arXiv subjects

Peter H. Hauschildt

Publications and source records attributed to Peter H. Hauschildt.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2006

Spectral Modeling of SNe Ia Near Maximum Light: Probing the Characteristics of Hydro Models

We have performed detailed NLTE spectral synthesis modeling of 2 types of 1-D hydro models: the very highly parameterized deflagration model W7, and two delayed detonation models. We find that overall both models do about equally well at fitting well observed SNe Ia near to maximum light. However, the Si II 6150 feature of W7 is systematically too fast, whereas for the delayed detonation models it is also somewhat too fast, but significantly better than that of W7. We find that a parameterized mixed model does the best job of reproducing the Si II 6150 line near maximum light and we study the differences in the models that lead to better fits to normal SNe Ia. We discuss what is required of a hydro model to fit the spectra of observed SNe Ia near maximum light.

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arXiv2006

A 3D radiative transfer framework: I. non-local operator splitting and continuum scattering problems

We describe a highly flexible framework to solve 3D radiation transfer problems in scattering dominated environments based on a long characteristics piece-wise parabolic formal solution and an operator splitting method. We find that the linear systems are efficiently solved with iterative solvers such as Gauss-Seidel and Jordan techniques. We use a sphere-in-a-box test model to compare the 3D results to 1D solutions in order to assess the accuracy of the method. We have implemented the method for static media, however, it can be used to solve problems in the Eulerian-frame for media with low velocity fields.

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arXiv2005

Type Ia Supernova Spectral Line Ratios as Luminosity Indicators

Type Ia supernovae have played a crucial role in the discovery of the dark energy, via the measurement of their light curves and the determination of the peak brightness via fitting templates to the observed lightcurve shape. Two spectroscopic indicators are also known to be well correlated with peak luminosity. Since the spectroscopic luminosity indicators are obtained directly from observed spectra, they will have different systematic errors than do measurements using photometry. Additionally, these spectroscopic indicators may be useful for studies of effects of evolution or age of the SNe Ia progenitor population. We present several new variants of such spectroscopic indicators which are easy to automate and which minimize the effects of noise. We show that these spectroscopic indicators can be measured by proposed JDEM missions such as SNAP and JEDI.

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arXiv2005

Quantitative Spectroscopy of Supernovae for Dark Energy Studies

Detailed quantitative spectroscopy of Type Ia supernovae (SNe~Ia) provides crucial information needed to minimize systematic effects in both ongoing SNe Ia observational programs such as the Nearby Supernova Factory, ESSENCE, and the SuperNova Legacy Survey (SNLS) and in proposed JDEM missions such as SNAP, JEDI, and DESTINY. Quantitative spectroscopy is mandatory to quantify and understand the observational strategy of comparing ``like versus like''. It allows us to explore evolutionary effects, from variations in progenitor metallicity to variations in progenitor age, to variations in dust with cosmological epoch. It also allows us to interpret and quantify the effects of asphericity, as well as different amounts of mixing in the thermonuclear explosion.

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arXiv2005

Phase-Dependent Properties of Extrasolar Planet Atmospheres

Recently the Spitzer Space Telescope observed the transiting extrasolar planets, TrES-1 and HD209458b. These observations have provided the first estimates of the day side thermal flux from two extrasolar planets orbiting Sun-like stars. In this paper, synthetic spectra from atmospheric models are compared to these observations. The day-night temperature difference is explored and phase-dependent flux densities are predicted for both planets. For HD209458b and TrES-1, models with significant day-to-night energy redistribution are required to reproduce the observations. However, the observational error bars are large and a range of models remains viable.

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arXiv2005

Low Temperature Opacities

Previous computations of low temperature Rosseland and Planck mean opacities from Alexander & Ferguson (1994) are updated and expanded. The new computations include a more complete equation of state with more grain species and updated optical constants. Grains are now explicitly included in thermal equilibrium in the equation of state calculation, which allows for a much wider range of grain compositions to be accurately included than was previously the case. The inclusion of high temperature condensates such as Al$_2$O$_3$ and CaTiO$_3$ significantly affects the total opacity over a narrow range of temperatures before the appearance of the first silicate grains. The new opacity tables are tabulated for temperatures ranging from 30000 K to 500 K with gas densities from 10$^{-4}$ g cm$^{-3}$ to 10$^{-19}$ g cm$^{-3}$. Comparisons with previous Rosseland mean opacity calculations are discussed. At high temperatures, the agreement with OPAL and Opacity Project is quite good. Comparisons at lower temperatures are more divergent as a result of differences in molecular and grain physics included in different calculations. The computation of Planck mean opacities performed with the opacity sampling method are shown to require a very large number of opacity sampling wavelength points; previously published results obtained with fewer wavelength points are shown to be significantly in error. Methods for requesting or obtaining the new tables are provided.

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arXiv2005

Evolutionary Stellar Population Synthesis at High Spectral Resolution: Optical Wavelengths

We present the single stellar population (SSP) synthesis results of our new synthetic stellar atmosphere models library with a spectral sampling of 0.3 A, covering the wavelength range from 3000 A to 7000 A for a wide range of metallicities (twice solar, solar, half and 1/10 solar). The stellar library is composed of 1650 spectra computed with the latest improvements in stellar atmospheres. In particular it incorporates non-LTE line-blanketed models for hot (Teff >= 27500 K) and LTE line-blanketed models (Phoenix) for cool (3000 K =< Teff =< 4500 K) stars. Because of the high spectral resolution of this library, evolutionary synthesis models can be used to predict the strength of numerous weak absorption lines, and the evolution of the profiles of the strongest lines over a wide range of ages. The SSP results have been calculated for ages 1 Myr to 17 Gyr using the stellar evolutionary provided by the Geneva and Padova-tracks groups. For young stellar populations, our results have a very detailed coverage of high-temperature stars with similar results for Padova and Geneva isochrones. For intermediate and old stellar populations, our results, once degraded to a lower resolution, are similar to the ones obtained by other groups apart from limitations imposed by the stellar evolutionary physics. The limitations and advantages of our library for the analysis of integrated populations are described. The full set of the stellar library and the evolutionary models are available for retrieval at the websites http://www.iaa.csic.es/~rosa and http://www.iaa.csic.es/~mcs/Sed@, or on request from the first two authors.

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arXiv2005

A High-Resolution Stellar Library for Evolutionary Population Synthesis

We present a library of 1654 high-resolution stellar spectra, with a sampling of 0.3 A and covering the wavelength range from 3000 A ~ to 7000 A The library was computed with the latest improvements in stellar atmospheres, incorporating non-LTE line-blanketed models for hot, massive (Teff >= 27500 K) and line-blanketed models for cool (3000 K =< Teff =< 4500 K) stars. The total coverage of the grid is 3000 K =< Teff =< 55000 K and -0.5 =< log g =< 5.5, for four chemical abundance values: twice solar, solar, half solar and 1/10 solar. Evolutionary synthesis models using this library are presented in a companion paper. We tested the general behavior of the library by calculating and comparing equivalent widths of numerous H and HeI lines, and some of the commonly used metallic indices. We also compared the library with the empirical libraries STELIB and Indo-US. The full set of the synthetic stellar spectra is available from our websites (http://www.iaa.csic.es/~rosa and http://www.astro.iag.usp.br/~lucimara/library.html).

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arXiv2005

Modeling CHANDRA Low Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer Observations of Classical Novae with PHOENIX

We use the PHOENIX code package to model the X-ray spectrum of Nova V4743 Sagittarii observed with the LETGS onboard the Chandra satellite on 19 March 2003. To analyze nova atmospheres and related systems with an underlying nuclear burning envelope at X-ray wavelengths, it was necessary to update the code with new microphysics. We demonstrate that the X-ray emission is dominated by thermal bremsstrahlung and that the hard X-rays are dominated by Fe and N absorption. Preliminary models are calculated assuming solar abundances. It is shown that the models can be used to determine element abundances in the nova ejecta by increasing the absorption in the shell.

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arXiv2005

Modelling Alkali Line Absorption and Molecular Bands in Cool DAZs

Two peculiar stars showing an apparent extremely broadened and strong NaI D absorption have been discovered in surveys for cool white dwarfs by Oppenheimer et al. (2001) and Harris et al. (SDSS, 2003). We discuss the nature of these objects using PHOENIX atmosphere models for metal-poor brown dwarfs/very low mass stars, and new white dwarf LTE and NLTE models for hydrogen- and helium-dominated atmospheres with metals. These include complete molecular formation in chemical equilibrium and a model for the alkali resonance line broadening based on the damping profiles of Allard et al. (2003), as well as new molecular line opacities for metal hydrides. First results of our calculations indicate good agreement with a hydrogen-dominated WD atmosphere with a Na abundance roughly consistent with a state of high accretion. We analyse deviations of the abundances of Na, K, Mg and Ca from the cosmic pattern and comment on implications of these results for standard accretion scenarios.

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arXiv2004

Modeling CHANDRA Low Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer Observations of Classical Novae with PHOENIX. I. V4743 Sagittarii

We use the PHOENIX code package to model the X-ray spectrum of Nova V4743 Sagittarii observed with the LETGS onboard the Chandra satellite on March 2003. Our atmosphere models are 1D spherical, expanding, line blanketed, and in full NLTE. To analyze nova atmospheres and related systems with an underlying nuclear burning envelope at X-ray wavelengths, it was necessary to update the code with new microphysics, as discussed in this paper. We demonstrate that the X-ray emission is dominated by thermal bremsstrahlung and that the hard X-rays are dominated by Fe and N absorption. The best fit to the observation is provided at a temperature of T_eff = 5.8 x 10^5 K, with L_bol = 50 000 L_sun. The models are calculated for solar abundances. It is shown that the models can be used to determine abundances in the nova ejecta.

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arXiv2004

Type IIP Supernovae as Cosmological Probes: A SEAM Distance to SN 1999em

Due to their intrinsic brightness, supernovae make excellent cosmological probes. We describe the SEAM method for obtaining distances to Type IIP supernovae (SNe IIP) and present a distance to SN 1999em for which a Cepheid distance exists. Our models give results consistent with the Cepheid distance, even though we have not attempted to tune the underlying hydrodynamical model, we have simply chosen the best fits. This is in contradistinction to the expanding photosphere method (EPM) which yields a distance to SN 1999em that is 50% smaller than the Cepheid distance. We emphasize the differences between SEAM and EPM. We show that the dilution factors used in the EPM analysis were systematically too small at later epochs. We also show that the EPM blackbody assumption is suspect. Since SNe IIP are visible to redshifts as high as z less than about 6, with the JWST, SEAM may be a valuable probe of the early universe.

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arXiv2004

Early Spectra of Supernovae

We briefly describe the current version of the PHOENIX code. We then present some results on the modeling of Type II supernovae and show that fits to observations can be obtained, when account is taken for spherically symmetric, line-blanketed, expanding atmospheres. We describe the SEAM method of obtaining distances to supernovae and briefly discuss its future prospects.

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arXiv2004

Co-moving frame radiative transfer in spherical media with arbitrary velocity fields

Recently, with the advances in computational speed and availability there has been a growth in the number and resolution of fully 3-D hydrodynamical simulations. However, all of these simulations are purely hydrodynamical and there has been little attempt to include the effects of radiative transfer except in a purely phenomenological manner because the computational cost is too large even for modern supercomputers. While there has been an effort to develop 3-D Monte Carlo radiative transfer codes, most of these have been for static atmospheres or have employed the Sobolev approximation, which limits their applicability to studying purely geometric effects such as macroscopic mixing. Also the computational requirements of Monte Carlo methods are such that it is difficult to couple with 3-D hydrodynamics. Here, we present an algorithm for calculating 1-D spherical radiative transfer in the presence of non-monotonic velocity fields in the co-moving frame. Non-monotonic velocity flows will occur in convective, and Raleigh--Taylor unstable flows, in flows with multiple shocks, and in pulsationally unstable stars such as Mira and Cepheids. This is a first step to developing fully 3-D radiative transfer than can be coupled with hydrodynamics. We present the computational method and the results of some test calculations.

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arXiv2004

Model Atmospheres for Irradiated Stars in pre-Cataclysmic Variables

Model atmospheres have been computed for M dwarfs that are strongly irradiated by nearby hot companions. A variety of primary and secondary spectral types are explored in addition to models specific to four known systems: GD 245, NN Ser, AA Dor, and UU Sge. This work demonstrates that a dramatic temperature inversion is possible on at least one hemisphere of an irradiated M dwarf and the emergent spectrum will be significantly different from an isolated M dwarf or a black body flux distribution. For the first time, synthetic spectra suitable for direct comparison to high-resolution observations of irradiated M dwarfs in non-mass transferring post-common envelope binaries are presented. The effects of departures from local thermodynamic equilibrium on the Balmer line profiles are also discussed.

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arXiv2004

Spectral Properties of Brown Dwarfs and Hot Jupiters

Brown dwarfs bridge the gap between the stellar and planetary mass regimes. Evolving from conditions very similar to the lowest-mass stars, the atmospheres of older brown dwarfs closely resemble those expected in close-in extrasolar giant planets, and with cooler BDs still being discovered, more and more approach the properties of gas giants at wider separation. Interpreting the spectra of BDs is therefore a crucial step towards understanding and predicting the spectral and thermal properties of EGPs. Essential properties of substellar atmospheres are massive molecular line-blanketing and the condensation of species with decreasing Teff, changing the chemical equilibrium composition and causing absorption from dust grains. More complex details involve the distribution of dust clouds over the surface giving rise to temporal variability, and possible deviations from chemical equilibrium conditions. In the case of close-in EGPs and some BDs in binary systems, the effect of irradiation from the primary significantly affects the spectral properties and thermal evolution.

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arXiv2004

Improved discretization of the wavelength derivative term in CMF operator splitting numerical radiative transfer

We describe two separate wavelength discretization schemes that can be used in the numerical solution of the comoving frame radiative transfer equation. We present an improved second order discretization scheme and show that it leads to significantly less numerical diffusion than previous scheme. We also show that due to the nature of the second order term in some extreme cases it can become numerically unstable. We stabilize the scheme by introducing a mixed discretization scheme and present the results from several test calculations.

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arXiv2003

Detectibility of Mixed Unburnt C+O in Type Ia Supernova Spectra

Motivated by recent 3-D calculations of the explosion of Type Ia supernova via a pure deflagration we calculate the observed spectra at 15-25 days past maximum light of a parameterized model which has a considerable fraction of unburnt C+O in the central regions. Rather than attempting a self consistent 3-D calculation, which is beyond the scope of current computer codes, we modify the composition structure of the 1-D deflagration model W7. In our exploratory parameterized calculations, we find that a central concentration of C+O is not ruled out by observations for the epochs we study. We briefly examine whether nebular phase spectra could be incompatible with observations.

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