Related papers: The division between weak and strong explosions fr…
One explanation for the absence of higher mass red supergiants (16.5 Msun < M < 25Msun) as the progenitors of Type IIP supernovae (SNe) is that they die in failed SNe creating black holes. Simulations show that such failed SNe still eject…
We discuss the formation of stellar mass black holes via protoneutron star (PNS) collapse. In the absence of an earlier explosion, the PNS collapses to a black hole due to the continued mass accretion onto the PNS. We present an analysis of…
A mass paucity of compact objects in the range of $\sim 2-5 ~M_\odot$ has been suggested by X-ray binary observations, namely, the "lower mass gap". Gravitational wave detections have unlocked another mass measurement method, and…
Advances in our understanding and the modeling of stellar core-collapse and supernova explosions over the past 15 years are reviewed, concentrating on the evolution of hydrodynamical simulations, the description of weak interactions and…
We model the observed black hole mass function under the assumption that black hole formation is controlled by the compactness of the stellar core at the time of collapse. Low compactness stars are more likely to explode as supernovae and…
In the age of gravitational-wave (GW) sources and newly discovered local black holes (BH) and neutron stars (NS), understanding the fate of stars is a key question. Not every massive star is expected to successfully explode as a supernova…
The possibility of making stellar mass black holes in supernovae that otherwise produce viable Type II and Ib supernova explosions is discussed and estimates given of their number in the Milky Way Galaxy. Observational diagnostics of…
Double Neutron Stars (DNS) have to survive two supernovae and still remain bound. This sets strong limits on the nature of the second collapse in these systems. We consider the masses and orbital parameters of the DNS population and…
Mass loss bridges the gap between massive stars and supernovae (SNe) in two major ways: (i) theoretically it is the amount of mass lost that determines the mass of the star prior to explosion, and (ii) observations of the circumstellar…
Core-collapse supernovae presumably explode because trapped neutrinos push the material out of the stellar envelope. This process is directly controlled by the weak scale $v$: we argue that supernova explosions happen only if fundamental…
Neutron stars inspiralling into a stellar envelope can accrete at rates vastly exceeding the Eddington limit if the flow develops pressures high enough to allow neutrinos to radiate the released gravitational energy. It has been suggested…
Most supernova explosions accompany the death of a massive star. These explosions give birth to neutron stars and black holes and eject solar masses of heavy elements. However, determining the mechanism of explosion has been a half-century…
We investigate the final collapse of rotating and non-rotating pulsational pair-instability supernova progenitors with zero-age-main-sequence masses of 60, 80, and 115$\mathrm{M}_\odot$ and iron cores between 2.37$\mathrm{M}_\odot$ and…
There is increasing observational evidence for the existence of strange stars: ultra-compact objects whose interior consists entirely of deconfined quark matter. If confirmed, their existence places constraints on the rate of formation of…
Recent literature on core-collapse supernovae suggests that a black hole (BH) can form within $\sim 1$ s of shock revival, while still culminating in a successful supernova. We refer to these as black hole supernovae, as they are distinct…
We present a set of eight fallback simulations of zero-metallicity progenitors with masses between $60 M_\odot$ and $95 M_\odot$. The simulations are computed in 2D with the general relativistic CoCoNuT-FMT code for the first few seconds…
Many core collapse supernovae (SNe) with hydrogen-poor and low-mass ejecta, such as ultra-stripped SNe and type Ibn SNe, are observed to interact with dense circumstellar material (CSM). These events likely arise from the core-collapse of…
Stars with a wide range of masses provide a variety of production sites for intermediate-to-heavy mass elements. Very massive stars with mass $\geq 8 M_{\odot}$ culminate their evolution by supernova explosions which are presumed to be the…
Long-term neutrino-radiation hydrodynamics simulations in full general relativity are performed for the collapse of rotating massive stars that are evolved from He-stars with their initial mass of $20$ and $32M_\odot$. It is shown that if…
Core-collapse supernovae are among the most fascinating phenomena in astrophysics and provide a formidable challenge for theoretical investigation. They mark the spectacular end of the lives of massive stars and, in an explosive eruption,…