Flame fronts in Type Ia supernovae and their pulsational stability

Abstract

The structure of the deflagration burning front in type Ia supernovae is considered. The parameters of the flame are obtained: its normal velocity and thickness. The results are in good agreement with the previous works of different authors. The problem of pulsation instability of the flame, subject to plane perturbations, is studied. First, with the artificial system with switched-off hydrodynamics the possibility of secondary reactions to stabilize the front is shown. Second, with account of hydrodynamics, realistic EOS and thermal conduction we can obtain pulsations when Zeldovich number was artificially increased. The critical Zeldovich numbers are presented. These results show the stability of the flame in type Ia supernovae against pulsations because its effective Zeldovich number is small.