Blue Large-Amplitude Pulsators: the Possible Surviving Companions of Type Ia Supernovae

TL;DR

This paper proposes that blue large-amplitude pulsators (BLAPs) could be surviving companions of Type Ia supernovae, supporting the single degenerate progenitor model and offering a new explanation for certain hot subdwarf stars.

Contribution

It demonstrates that BLAPs can be explained as surviving companions of SNe Ia, providing evidence for the SD model and suggesting a new formation channel for single hot subdwarfs.

Findings

BLAP properties match those expected of surviving SN Ia companions

BLAPs could be the long-sought surviving companions of SNe Ia

A new formation channel for single hot subdwarfs is proposed

Abstract

The single degenerate (SD) model, one of the leading models for the progenitors of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), predicts that there should be binary companions that survive the supernova explosion which, in principle, should be detectable in the Galaxy. The discovery of such surviving companions could therefore provide conclusive support for the SD model. Several years ago, a new type of mysterious variables was discovered, the so-called blue large-amplitude pulsators (BLAPs). Here we show that all the properties of BLAPs can be reasonably well reproduced if they are indeed such surviving companions, in contrast to other proposed channels. This suggests that BLAPs could potentially be the long-sought surviving companions of SNe Ia. Our model also predicts a new channel for forming single hot subdwarf stars, consistent with a small group in the present hot-subdwarf-star sample.