Charged-current neutrino interactions in core-collapse supernovae in a virial expansion

C. J. Horowitz, G. Shen, Evan O’Connor, and Christian D. Ott
Phys. Rev. C 86, 065806 – Published 20 December 2012

Abstract

Core-collapse supernovae may depend sensitively on charged-current neutrino interactions in warm, low-density, neutron-rich matter. A proton in neutron-rich matter is more tightly bound than is a neutron. This energy shift ΔU increases the electron energy in νe+np+e, increasing the available phase space and absorption cross section. Likewise ΔU decreases the positron energy in ν¯e+pn+e+, decreasing the phase space and cross section. We have calculated ΔU using a model-independent virial expansion and we find that ΔU is much larger, at low densities, than the predictions of many mean-field models. Therefore ΔU could have a significant impact on charged-current neutrino interactions in supernovae. Preliminary simulations of the accretion phase of core-collapse supernovae find that ΔU increases ν¯e energies and decreases the νe luminosity.

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  • Received 14 September 2012

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.86.065806

©2012 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

C. J. Horowitz1,*, G. Shen2,†, Evan O’Connor3,4, and Christian D. Ott3

  • 1Department of Physics and CEEM, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, USA
  • 2Institute for Nuclear Theory, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
  • 3TAPIR, Mailcode 350-17, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
  • 4Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, 60 St. George Street, University of Toronto, Ontario M5S 3H8, Canada

  • *horowit@indiana.edu
  • gshen@u.washington.edu

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Issue

Vol. 86, Iss. 6 — December 2012

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