A Precursor Plateau and Pre-Maximum [O II] Emission in the Superluminous SN2019szu: A Pulsational Pair-Instability Candidate

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Main Authors: Aamer, Aysha, Nicholl, Matt, Jerkstrand, Anders, Gomez, Sebastian, Oates, Samantha R., Smartt, Stephen J., Srivastav, Shubham, Leloudas, Giorgos, Anderson, Joseph P., Berger, Edo, de Boer, Thomas, Chambers, Kenneth, Chen, Ting-Wan, Galbany, Lluís, Gao, Hua, Gompertz, Benjamin P., González-Bañuelos, Maider, Gromadzki, Mariusz, Gutiérrez, Claudia P., Inserra, Cosimo, Lowe, Thomas B., Magnier, Eugene A., Mazzali, Paolo A., Moore, Thomas, Müller-Bravo, Tomás E., Pursiainen, Miika, Rest, Armin, Schulze, Steve, Smith, Ken W., Terwel, Jacco H., Wainscoat, Richard, Young, David R.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2023
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author Aamer, Aysha
Nicholl, Matt
Jerkstrand, Anders
Gomez, Sebastian
Oates, Samantha R.
Smartt, Stephen J.
Srivastav, Shubham
Leloudas, Giorgos
Anderson, Joseph P.
Berger, Edo
de Boer, Thomas
Chambers, Kenneth
Chen, Ting-Wan
Galbany, Lluís
Gao, Hua
Gompertz, Benjamin P.
González-Bañuelos, Maider
Gromadzki, Mariusz
Gutiérrez, Claudia P.
Inserra, Cosimo
Lowe, Thomas B.
Magnier, Eugene A.
Mazzali, Paolo A.
Moore, Thomas
Müller-Bravo, Tomás E.
Pursiainen, Miika
Rest, Armin
Schulze, Steve
Smith, Ken W.
Terwel, Jacco H.
Wainscoat, Richard
Young, David R.
author_facet Aamer, Aysha
Nicholl, Matt
Jerkstrand, Anders
Gomez, Sebastian
Oates, Samantha R.
Smartt, Stephen J.
Srivastav, Shubham
Leloudas, Giorgos
Anderson, Joseph P.
Berger, Edo
de Boer, Thomas
Chambers, Kenneth
Chen, Ting-Wan
Galbany, Lluís
Gao, Hua
Gompertz, Benjamin P.
González-Bañuelos, Maider
Gromadzki, Mariusz
Gutiérrez, Claudia P.
Inserra, Cosimo
Lowe, Thomas B.
Magnier, Eugene A.
Mazzali, Paolo A.
Moore, Thomas
Müller-Bravo, Tomás E.
Pursiainen, Miika
Rest, Armin
Schulze, Steve
Smith, Ken W.
Terwel, Jacco H.
Wainscoat, Richard
Young, David R.
contents We present a detailed study on SN2019szu, a Type I superluminous supernova at $z=0.213$, that displayed unique photometric and spectroscopic properties. Pan-STARRS and ZTF forced photometry shows a pre-explosion plateau lasting $\sim$ 40 days. Unlike other SLSNe that show decreasing photospheric temperatures with time, the optical colours show an apparent temperature increase from $\sim$15000 K to $\sim$20000 K over the first 70 days, likely caused by an additional pseudo-continuum in the spectrum. Remarkably, the spectrum displays a forbidden emission line even during the rising phase of the light curve, inconsistent with an apparently compact photosphere. We show that this early feature is [O II] $λλ$7320,7330. We also see evidence for [O III] $λλ$4959, 5007, and [O III] $λ$4363 further strengthening this line identification. Comparing with models for nebular emission, we find that the oxygen line fluxes and ratios can be reproduced with $\sim$0.25 M$_{\odot}$ of oxygen rich material with a density of $\sim10^{-15} \rm{g cm}^{-3}$. The low density suggests a circumstellar origin, but the early onset of the emission lines requires that this material was ejected within the final months before the terminal explosion, consistent with the timing of the precursor plateau. Interaction with denser material closer to the explosion likely produced the pseudo-continuum bluewards of $\sim$5500 Å. We suggest that this event is one of the best candidates to date for a pulsational pair-instability ejection, with early pulses providing the low density material needed for the forbidden emission line, and collisions between the final shells of ejected material producing the pre-explosion plateau.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2307_02487
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A Precursor Plateau and Pre-Maximum [O II] Emission in the Superluminous SN2019szu: A Pulsational Pair-Instability Candidate
Aamer, Aysha
Nicholl, Matt
Jerkstrand, Anders
Gomez, Sebastian
Oates, Samantha R.
Smartt, Stephen J.
Srivastav, Shubham
Leloudas, Giorgos
Anderson, Joseph P.
Berger, Edo
de Boer, Thomas
Chambers, Kenneth
Chen, Ting-Wan
Galbany, Lluís
Gao, Hua
Gompertz, Benjamin P.
González-Bañuelos, Maider
Gromadzki, Mariusz
Gutiérrez, Claudia P.
Inserra, Cosimo
Lowe, Thomas B.
Magnier, Eugene A.
Mazzali, Paolo A.
Moore, Thomas
Müller-Bravo, Tomás E.
Pursiainen, Miika
Rest, Armin
Schulze, Steve
Smith, Ken W.
Terwel, Jacco H.
Wainscoat, Richard
Young, David R.
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
We present a detailed study on SN2019szu, a Type I superluminous supernova at $z=0.213$, that displayed unique photometric and spectroscopic properties. Pan-STARRS and ZTF forced photometry shows a pre-explosion plateau lasting $\sim$ 40 days. Unlike other SLSNe that show decreasing photospheric temperatures with time, the optical colours show an apparent temperature increase from $\sim$15000 K to $\sim$20000 K over the first 70 days, likely caused by an additional pseudo-continuum in the spectrum. Remarkably, the spectrum displays a forbidden emission line even during the rising phase of the light curve, inconsistent with an apparently compact photosphere. We show that this early feature is [O II] $λλ$7320,7330. We also see evidence for [O III] $λλ$4959, 5007, and [O III] $λ$4363 further strengthening this line identification. Comparing with models for nebular emission, we find that the oxygen line fluxes and ratios can be reproduced with $\sim$0.25 M$_{\odot}$ of oxygen rich material with a density of $\sim10^{-15} \rm{g cm}^{-3}$. The low density suggests a circumstellar origin, but the early onset of the emission lines requires that this material was ejected within the final months before the terminal explosion, consistent with the timing of the precursor plateau. Interaction with denser material closer to the explosion likely produced the pseudo-continuum bluewards of $\sim$5500 Å. We suggest that this event is one of the best candidates to date for a pulsational pair-instability ejection, with early pulses providing the low density material needed for the forbidden emission line, and collisions between the final shells of ejected material producing the pre-explosion plateau.
title A Precursor Plateau and Pre-Maximum [O II] Emission in the Superluminous SN2019szu: A Pulsational Pair-Instability Candidate
topic High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2307.02487