Possible Circumstellar Interaction Origin of the Early Excess Emission in Thermonuclear Supernovae

TL;DR

This study models the early excess emission in Type Ia supernovae using ejecta-CSM interaction, fitting observed light curves and predicting radio signals to probe progenitor systems.

Contribution

It introduces a CSM interaction model to explain early light curve excesses and predicts radio emission signatures, enhancing understanding of supernova progenitors.

Findings

CSM interaction explains early optical/UV excess in most SNe Ia.

Radio emission detection is feasible within days post-explosion at high frequencies.

UV excess in iPTF14atg may not be due to ejecta-CSM interaction.

Abstract

Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) arise from the thermonuclear explosion in binary systems involving carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (WDs). The pathway of WDs acquiring mass may produce circumstellar material (CSM). Observing SNe Ia within a few hours to a few days after the explosion can provide insight into the nature of CSM relating to the progenitor systems. In this paper, we propose a CSM model to investigate the effect of ejecta-CSM interaction on the early-time multi-band light curves of SNe Ia. By varying the mass-loss history of the progenitor system, we apply the ejecta-CSM interaction model to fit the optical and ultraviolet (UV) photometric data of eight SNe Ia with early excess. The photometric data of SNe Ia in our sample can be well-matched by our CSM model except for the UV-band light curve of iPTF14atg, indicating its early excess may not be due to the ejecta-CSM interaction. Meanwhile, the CSM interaction can generate synchrotron radiation from relativistic electrons in the shocked gas, making radio observations a distinctive probe of CSM. The radio luminosity based on our models suggests that positive detection of the radio signal is only possible within a few days after the explosion at higher radio frequencies (e.g., ~250 GHz); at lower frequencies (e.g., ~1.5 GHz) the detection is difficult. These models lead us to conclude that a multi-messenger approach that involves UV, optical, and radio observations of SNe Ia a few days past explosion is needed to address many of the outstanding questions concerning the progenitor systems of SNe Ia.