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L. Wang (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
Spectropolarimetry is a straight forward, powerful diagnostic tool for supernova explosions. The geometric structure of SN ejecta derived from polarimetry studies do not rely on detailed modeling and can be derived in a straightforward way. We have shown from polarimetry that core-collapse supernovae are strongly asymmetric and that Type Ia supernovae are less so. Core-collapse supernovae were found to be more aspheric deeper into the center of the ejecta. Type Ia SNe, on the other hand, are clumpy or turbulent at the outermost, highest velocity layers but tend to be more uniform close to the center. We will show examples of how these simple diagnostic tools can be applied to several well observed SNe such as SN 2001el and SN 2004dt, and discuss the constraints on theoretical models that can be derived from these observations. Polarimetry of SN Ia also probes the origin of the observed scatter in the properties of Type Ia, and make them even more precise tools of cosmology.
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The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: LWang@lbl.gov
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 37 #2
© 2005. The American Astronomical Soceity.