Constraining Double Degenerate Mergers

由于它们被用作标准蜡烛，Ia型超新星是我们测量宇宙参数、探索暗能量本质、了解物质起源和揭示宇宙最终命运的关键工具。然而，尽管它们被用作距离指标，但可能产生的系统性影响的问题仍然存在。对单个Ia型超新星爆炸、双白矮星双星系统和星系中Ia型超新星的观测表明，它们可能起源于不同的祖系统，并可能取决于宿主星系的人口。在这里，将进行全面的理论分析，以检验合并白矮星作为产生Ia型超新星的途径。希望能更好地理解可能的系统效应，从而提高未来宇宙观测的保真度。这项工作有望基于第一原理物理学，对双简并并合产生的Ia型超新星特征进行理解，这些特征可以通过超新星Ia祖巡天（SPY）、大型综合巡天望远镜（LSST）和联合暗能量任务（JDEM）等仪器进行的当前和未来观测进行测试。分析包括开发各种双白矮星Ia型超新星祖先系统，对动态合并事件进行多维模拟，具有比以往研究更好的质量分辨率和输入物理，并使用统计工具生成一套与双白矮星双星系统和双简并Ia型超新星候选体观测结果最一致的模型。这项研究还将影响其他领域，包括宇宙学、数值方法、恒星演化、大规模并行模拟和星系演化。这项研究还将促进国家和国际伙伴关系，特别是LSST联盟和JDEM企业。该项目将通过博士后研究人员的支持，成为培养年轻科技人才的跨学科平台，并将成果纳入本质上多样化的非理工科本科大班。通过写作、教学和公开讲座，团队也会向公众广泛传播他们的成果。这里开发的代码，包括恒星演化、核反应网络、状态方程、导热系数、爆燃、爆炸、数值方法和流体动力学的软件，将在整个研究过程中继续添加并向公众发布。

By virtue of their use as standard candles, Type Ia supernovae are key tools in our quest to measure cosmological parameters, to probe the nature of dark energy, to understand the origin of matter, and to unravel the final fate of the universe. However, despite their adoption as distance indicators, questions of possible systematic effects remain open. Observations of individual Type Ia supernova explosions, double white dwarf binary systems, and Type Ia supernova rates in galaxies suggest that they may originate from different progenitor systems and may depend on the population of the host galaxy.Here, a comprehensive theoretical analysis will be undertaken that will examine merging white dwarfs as a pathway for producing Type Ia supernova. The hope is to better understand possible systematic effects and thereby improve the fidelity of future cosmological observations. The work is expected to lead to an understanding of the Type Ia supernova features produced from double-degenerate mergers based on first-principles physics that can be tested against current and future observations conducted by instruments such as the Supernovae Ia Progenitor Survey (SPY), Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) and Joint Dark Energy Mission (JDEM). The analysis includes developing a variety of double white dwarf Type Ia supernova progenitor systems, multi-dimensional simulations of the dynamical merger event with better mass resolution and input physics than previous studies, and statistical tools to generate a set of models that are in the best agreement with the observations of double white dwarf binary systems and double-degenerate Type Ia supernova candidates. This research will also impact a variety of other areas including cosmology, numerical methods, stellar evolution, massively parallel simulations, and galaxy evolution. This research will also promote national and international partnerships, specifically the LSST consortium and the JDEM enterprise. The project will serve as trans-disciplinary platform for training young scientific talent through the support of a postdoctoral research fellow and the results will be integrated into large classes for undergraduate non-science majors that are intrinsically diverse. Through writing, teaching and public lectures, the team will also broadly disseminate their results to the public. The codes developed here, including software for stellar evolution, nuclear reaction networks, equations of state, thermal conductivities, deflagrations, detonation, numerical methods and hydrodynamics will continue to be added to and release to the public throughout the research.