arXiv subjects

Xiang-Cun Meng

Publications and source records attributed to Xiang-Cun Meng.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

The helium common-envelope wind scenario for SN 2020eyj

SN 2020eyj is the first type Ia supernova (SN Ia) showing the signature of a compact helium-rich circumstellar material (CSM). Such a large CSM is difficult to explain in a single-degenerate scenario where the donor star is a helium star. Here we show that, under certain conditions, it is possible that the transfer of helium leads to a common envelope (CE) engulfing the system, similar to the common-envelope wind model proposed by Meng \& Podsiadlowski (2017). If in such a helium common-envelope wind (HeCEW) model the initial white dwarf (WD) mass is larger than 1.1 $M_{\rm \odot}$ and the helium star more massive than 1.8 $M_{\rm \odot}$, the mass of a helium CE can be larger than 0.3 $M_{\rm \odot}$ prior to supernova explosion. The CE mass heavily depends on the initial parameters of the binary system. A dynamical CE ejection event could occur shortly before the supernova, and then our model may naturally explain the properties of SN 2020eyj, specifically the massive He-rich CSM, its dim peak brightness, low ejecta velocity and low birth rate.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

The Completeness of Accreting Neutron Star Binary Candidates from the Chinese Space Station Telescope

Neutron star (NS) has many extreme physical conditions, and one may obtain some important informations about NS via accreting neutron star binary (ANSB) systems. The upcoming Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST) provides an opportunity to search for a large sample of ANSB candidates. Our goal is to check the completeness of the potential ANSB samples from CSST data. In this paper, we generate some ANSBs and normal binaries under CSST photometric system by binary evolution and binary population synthesis method and use a machine learning method to train a classification model. Although the Precision ($94.56~ \%$) of our machine learning model is as high as before study, the Recall is only about $63.29~ \%$. The Precision/Recall is mainly determined by the mass transfer rate between the NSs and their companions. In addition, we also find that the completeness of ANSB samples from CSST photometric data by the machine learning method also depends on the companion mass and the age of the system. ANSB candidates with low initial mass companion star ($0.1~ {\rm M}_\odot$ to $1~ {\rm M}_\odot$) have a relatively high Precision ($94.94~ \%$) and high Recall ($86.32~ \%$), whereas ANSB candidates with higher initial mass companion star ($1.1~ {\rm M}_\odot$ to $3~ {\rm M}_\odot$) have similar Precision ($93.88~ \%$) and quite low Recall ($42.67~ \%$). Our results indicate that although the machine learning method may obtain a relative pure sample of ANSBs, a completeness correction is necessary for one to obtain a complete sample.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2024

On the surface helium abundance of B-type hot subdwarf stars from the WD+MS channel of Type Ia supernovae

The origin of intermediate helium (He)-rich hot subdwarfs are still unclear. Previous studies have suggested that some surviving Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) companions from the white dwarf~+~main-sequence (WD+MS) channel may contribute to the intermediate He-rich hot subdwarfs. However, previous studies ignored the impact of atomic diffusion on the post-explosion evolution of surviving companion stars of SNe Ia, leading to that they could not explain the observed surface He abundance of intermediate He-rich hot subdwarfs. In this work, by taking the atomic diffusion and stellar wind into account, we trace the surviving companions of SNe Ia from the WD+MS channel using the one-dimensional stellar evolution code \textsc{MESA} until they evolve into hot subdwarfs. We find that the surface He-abundances of our surviving companion models during their core He-burning phases are in a range of $-1 \lesssim {\rm log}(N_{\rm He}/N_{\rm H}) \lesssim 0$, which are consistent with those observed in intermediate He-rich hot subdwarfs. This seems to further support that surviving companions of SNe Ia in the WD+MS channel are possible to form some intermediate He-rich hot subdwarfs.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

The environments of Type Ia supernovae with different relative equivalent width of Si II feature in their spectra

Although type Ia supernovae are so important in many astrophysical field, e.g. in cosmology, their explosion mechanism and progenitor system are still unclear. In physics, the relative equivalent width (REW) of the Si II 635.5 nm absorption feature reflects the velocity interval of silicon in the supernova ejecta and then may provide constraints on the explosion mechanism of SNe Ia. In this paper, we divide the SNe Ia into broad line (BL) and normal line (NL) subsamples based on their REW of Si II 635.5 nm absorption lines around maximum light, and find that the BL SNe Ia have a dimmer mean brightness than NL ones, which possibly results from their different metallicities. However, based on the pixel statistics study on the environments of two subsamples, we do not find any significant potential difference on the environments between BL and NL SNe Ia, which implies that the explosion mechanism of SNe Ia could be independent of their progenitor populations.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Blue Large-Amplitude Pulsators: the Possible Surviving Companions of Type Ia Supernovae

The single degenerate (SD) model, one of the leading models for the progenitors of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), predicts that there should be binary companions that survive the supernova explosion which, in principle, should be detectable in the Galaxy. The discovery of such surviving companions could therefore provide conclusive support for the SD model. Several years ago, a new type of mysterious variables was discovered, the so-called blue large-amplitude pulsators (BLAPs). Here we show that all the properties of BLAPs can be reasonably well reproduced if they are indeed such surviving companions, in contrast to other proposed channels. This suggests that BLAPs could potentially be the long-sought surviving companions of SNe Ia. Our model also predicts a new channel for forming single hot subdwarf stars, consistent with a small group in the present hot-subdwarf-star sample.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2010

The cooling time of white dwarfs produced from type Ia supernovae

Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) play a key role in measuring cosmological parameters, in which the Phillips relation is adopted. However, the origin of the relation is still unclear. Several parameters are suggested, e.g. the relative content of carbon to oxygen (C/O) and the central density of the white dwarf (WD) at ignition. These parameters are mainly determined by the WD's initial mass and its cooling time, respectively. Using the progenitor model developed by Meng and Yang, we present the distributions of the initial WD mass and the cooling time. We do not find any correlation between these parameters. However, we notice that the range of the WD's mass decreases, while its average value increases with the cooling time. These results could provide a constraint when simulating the SN Ia explosion, i.e. the WDs with a high C/O ratio usually have a lower central density at ignition, while those having the highest central density at ignition generally have a lower C/O ratio. The cooling time is mainly determined by the evolutionary age of secondaries, and the scatter of the cooling time decreases with the evolutionary age. Our results may indicate that WDs with a long cooling time have more uniform properties than those with a short cooling time, which may be helpful to explain why SNe Ia in elliptical galaxies have a more uniform maximum luminosity than those in spiral galaxies.

astro-ph.SR↗