From core collapse to superluminous: the rates of massive stellar explosions from the Palomar Transient Factory. Issue 4 (21st November 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Frohmaier, C; Angus, C R; Vincenzi, M; Sullivan, M; Smith, M; Nugent, P E; Cenko, S B; Gal-Yam, A; Kulkarni, S R; Law, N M; Quimby, R M
• Is Part Of: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Volume 500:Issue 4(2021)
• Page Start: 5142
• Page End: 5158
• Publication Date: 2020-11-21
• Subjects: methods: data analysis -- transients: supernovae; Astronomy -- Periodicals; Periodicals; 520.5
• DOI: 10.1093/mnras/staa3607
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0035-8711

Abstract

ABSTRACT: We present measurements of the local core-collapse supernova (CCSN) rate using SN discoveries from the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF). We use a Monte Carlo simulation of hundreds of millions of SN light-curve realizations coupled with the detailed PTF survey detection efficiencies to forward model the SN rates in PTF. Using a sample of 86 CCSNe, including 26 stripped-envelope SNe (SESNe), we show that the overall CCSN volumetric rate is $r^\mathrm{CC}_v=9.10_{-1.27}^{+1.56}\times 10^{-5}\, \text{SNe yr}^{-1}\, \text{Mpc}^{-3}\, h_{70}^{3}$ at 〈 z 〉 = 0.028, and the SESN volumetric rate is $r^\mathrm{SE}_v=2.41_{-0.64}^{+0.81}\times 10^{-5}\, \text{SNe yr}^{-1}\, \text{Mpc}^{-3}\, h_{70}^{3}$ . We further measure a volumetric rate for hydrogen-free superluminous SNe (SLSNe-I) using eight events at z ≤ 0.2 of $r^\mathrm{SLSN-I}_v=35_{-13}^{+25}\, \text{SNe yr}^{-1}\text{Gpc}^{-3}\, h_{70}^{3}$, which represents the most precise SLSN-I rate measurement to date. Using a simple cosmic star formation history to adjust these volumetric rate measurements to the same redshift, we measure a local ratio of SLSN-I to SESN of ${\sim}1/810^{+1500}_{-94}$, and of SLSN-I to all CCSN types of ${\sim}1/3500^{+2800}_{-720}$ . However, using host galaxy stellar mass as a proxy for metallicity, we also show that this ratio is strongly metallicity dependent: in low-mass (log M * < 9.5 M⊙ ) galaxies, which are the only environments that host SLSN-I in our sample, we measure an SLSN-I to SESN fraction of $1/300^{+380}_{-170}$ and $1/1700^{+1800}_{-720}$ for all CCSN. We further investigate the SN rates a function of host galaxy stellar mass, and show that the specific rates of all CCSNe decrease with increasing stellar mass.