1.1 Light Curve in Magnetar Spindown Scenario........ 66 4.2.1.2 X-ray Ionization Breakout.................. 68 4.2.1.3 X-ray Ionization Breakout in the Future?.......... 71 4.2.2 Constraining Ejecta-Medium Interaction................ 71 4.2.3 Off-Axis GRB............................... 74 4.2.4 Black Hole as a Central Engine..................... 75 4.3 Conclusion.................................... 75 5 MODELLING UV EXCESS OF STRONGLY INTERACTING SUPERNOVAE. 78 5.1 Scope and Goals................................. 81 5.2 Preliminary Results............................... 82 5.2.1 Data.................................... 82 5.2.2 Analysis.................................. 84 5.2.2.1 The Photosphere Temperature................ 84 5.2.2.2 The UV Excess......................... 87 5.2.2.3 Color Evolution........................ 89 5.2.2.4 Single Band Evolution..................... 94 5.3 Conclusion and Future Prospects........................ 95 6 CONCLUSION..................................... 99 References.......................................... 102 8 List of Tables Table Page 3.1 Late-time photometry of SN 2008es........................ 40 3.2 Host emission of SN 2008es (no extinction correction).............. 41 3.3 Bolometric luminosity of the NIR component................... 48 3.4 Bolometric luminosity of late-time optical component.............. 50 3.5 Fit results from CSMRAD model from TigerFit.................. 53 3.6 Fit results from magnetar modela .......................... 58 4.1 Expected luminosity in various scenarios...................... 66 5.1 Number of data points of each event (post processing).............. 83 5.2 Linear cooling rates of BVRI photosphere temperatures............. 86 9 List of Figures Figure Page 3.1 Photometry of SN 2008es in apparent magnitude. Filled symbols are the late-time data presented in this paper, while open symbols are the early-time data from [84, 145]. Dotted horizontal line = modelled host-galaxy emission. The figure shows that the emission in gV R converges to the host-galaxy light, while IHK0 is significantly brighter because of the strong Hα emission in the I band and the NIR excess in the HK' bands.................... 41 3.2 SN 2008es spectra, centered at Hα, at 89 (purple) and 288 (black) days after explosion in the rest frame. A linear continuum has been subtracted from each spectrum to isolate the line emission. Both spectra are normalized to unity for comparison purposes. We note that the spikes bluewards on the late-time spectrum are noise................................... 45 3.3 NIR excess. Data points are gV RIK0 (black, diamond) at 254{255 days, and HK0 (purple, square) at 301 days. Solid grey line = 288-day spectrum scaled to the R band, showing Hα contamination in the I band. Solid black line = 5000 K blackbody, optical component, fit to the R data at 255 days. Dashed black line = 1485 K blackbody, NIR component, scaled to the K0 data at 254 days. Dotted purple line = 1485 K blackbody, NIR component, fit to the HK0 data at 301 days. Downward black arrow = 3σ upper limit of the gV bands at 255 days........................................ 47 3.4 Bolometric luminosity of SN 2008es compared with SN 2013hx. Circle (black) = optical component, diamond (red) = NIR component, square (green) = optical + NIR component, downward arrow = 3σ upper limit, upward arrow = 3σ lower limit, solid line (purple) = bolometric luminosity of SN 2013hx [102]... 51 3.5 Bolometric luminosity of SN 2008es with models of CSI and 56Ni powering. Circle (black) = optical component, diamond (red) = NIR component, square (green) = optical + NIR component, solid line with hourglass (orange) = 56Co decay, dotted line (purple) = CSMRAD1, solid line (black) = CSMRAD2, dashed line (grey) = CSMRAD3, dot-dot-dot-dash line (blue) = CSMRAD4.. 54 3.6 Bolometric luminosity of SN 2008es with magnetar spin-down model. Circle (black) = optical component, diamond (red) = NIR component, square (green) = optical + NIR component, solid line (black) = MAG1 and MAG2 (the lines overlap and cannot be distinguished), dot-dash line (purple) = fully-trapped magnetar spin-down fit from Chatzopoulos et al. [30] implemented by TigerFit. 59 4.1 EPIC-pn image of SN 2015bn (1000 red circle) in 0.3{10 keV X-rays at 805 days. Black = high counts. North is up and east is to the left. The red scale bar is 10 in length........................................ 64