56Ni, Explosive Nucleosynthesis, and SNe Ia Diversity

TL;DR

This paper explores how the amount of 56Ni produced in Type Ia supernovae influences their brightness and examines factors affecting 56Ni synthesis, including stellar populations and progenitor differences.

Contribution

It identifies key factors influencing 56Ni production in SNe Ia and combines observational and theoretical insights to understand supernova diversity.

Findings

Peak luminosity correlates with 56Ni mass.

Variations in stellar populations affect 56Ni yields.

Progenitor differences influence supernova brightness.

Abstract

The origin of the iron-group elements titanium to zinc in nature is understood to occur under explosive burning conditions in both Type Ia (thermonuclear) and Type II (core collapse) supernovae. In these dynamic environments, the most abundant product is found to be 56Ni ({\tau} = 8.5 days) that decays through 56Co ({\tau} = 111.5 days) to 56Fe. For the case of SNe Ia, the peak luminosities are proportional to the mass ejected in the form of 56Ni. It follows that the diversity of SNe Ia reflected in the range of peak luminosity provides a direct measure of the mass of 56Ni ejected. In this contribution, we identify and briefly discuss the factors that can influence the 56Ni mass and use both observations and theory to quantify their impact. We address specifically the variations in different stellar populations and possible distinctions with respect to SNe Ia progenitors.