학술논문
Intermediate-luminosity red transients: Spectrophotometric properties and connection to electron-capture supernova explosions
Document Type
Working Paper
Author
Cai, Y. -Z.; Pastorello, A.; Fraser, M.; Botticella, M. T.; Elias-Rosa, N.; Wang, L. -Z.; Kotak, R.; Benetti, S.; Cappellaro, E.; Turatto, M.; Reguitti, A.; Mattila, S.; Smartt, S. J.; Ashall, C.; Benitez, S.; Chen, T. -W.; Harutyunyan, A.; Kankare, E.; Lundqvist, P.; Mazzali, P. A.; Morales-Garoffolo, A.; Ochner, P.; Pignata, G.; Prentice, S. J.; Reynolds, T. M.; Shu, X. -W.; Stritzinger, M. D.; Tartaglia, L.; Terreran, G.; Tomasella, L.; Valenti, S.; Valerin, G.; Wang, G. -J.; Wang, X. -F.; Borsato, L.; Callis, E.; Cannizzaro, G.; Chen, S.; Congiu, E.; Ergon, M.; Galbany, L.; Gal-Yam, A.; Gao, X.; Gromadzki, M.; Holmbo, S.; Huang, F.; Inserra, C.; Itagaki, K.; Kostrzewa-Rutkowska, Z.; Maguire, K.; Margheim, S.; Moran, S.; Onori, F.; Carracedo, A. Sagués; Smith, K. W.; Sollerman, J.; Somero, A.; Wang, B.; Young, D. R.
Source
A&A 654, A157 (2021)
Subject
Language
Abstract
We present the spectroscopic and photometric study of five intermediate-luminosity red transients (ILRTs), namely AT 2010dn, AT 2012jc, AT 2013la, AT 2013lb, and AT 2018aes. They share common observational properties and belong to a family of objects similar to the prototypical ILRT SN~2008S. These events have a rise time that is less than 15 days and absolute peak magnitudes of between $-11.5$ and $-14.5$ mag. Their pseudo-bolometric light curves peak in the range $0.5$ - $9.0 \times10^{40}~\mathrm{erg~s}^{-1}$ and their total radiated energies are on the order of (0.3 - 3) $\times$~10$^{47}$~erg. After maximum brightness, the light curves show a monotonic decline or a plateau, resembling those of faint supernovae IIL or IIP, respectively. At late phases, the light curves flatten, roughly following the slope of the $^{56}$Co decay. If the late-time power source is indeed radioactive decay, these transients produce $^{56}$Ni masses on the order of $10^{-4}$ to $10^{-3}$~\msun. The spectral energy distribution of our ILRT sample, extending from the optical to the mid-infrared (MIR) domain, reveals a clear IR excess soon after explosion and non-negligible MIR emission at very late phases. The spectra show prominent H lines in emission with a typical velocity of a few hundred km~s$^{-1}$, along with Ca~II features. In particular, the [Ca~II] $\lambda$7291,7324 doublet is visible at all times, which is a characteristic feature for this family of transients. The identified progenitor of SN~2008S, which is luminous in archival Spitzer MIR images, suggests an intermediate-mass precursor star embedded in a dusty cocoon. We propose the explosion of a super-asymptotic giant branch star forming an electron-capture supernova as a plausible explanation for these events.
Comment: 31 pages, 17 figures; accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics
Comment: 31 pages, 17 figures; accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics