arXiv subjects

Philippe Rosnet

Publications and source records attributed to Philippe Rosnet.

18 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

How accurate are transient spectral classification tools? -- A study using 4,646 SEDMachine spectra

Accurate classification of transients obtained from spectroscopic data are important to understand their nature and discover new classes of astronomical objects. For supernovae (SNe), SNID, NGSF (a Python version of SuperFit), and DASH are widely used in the community. Each tool provides its own metric to help determine classification, such as rlap of SNID, chi2/dof of NGSF, and Probability of DASH. However, we do not know how accurate these tools are, and they have not been tested with a large homogeneous dataset. Thus, in this work, we study the accuracy of these spectral classification tools using 4,646 SEDMachine spectra, which have accurate classifications obtained from the Zwicky Transient Facility Bright Transient Survey (BTS). Comparing our classifications with those from BTS, we have tested the classification accuracy in various ways. We find that NGSF has the best performance (overall Accuracy 87.6% when samples are split into SNe Ia and Non-Ia types), while SNID and DASH have similar performance with overall Accuracy of 79.3% and 76.2%, respectively. Specifically for SNe Ia, SNID can accurately classify them when rlap > 15 without contamination from other types, such as Ibc, II, SLSN, and other objects that are not SNe (Purity > 98%). For other types, determining their classification is often uncertain. We conclude that it is difficult to obtain an accurate classification from these tools alone. This results in additional human visual inspection effort being required in order to confirm the classification. To reduce this human visual inspection and to support the classification process for future large-scale surveys, this work provides supporting information, such as the accuracy of each tool as a function of its metric.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2024

ZTF SN Ia DR2: Overview

We present the first homogeneous release of several thousand Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), all having spectroscopic classification, and spectroscopic redshifts for half the sample. This release, named the "DR2", contains 3628 nearby (z < 0.3) SNe Ia discovered, followed and classified by the Zwicky Transient Facility survey between March 2018 and December 2020. Of these, 3000 have good-to-excellent sampling and 2667 pass standard cosmology light-curve quality cuts. This release is thus the largest SN Ia release to date, increasing by an order of magnitude the number of well characterized low-redshift objects. With the "DR2", we also provide a volume-limited (z < 0.06) sample of nearly a thousand SNe Ia. With such a large, homogeneous and well controlled dataset, we are studying key current questions on SN cosmology, such as the linearity SNe Ia standardization, the SN and host dependencies, the diversity of the SN Ia population, and the accuracy of the current light-curve modeling. These, and more, are studied in detail in a series of articles associated with this release. Alongside the SN Ia parameters, we publish our force-photometry gri-band light curves, 5138 spectra, local and global host properties, observing logs, and a python tool to ease use and access of these data. The photometric accuracy of the "DR2" is not yet suited for cosmological parameter inference, which will follow as "DR2.5" release. We nonetheless demonstrate that the multi-thousand SN Ia Hubble Diagram has a typical 0.15 mag scatter.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2024

The influence of environmental effects on Type Ia Supernovae Standardization

Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) are used as reliable cosmic distance indicators and their standardization is necessary for a more accurate measurement of the cosmological parameters of the Universe. However, the Hubble diagram still shows some intrinsic dispersion, potentially influenced by the supernova's environment. In this study, we reproduce the Hubble diagram fit for the Pantheon supernova sample, and also investigate the possibility of introducing various standardization equations for supernovae exploded in early- and late-type galaxies. We analyze 330 Pantheon SNe Ia to study how host galaxy morphology affects their standardization. We find that SNe Ia hosted by early-type galaxies have different standardization parameters compared to those hosted by late-type galaxies. We conclude that correcting supernova luminosity for host galaxy morphology is essential to perform the precise cosmological analysis.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2023

Growth-rate measurement with type-Ia supernovae using ZTF survey simulations

Measurements of the growth rate of structures at $z < 0.1$ with peculiar velocity surveys have the potential of testing the validity of general relativity on cosmic scales. In this work, we present growth-rate measurements from realistic simulated sets of type-Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF). We describe our simulation methodology, the light-curve fitting and peculiar velocity estimation. Using the maximum likelihood method, we derive constraints on $fσ_8$ using only ZTF SN Ia peculiar velocities. We carefully tested the method and we quantified biases due to selection effects (photometric detection, spectroscopic follow-up for typing) on several independent realizations. We simulated the equivalent of 6 years of ZTF data, and considering an unbiased spectroscopically typed sample at $z < 0.06$, we obtained unbiased estimates of $fσ_8$ with an average uncertainty of 19% precision. We also investigated the information gain in applying bias correction methods. Our results validate our framework which can be used on real ZTF data.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2022

A light in the dark: searching for electromagnetic counterparts to black hole-black hole mergers in LIGO/Virgo O3 with the Zwicky Transient Facility

The accretion disks of active galactic nuclei (AGN) are promising locations for the merger of compact objects detected by gravitational wave (GW) observatories. Embedded within a baryon-rich, high density environment, mergers within AGN are the only GW channel where an electromagnetic (EM) counterpart must occur (whether detectable or not). Considering AGN with unusual flaring activity observed by the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), we describe a search for candidate EM counterparts to binary black hole (BBH) mergers detected by LIGO/Virgo in O3. After removing probable false positives, we find nine candidate counterparts to BBH mergers mergers during O3 (seven in O3a, two in O3b) with a $p$-value of 0.019. Based on ZTF sky coverage, AGN geometry, and merger geometry, we expect $\approx 3(N_{\rm BBH}/83)(f_{\rm AGN}/0.5)$ potentially detectable EM counterparts from O3, where $N_{\rm BBH}$ is the total number of observed BBH mergers and $f_{\rm AGN}$ is the fraction originating in AGN. Further modeling of breakout and flaring phenomena in AGN disks is required to reduce our false positive rate. Two of the events are also associated with mergers with total masses $> 100M_\odot$, which is the expected rate for O3 if hierarchical (large mass) mergers occur in the AGN channel. Candidate EM counterparts in future GW observing runs can be better constrained by coverage of the Southern sky as well as spectral monitoring of unusual AGN flaring events in LIGO/Virgo alert volumes. A future set of reliable AGN EM counterparts to BBH mergers will yield an independent means of measuring cosmic expansion ($H_0$) as a function of redshift.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2022

SNIascore: Deep Learning Classification of Low-Resolution Supernova Spectra

We present SNIascore, a deep-learning based method for spectroscopic classification of thermonuclear supernovae (SNe Ia) based on very low-resolution (R $\sim100$) data. The goal of SNIascore is fully automated classification of SNe Ia with a very low false-positive rate (FPR) so that human intervention can be greatly reduced in large-scale SN classification efforts, such as that undertaken by the public Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) Bright Transient Survey (BTS). We utilize a recurrent neural network (RNN) architecture with a combination of bidirectional long short-term memory and gated recurrent unit layers. SNIascore achieves a $<0.6\%$ FPR while classifying up to $90\%$ of the low-resolution SN Ia spectra obtained by the BTS. SNIascore simultaneously performs binary classification and predicts the redshifts of secure SNe Ia via regression (with a typical uncertainty of $<0.005$ in the range from $z = 0.01$ to $z = 0.12$). For the magnitude-limited ZTF BTS survey ($\approx70\%$ SNe Ia), deploying SNIascore reduces the amount of spectra in need of human classification or confirmation by $\approx60\%$. Furthermore, SNIascore allows SN Ia classifications to be automatically announced in real-time to the public immediately following a finished observation during the night.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

In search of short gamma-ray burst optical counterpart with the Zwicky Transient Facility

The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) triggers on-board in response to $\sim$ 40 short gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs) per year; however, their large localization regions have made the search for optical counterparts a challenging endeavour. We have developed and executed an extensive program with the wide field of view of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) camera, mounted on the Palomar 48 inch Oschin telescope (P48), to perform target-of-opportunity (ToO) observations on 10 Fermi-GBM SGRBs during 2018 and 2020-2021. Bridging the large sky areas with small field of view optical telescopes in order to track the evolution of potential candidates, we look for the elusive SGRB afterglows and kilonovae (KNe) associated with these high-energy events. No counterpart has yet been found, even though more than 10 ground based telescopes, part of the Global Relay of Observatories Watching Transients Happen (GROWTH) network, have taken part in these efforts. The candidate selection procedure and the follow-up strategy have shown that ZTF is an efficient instrument for searching for poorly localized SGRBs, retrieving a reasonable number of candidates to follow-up and showing promising capabilities as the community approaches the multi-messenger era. Based on the median limiting magnitude of ZTF, our searches would have been able to retrieve a GW170817-like event up to $\sim$ 200 Mpc and SGRB afterglows to z = 0.16 or 0.4, depending on the assumed underlying energy model. Future ToOs will expand the horizon to z = 0.2 and 0.7 respectively.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2022

The Type Icn SN 2021csp: Implications for the Origins of the Fastest Supernovae and the Fates of Wolf-Rayet Stars

We present observations of SN 2021csp, the second example of a newly-identified type of supernova (Type Icn) hallmarked by strong, narrow, P Cygni carbon features at early times. The SN appears as a fast and luminous blue transient at early times, reaching a peak absolute magnitude of -20 within 3 days due to strong interaction between fast SN ejecta (v ~ 30000 km/s) and a massive, dense, fast-moving C/O wind shed by the WC-like progenitor months before explosion. The narrow line features disappear from the spectrum 10-20 days after explosion and are replaced by a blue continuum dominated by broad Fe features, reminiscent of Type Ibn and IIn supernovae and indicative of weaker interaction with more extended H/He-poor material. The transient then abruptly fades ~60 days post-explosion when interaction ceases. Deep limits at later phases suggest minimal heavy-element nucleosynthesis, a low ejecta mass, or both, and imply an origin distinct from that of classical Type Ic supernovae. We place SN 2021csp in context with other fast-evolving interacting transients, and discuss various progenitor scenarios: an ultrastripped progenitor star, a pulsational pair-instability eruption, or a jet-driven fallback supernova from a Wolf-Rayet star. The fallback scenario would naturally explain the similarity between these events and radio-loud fast transients, and suggests a picture in which most stars massive enough to undergo a WR phase collapse directly to black holes at the end of their lives.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

Discovery and confirmation of the shortest gamma ray burst from a collapsar

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are among the brightest and most energetic events in the universe. The duration and hardness distribution of GRBs has two clusters, now understood to reflect (at least) two different progenitors. Short-hard GRBs (SGRBs; T90 <2 s) arise from compact binary mergers, while long-soft GRBs (LGRBs; T90 >2 s) have been attributed to the collapse of peculiar massive stars (collapsars). The discovery of SN 1998bw/GRB 980425 marked the first association of a LGRB with a collapsar and AT 2017gfo/GRB 170817A/GW170817 marked the first association of a SGRB with a binary neutron star merger, producing also gravitational wave (GW). Here, we present the discovery of ZTF20abwysqy (AT2020scz), a fast-fading optical transient in the Fermi Satellite and the InterPlanetary Network (IPN) localization regions of GRB 200826A; X-ray and radio emission further confirm that this is the afterglow. Follow-up imaging (at rest-frame 16.5 days) reveals excess emission above the afterglow that cannot be explained as an underlying kilonova (KN), but is consistent with being the supernova (SN). Despite the GRB duration being short (rest-frame T90 of 0.65 s), our panchromatic follow-up data confirms a collapsar origin. GRB 200826A is the shortest LGRB found with an associated collapsar; it appears to sit on the brink between a successful and a failed collapsar. Our discovery is consistent with the hypothesis that most collapsars fail to produce ultra-relativistic jets.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

Bright, months-long stellar outbursts announce the explosion of interaction-powered supernovae

Interaction-powered supernovae (SNe) explode within an optically-thick circumstellar medium (CSM) that could be ejected during eruptive events. To identify and characterize such pre-explosion outbursts we produce forced-photometry light curves for 196 interacting SNe, mostly of Type IIn, detected by the Zwicky Transient Facility between early 2018 and June 2020. Extensive tests demonstrate that we only expect a few false detections among the 70,000 analyzed pre-explosion images after applying quality cuts and bias corrections. We detect precursor eruptions prior to 18 Type IIn SNe and prior to the Type Ibn SN2019uo. Precursors become brighter and more frequent in the last months before the SN and month-long outbursts brighter than magnitude -13 occur prior to 25% (5 - 69%, 95% confidence range) of all Type IIn SNe within the final three months before the explosion. With radiative energies of up to $10^{49}\,\text{erg}$, precursors could eject $\sim1\,\text{M}_\odot$ of material. Nevertheless, SNe with detected precursors are not significantly more luminous than other SNe IIn and the characteristic narrow hydrogen lines in their spectra typically originate from earlier, undetected mass-loss events. The long precursor durations require ongoing energy injection and they could, for example, be powered by interaction or by a continuum-driven wind. Instabilities during the neon and oxygen burning phases are predicted to launch precursors in the final years to months before the explosion; however, the brightest precursor is 100 times more energetic than anticipated.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

The ZTF Source Classification Project: I. Methods and Infrastructure

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) has been observing the entire northern sky since the start of 2018 down to a magnitude of 20.5 ($5 σ$ for 30s exposure) in $g$, $r$, and $i$ filters. Over the course of two years, ZTF has obtained light curves of more than a billion sources, each with 50-1000 epochs per light curve in $g$ and $r$, and fewer in $i$. To be able to use the information contained in the light curves of variable sources for new scientific discoveries, an efficient and flexible framework is needed to classify them. In this paper, we introduce the methods and infrastructure which will be used to classify all ZTF light curves. Our approach aims to be flexible and modular and allows the use of a dynamical classification scheme and labels, continuously evolving training sets, and the use of different machine learning classifier types and architectures. With this setup, we are able to continuously update and improve the classification of ZTF light curves as new data becomes available, training samples are updated, and new classes need to be incorporated.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

Optical follow-up of the neutron star-black hole mergers S200105ae and S200115j

LIGO and Virgo's third observing run (O3) revealed the first neutron star-black hole (NSBH) merger candidates in gravitational waves. These events are predicted to synthesize r-process elements creating optical/near-IR "kilonova" (KN) emission. The joint gravitational-wave (GW) and electromagnetic detection of an NSBH merger could be used to constrain the equation of state of dense nuclear matter, and independently measure the local expansion rate of the universe. Here, we present the optical follow-up and analysis of two of the only three high-significance NSBH merger candidates detected to date, S200105ae and S200115j, with the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF). ZTF observed $\sim$\,48\% of S200105ae and $\sim$\,22\% of S200115j's localization probabilities, with observations sensitive to KNe brighter than $-$17.5\,mag fading at 0.5\,mag/day in g- and r-bands; extensive searches and systematic follow-up of candidates did not yield a viable counterpart. We present state-of-the-art KN models tailored to NSBH systems that place constraints on the ejecta properties of these NSBH mergers. We show that with depths of $\rm m_{\rm AB}\approx 22$ mag, attainable in meter-class, wide field-of-view survey instruments, strong constraints on ejecta mass are possible, with the potential to rule out low mass ratios, high BH spins, and large neutron star radii.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The dependency of Type Ia Supernova parameters on host galaxy morphology for the Pantheon cosmological sample

Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) are widely used to measure distances in the Universe. Despite the recent progress achieved in SN Ia standardisation, the Hubble diagram still shows some remaining intrinsic dispersion. The remaining scatter in supernova luminosity could be due to the environmental effects that are not yet accounted for by the current standardisation methods. In this work, we compare the local and global colour $(U-V)$, the local star formation rate, and the host stellar mass to the host galaxy morphology. The observed trends suggest that the host galaxy morphology is a good parameter to characterize the SN Ia environment. Therefore, we study the influence of host galaxy morphology on light-curve parameters of SNe Ia for the Pantheon cosmological supernova sample. We determine the Hubble morphological type of host galaxies for a sub-sample of 330 SNe Ia. We confirm that the SALT2 stretch parameter $x_1$ depends on the host morphology with the $p$-value $\sim10^{-14}$. The supernovae with lower stretch value are hosted mainly by elliptical and lenticular galaxies. No correlation for the SALT2 colour parameter $c$ is found. We also examine Hubble diagram residuals for supernovae hosted by the "Early-type" and "Late-type" morphological groups of galaxies. The analysis reveals that the mean distance modulus residual in early-type galaxies is smaller than the one in late-type galaxies, which means that early-type galaxies contain brighter supernovae. However, we do not observe any difference in the residual dispersion for these two morphological groups. The obtained results are in the line with other analyses showing environmental dependence of SN Ia light-curve parameters and luminosity. We confirm the importance of including a host galaxy parameter into the standardisation procedure of SNe Ia for further cosmological studies.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

Characterization of the Nucleus, Morphology and Activity of Interstellar Comet 2I/Borisov by Optical and Near-Infrared GROWTH, Apache Point, IRTF, ZTF and Keck Observations

We present visible and near-infrared photometric and spectroscopic observations of interstellar object 2I/Borisov taken from 2019 September 10 to 2019 November 29 using the GROWTH, the APO ARC 3.5 m and the NASA/IRTF 3.0 m combined with post and pre-discovery observations of 2I obtained by ZTF from 2019 March 17 to 2019 May 5. Comparison with imaging of distant Solar System comets shows an object very similar to mildly active Solar System comets with an out-gassing rate of $\sim$10$^{27}$ mol/sec. The photometry, taken in filters spanning the visible and NIR range shows a gradual brightening trend of $\sim0.03$ mags/day since 2019 September 10 UTC for a reddish object becoming neutral in the NIR. The lightcurve from recent and pre-discovery data reveals a brightness trend suggesting the recent onset of significant H$_2$O sublimation with the comet being active with super volatiles such as CO at heliocentric distances $>$6 au consistent with its extended morphology. Using the advanced capability to significantly reduce the scattered light from the coma enabled by high-resolution NIR images from Keck adaptive optics taken on 2019 October 04, we estimate a diameter of 2I's nucleus of $\lesssim$1.4 km. We use the size estimates of 1I/'Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov to roughly estimate the slope of the ISO size-distribution resulting in a slope of $\sim$3.4$\pm$1.2, similar to Solar System comets and bodies produced from collisional equilibrium.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2020

ZTF J1901+5309: A 40.6-Minute Orbital Period Eclipsing Double White Dwarf System

The Zwicky Transient Facility has begun to discover binary systems with orbital periods that are less than 1\,hr. Combined with dedicated follow-up systems, which allow for high-cadence photometry of these sources, systematic confirmation and characterization of these sources are now possible. Here, we report the discovery of ZTF J190125.42+530929.5, a 40.6\,min orbital period, eclipsing double white-dwarf binary. Both photometric and spectroscopic modeling confirm its nature, yielding an estimated inclination of $i = 86.2^{+0.6}_{-0.2}\,\rm degrees$ and primary and secondary effective temperatures of $\textrm{T}_\textrm{eff} = 28,000^{+500}_{-500}\,K$ and $\textrm{T}_\textrm{eff} = 17,600^{+400}_{-400}\,K$ respectively. This system adds to a growing list of sources for future gravitational-wave detectors and contributes to the demographic analysis of double degenerates.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2019

DeepStreaks: identifying fast-moving objects in the Zwicky Transient Facility data with deep learning

We present DeepStreaks, a convolutional-neural-network, deep-learning system designed to efficiently identify streaking fast-moving near-Earth objects that are detected in the data of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), a wide-field, time-domain survey using a dedicated 47 sq. deg camera attached to the Samuel Oschin 48-inch Telescope at the Palomar Observatory in California, United States. The system demonstrates a 96-98% true positive rate, depending on the night, while keeping the false positive rate below 1%. The sensitivity of DeepStreaks is quantified by the performance on the test data sets as well as using known near-Earth objects observed by ZTF. The system is deployed and adapted for usage within the ZTF Solar-System framework and has significantly reduced human involvement in the streak identification process, from several hours to typically under 10 minutes per day.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2017

Quarkonium production in proton-proton collisions with ALICE at the LHC

ALICE at the LHC has a unique potential to study proton-proton collisions with the goal to probe Quantum ChromoDynamics (QCD). The apparatus was designed to reconstruct particles over a large range in transverse momentum and rapidity. In particular, quarkonia are very interesting probes of QCD, because their production mechanisms are governed by both perturbative and non-perturbative QCD processes. In ALICE, quarkonia are reconstructed via their dilepton decay channel down to zero transverse momentum. This contribution gives a short overview of quarkonium production results in proton-proton collisions with ALICE and a comparison to other experimental results and to theoretical models.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2016

The influence of host galaxy morphology on the properties of Type Ia supernovae from the JLA compilation

The observational cosmology with distant Type Ia supernovae (SNe) as standard candles claims that the Universe is in accelerated expansion, caused by a large fraction of dark energy. In this paper we investigate the SN Ia environment, studying the impact of the nature of their host galaxies on the Hubble diagram fitting. The supernovae (192 SNe) used in the analysis were extracted from Joint-Light-curves-Analysis (JLA) compilation of high-redshift and nearby supernovae which is the best one to date. The analysis is based on the empirical fact that SN Ia luminosities depend on their light curve shapes and colors. We confirm that the stretch parameter of Type Ia supernovae is correlated with the host galaxy type. The supernovae with lower stretch are hosted mainly in elliptical and lenticular galaxies. No significant correlation between SN Ia colour and host morphology was found. We also examine how the luminosities of SNe Ia change depending on host galaxy morphology after stretch and colour corrections. Our results show that in old stellar populations and low dust environments, the supernovae are slightly fainter. SNe Ia in elliptical and lenticular galaxies have a higher $α$ (slope in luminosity-stretch) and $β$ (slope in luminosity-colour) parameter than in spirals. However, the observed shift is at the 1-$σ$ uncertainty level and, therefore, can not be considered as significant. We confirm that the supernova properties depend on their environment and that the incorporation of a host galaxy term into the Hubble diagram fit is expected to be crucial for future cosmological analyses.

astro-ph.CO↗