Emission line models for the lowest mass core-collapse supernovae -- II. 3D NLTE radiative transfer modelling of a $9.0\,M_\odot$ neutrino-driven explosion

TL;DR

This study employs advanced 3D NLTE radiative transfer modeling to analyze emission line profiles in low-mass core-collapse supernovae, revealing asymmetries and element distributions that match observations.

Contribution

It introduces a full 3D NLTE radiative transfer code, ExTraSS, applied to a 9 solar mass supernova model, enabling detailed spectral predictions and asymmetry analysis.

Findings

Model spectra match observations of SN 1997D and SN 2016bkv.

Line profiles vary with viewing angle, indicating explosion asymmetries.

Fastest $^{56}$Ni is detectable in nebular phase line profiles.

Abstract

The nebular phase of a supernova (SN) occurs several months to years after the explosion, with asymmetries created by the explosion encoded into the line profiles of the emission lines. To make accurate predictions for these line profiles, Non-Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (NLTE) radiative transfer calculations need to be carried out. In this work, we use $\texttt{ExTraSS}$ (EXplosive TRAnsient Spectral Simulator) -- which was recently upgraded into a full 3D NLTE radiative transfer code (including photoionization and line-by-line transfer effects) -- to perform such calculations. $\texttt{ExTraSS}$ is applied to a 3D explosion model of a $9.0\,M_\odot$ H-rich progenitor, evolved into the homologous phase. Synthetic spectra are computed and lines from different elements are studied for varying viewing angles. Line profile properties strongly correlate with a primary Ni plume in the ejecta. The model spectra are compared against observations of SN 1997D and SN 2016bkv. The model can create good line profile matches for both SNe, and reasonable luminosity matches for He, C, O, and Mg lines for SN 1997D -- however H$\alpha$ and Fe I lines are too strong. Key diagnostic lines of low-mass core-collapse SNe (CCSNe), e.g. differentiating Fe CCSNe from electron capture SNe, are upheld from 1D to 3D. However, both line profiles and line luminosities differ in 3D across viewing angles, enabling the possibility of detailed comparisons to observed spectra to infer asymmetries imprinted by the explosion. We show that even the fastest $^{56}$Ni is traceable in nebular phase line profiles.