arXiv subjects

Ryotaro Chiba

Publications and source records attributed to Ryotaro Chiba.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Circumbinary Discs as the Origin of Circumstellar Material around Interacting H-poor Supernovae and Fast Blue Optical Transients

Around 10 % of hydrogen-poor supernovae explode inside compact ($\sim 10^{15}$ cm), massive ($\sim 0.1 \ \mathrm{M_\odot}$) circumstellar material (CSM), signalling an episode of enhanced pre-explosion mass loss whose mechanism remains unclear. The extreme members of this population are considered to constitute some of the Fast Blue Optical Transients (FBOTs), which exhibit rapid rise times of $\sim$ few days and high peak luminosity $\sim 10^{44} \ \mathrm{erg}$. Recent binary evolution calculations show that the expansion of helium stars during their latest evolutionary stages can trigger a rapid but stable mass-transfer episode that can form a dense circumbinary disc (CBD) that may explain the observed dense CSM. However, a detailed, quantitative analysis of this process and the resulting CBD properties such as its mass, radius and density profile has not yet been undertaken. We present a set of models that solve the viscous evolution of such a CBD under time-dependent mass injection. We find that although the injected mass is initially sub-Keplerian, a lower ``accretion eigenvalue'' $χ$ prevents more mass from falling back onto the central binary. For our fiducial set of models, the CBD immediately prior to the explosion reaches a mass of $0.07-0.20 \ \mathrm{M}_\odot$, a half-mass radius of $640 - 4000 \ \mathrm{R}_\odot$, and an aspect ratio of $θ= H/R \sim 0.1$. We also show that the interaction between SN ejecta and the CBD can power some of the fastest-evolving interacting Type Ibc SNe that can be classified as FBOTs, such as SN 2018gep or SN 2019jc. Despite uncertainties in the model parameters, our results demonstrate that CBD formation triggered by rapid, stable mass transfer is a viable mechanism to explain the dense circumstellar environments observed around rapid, hydrogen-poor interacting SNe. (abridged)

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Near-infrared Variability Detected in the Young Star-Forming Dwarf Galaxy SBS 0335-052E

SBS~0335-052E is a young star-forming dwarf galaxy with a total stellar mass of $M_{*} \lesssim 10^{8}~M_{\odot}$ and an extremely low metallicity ($Z \sim 1/40~Z_{\odot}$), which has long been considered to be devoid of an active galactic nucleus (AGN). Here we report the detection of temporal flux variability of SBS~0335-052E in near-infrared (NIR) 3-4\ ${\rm μ}$m bands on timescales of several years, showing dimming and brightening of up to 50\% over 14~years, based on archival data from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer. Our spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting of archival ultraviolet (UV)-NIR photometry, including AGN SED models, indicates that the variable NIR emission arises from an edge-on AGN dust torus. The UV-optical emission from the accretion disk is obscured and does not reach us, leading to the dominance of the host galaxy's young stellar population in the UV-optical wavelengths. This analysis favors the presence of a Compton-thick, heavily obscured AGN in SBS~0335-052E, consistent with its observed X-ray weakness. From the SED fitting, we estimate an AGN bolometric luminosity of $L_{\rm bol} = 1.2\times10^{43}\ {\rm erg\ s^{-1}}$, which implies a black hole mass of $M_{\rm BH} \simeq 10^{5}\ M_\odot$ if the AGN is accreting at the Eddington limit. If confirmed, SBS~0335-052E would be the least massive galaxy known to host an AGN, likely harboring an intermediate-mass black hole.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Hydrodynamic Modelling of Early Peaks in Type Ibc Supernovae with Circumstellar Interaction

Recent high-cadence transient surveys have uncovered a subclass of Type Ibc supernovae (SNe) that exhibit an early, blue peak lasting a few days before the main, radioactively powered peak. Since progenitors of Type Ibc SNe are typically compact and lack an extended envelope, this early peak is commonly attributed to the presence of circumstellar matter (CSM) surrounding the progenitor star. As such, these SNe provide a unique opportunity to constrain the pre-explosion activity of Type Ibc SN progenitors. We present the first systematic study of this Type Ibc SN population that incorporates hydrodynamic modelling. We simulated Type Ibc SNe exploding within CSM using the multi-group radiation-hydrodynamics code \texttt{STELLA}, exploring a range of SN and CSM properties. By comparing the theoretical multi-band light curves to a sample of seven Type Ibc SNe with early peaks, we constrained their CSM properties. Assuming a wind-like density distribution of CSM, we found CSM masses of $10^{-2} - 10^{-1} \ \Msun$ and CSM radii of $(1 - 5) \times 10^3 \ \Rsun$. While the masses were roughly consistent with a previous estimate obtained using an analytical model, the radii were significantly different, likely due to a simplified assumption on blackbody temperature used in analytical models. We infer that the progenitors could have created CSM via late-time binary mass transfer or pulsational pair instability. We also estimate that, in the planned \textit{ULTRASAT} high-cadence survey, $\sim 30$ early peaks similar to those in this paper from Type Ibc SNe will be observed.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

Characterisation of Supernovae Interacting with Dense Circumstellar Matter with a Flat Density Profile

Interaction between supernova (SN) ejecta and dense circumstellar medium (CSM) with a flat density structure ($ρ\propto r^{-s}, s < 1.5$) was recently proposed as a possible mechanism behind interacting SNe that exhibit exceptionally long rise times exceeding 100 days. In such a configuration, the interaction luminosity keeps rising until the reverse shock propagates into the inner layers of the SN ejecta. We investigate the light curves of SNe interacting with a flatly distributed CSM in detail, incorporating the effects of photon diffusion inside the CSM into the model. We show that three physical processes - the shock breakout, the propagation of the reverse shock into the inner ejecta, and the departure of the shock from the dense CSM - predominantly determine the qualitative behaviour of the light curves. Based on the presence and precedence of these processes, the light curves of SNe interacting with flatly distributed CSM can be classified into five distinct morphological classes. We also show that our model can qualitatively reproduce doubly peaked SNe whose peaks are a few tens of days apart, such as SN 2005bf and SN 2022xxf. Our results show that the density distribution of the CSM is an important property of CSM that contributes to the diversity in light curves of interacting SNe.

astro-ph.HE↗