Pre-collapse Properties of Superluminous Supernovae and Long Gamma-Ray Burst Progenitor Models

TL;DR

This study models rapidly rotating, low-metallicity stars to understand their potential as progenitors for superluminous supernovae and gamma-ray bursts, revealing complex, non-monotonic relationships between initial mass and explosion type.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed analysis of stellar models showing non-monotonic explodability and progenitor mass ranges for SLSNe and lGRBs, challenging previous assumptions.

Findings

Lower mass models favor SLSNe production.

Higher mass models tend to produce lGRBs.

Exceptions include lGRBs from stars as low as 10 M_sun and SLSNe from stars as massive as 30 M_sun.

Abstract

We analyze the properties of 42 rapidly rotating, low metallicity, quasi-chemically homogeneously evolving stellar models in the mass range between 4 and 45 $\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$ at the time of core collapse. Such models were proposed as progenitors for both superluminous supernovae (SLSNe) and long duration gamma-ray bursts (lGRBs), and the Type Ic-BL supernovae (SNe) that are associated with them. Our findings suggest that whether these models produce a magnetar driven SLSN explosion or a near-critically rotating black hole (BH) is not a monotonic function of the initial mass. Rather, their explodability varies non-monotonically depending on the late core evolution, once chemical homogeneity is broken. Using different explodability criteria we find that our models have a clear preference to produce SLSNe at lower masses, and lGRBs at higher masses; but find several exceptions, expecting lGRBs to form from stars as low as 10 $\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$, and SLSNe with progenitors as massive as 30 $\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$. In general, our models reproduce the predicted angular momenta, ejecta masses and magnetic field strengths at core collapse inferred for SLSNe and lGRBs, and suggest significant interaction with their circumstellar medium, particularly for explosions with low ejecta mass.