Exploding Core-Collapse Supernovae with Jittering Jets

TL;DR

This paper proposes a model where rapidly changing jets launched by a neutron star in a core-collapse supernova deposit energy via shock waves, leading to the star's explosion through a feedback mechanism.

Contribution

It introduces the jittering jets explosion mechanism, highlighting how rapidly changing jets can effectively deposit energy and cause supernova explosions.

Findings

Jets deposit energy inside the star via shock waves.

Hot bubbles formed by jets accelerate and explode the star.

The model explains how jets are prevented from escaping without exploding the star.

Abstract

We argue that jittering jets, i.e., jets that have their launching direction rapidly change, launched by the newly formed neutron star in a core collapse supernova can explode the star. We show that under a wide range of parameters the fast narrow jets deposit their energy inside the star via shock waves, and form two hot bubbles, that eventually merge, accelerate the rest of the star and lead to the explosion. To prevent the jets from penetrating through the collapsing stellar core and escape with their energy, instead of forming the hot bubbles, the jets should be prevented from drilling a hole through the star. This condition can be met if the jets' axis rapidly changes its direction. This process of depositing jets' energy into the ambient medium is termed the it penetrating jet feedback mechanism. The feedback exists in that the neutron star (or a black hole) at the center of the core collapse supernova shuts off its own growth by exploding the star. The jets deposit their energy at a distance of 1000 km from the center and expel the mass above that radius. In our model, the material near the stalled shock at several hundreds kilometers from the center is not expelled, but it is rather accreted and feed the accretion disk that blows the jets. The neutrinos might influence the accretion flow, but in the proposed model their role in exploding the star is small.