Molecules and dust in the ejecta of Type II-P supernovae

Abstract

AbstractWe study the formation of molecules and dust clusters in the ejecta of solar metallicity, Type II-P supernovae using a chemical kinetic approach and follow the evolution of molecules and small dust cluster masses from day 100 to day 1500 after explosion. We predict that large masses of molecules including CO, SiO, SiS, O2, and SO form in the ejecta. We show that the non-equilibrium chemistry results in a gradual build up of the dust mass from small (~10−5M⊙) to large values (~5×10−2M⊙) over a five-year period after explosion. This result provides a natural explanation to the discrepancy between the small dust masses detected at infrared wavelengths some 500 days post-explosion and the larger amounts of dust recently detected with the Herschel telescope in supernova remnants.