Neutrino signal from pair-instability supernovae

Warren P. Wright, Matthew S. Gilmer, Carla Fröhlich, and James P. Kneller
Phys. Rev. D 96, 103008 – Published 13 November 2017

Abstract

A very massive star with a carbon-oxygen core in the range of 64M<MCO<133M is expected to undergo a very different kind of explosion known as a pair-instability supernova. Pair-instability supernovae are candidates for superluminous supernovae due to the prodigious amounts of radioactive elements they create. While the basic mechanism for the explosion is understood, how a star reaches a state is not, and thus observations of a nearby pair-instability supernova would allow us to test current models of stellar evolution at the extreme of stellar masses. Much will be sought within the electromagnetic radiation we detect from such a supernova but we should not forget that the neutrinos from a pair-instability supernova contain unique signatures of the event that unambiguously identify this type of explosion. We calculate the expected neutrino flux at Earth from two, one-dimensional pair-instability supernova simulations which bracket the mass range of stars which explode by this mechanism taking into account the full time and energy dependence of the neutrino emission and the flavor evolution through the outer layers of the star. We calculate the neutrino signals in five different detectors chosen to represent present or near future designs. We find the more massive progenitors explode as pair-instability supernova which can easily be detected in multiple different neutrino detectors at the “standard” supernova distance of 10 kpc producing several events in DUNE, JUNO, and Super-Kamiokande, while the lightest progenitors produce only a handful of events (if any) in the same detectors. The proposed Hyper-Kamiokande detector would detect neutrinos from a large pair-instability supernova as far as 50kpc allowing it to reach the Megallanic Clouds and the several very high mass stars known to exist there.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
7 More
  • Received 21 June 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.96.103008

© 2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Gravitation, Cosmology & AstrophysicsParticles & FieldsNuclear Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Warren P. Wright*, Matthew S. Gilmer, Carla Fröhlich, and James P. Kneller§

  • Department of Physics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA

  • *wpwright@ncsu.edu
  • msgilmer@ncsu.edu
  • cfrohli@ncsu.edu
  • §jpknelle@ncsu.edu

Article Text (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

References (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 96, Iss. 10 — 15 November 2017

Reuse & Permissions
Access Options
CHORUS

Article Available via CHORUS

Download Accepted Manuscript
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review D

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×