Modeling the Light Curve and Spectra of SN 2023aew

Abstract

We propose that the delayed conversion of a neutron star (NS) into either a quark star (QS) or a hybrid star (HS), occurring approximately 105-109 days after the supernova (SN) explosion, injects ~ 2e49 erg of thermal energy into the expanded SN ejecta. This energy, delivered over ~ 40 days via a quark-nova (QN) shock or the spin-down power of the HS, can reproduce the photometric and spectral features observed in SN 2023aew. In this model, the first light curve peak corresponds to the 56Ni-powered SN resulting from a stripped-envelope progenitor with a zero-age main sequence mass of at least ~ (15-16)M_sun. The plateau between the two peaks may result from interaction between the SN ejecta and circumstellar material (CSM). Alternatively, it could be explained by the spin-down power of the NS prior to its conversion into a highly magnetized HS, which is responsible for powering the second bump. A scenario involving two phases of spin-down power - first from the NS and later from the HS - is compelling and supports the hypothesis that some magnetars are, in fact, HSs. These HSs acquire their ultra-strong magnetic fields through a quark matter phase capable of sustaining core fields on the order of ~ 1e18 G. In our model, the spin-down energy of the HS powers the QN ejecta - the outermost layers of the NS - before this energy is transferred to the expanded SN ejecta. This process produces luminous fast blue optical transients (LFBOTs). The model establishes a potential connection between superluminous SNe (SLSNe) and LFBOTs, with significant implications for high-energy astrophysics and the r-process nucleosynthesis of heavy elements. Potential consequences for Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) are also discussed.