Ignition of Carbon Burning from Nuclear Fission in Compact Stars

Abstract

Abstract Type Ia supernovae (SN Ia) are powerful stellar explosions that provide important distance indicators in cosmology. Recently, we proposed a new SN Ia mechanism that involves a nuclear fission chain reaction in an isolated white dwarf (WD). The first solids that form as a WD starts to freeze are actinide rich and potentially support a fission chain reaction. In this Letter, we explore thermonuclear ignition from fission heating. We perform thermal diffusion simulations and find at high densities, above about 7 × 108 g cm−3, that fission heating can ignite carbon burning. This could produce an SN Ia or another kind of astrophysical transient.