Affiliation:
1. Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Peking University , Beijing 100871 , China
2. Guangxi Key Laboratory for Relativistic Astrophysics, School of Physical Science and Technology, Guangxi University , Nanning 530004 , China
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Revealing the temporal evolution of individual heavy elements synthesized in the merger ejecta from binary neutron star mergers not only improves our understanding of the origin of heavy elements beyond iron but also clarifies the energy sources of kilonovae. In this work, we present a comprehensive analysis of the temporal evolution of the energy fraction of each nuclide based on r-process nucleosynthesis simulations. The heavy elements dominating the kilonova emission within ∼100 days are identified, including 127Sb, 128Sb, 129Sb, 130Sb, 129Te, 132I, 222Rn, 223Ra, 224Ra, and 225Ac. It is found that the late-time kilonova light curve (t ≳ 20 days) is highly sensitive to the presence of the heavy element 225Ac (with a half-life of 10.0 days). Our analysis shows that the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), with its high sensitivity in the near-infrared band, is a powerful instrument for the identification of these specific heavy elements.
Funder
National Natural Science Foundation of China
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Subject
Space and Planetary Science,Astronomy and Astrophysics