Three-dimensional simulations of gravitationally confined detonations
  compared to observations of SN 1991T
  The gravitationally confined detonation (GCD) model has been proposed as a
possible explosion mechanism for Type Ia supernovae in the single-degenerate
evolution channel. Driven by buoyancy, a deflagration flame rises in a narrow
cone towards the surface. For the most part, the flow of the expanding ashes
remains radial, but upon reaching the outer, low-pressure layers of the white
dwarf, an additional lateral component develops. This makes the deflagration
ashes converge again at the opposite side, where the compression heats fuel and
a detonation may be launched. To test the GCD explosion model, we perform a 3D
simulation for a model with an ignition spot offset near the upper limit of
what is still justifiable, 200 km. This simulation meets our deliberately
optimistic detonation criteria and we initiate a detonation. The detonation
burns through the white dwarf and leads to its complete disruption. We
determine nucleosynthetic yields by post-processing 10^6 tracer particles with
a 384 nuclide reaction network and we present multi-band light curves and
time-dependent optical spectra. We find that our synthetic observables show a
prominent viewing-angle sensitivity in UV and blue bands, which is in tension
with observed SNe Ia. The strong dependence on viewing-angle is caused by the
asymmetric distribution of the deflagration ashes in the outer ejecta layers.
Finally, we perform a comparison of our model to SN 1991T. The overall
flux-level of the model is slightly too low and the model predicts pre-maximum
light spectral features due to Ca, S, and Si that are too strong. Furthermore,
the model chemical abundance stratification qualitatively disagrees with recent
abundance tomography results in two key areas: our model lacks low velocity
stable Fe and instead has copious amounts of high-velocity 56Ni and stable Fe.
We therefore do not find good agreement of the model with SN 1991T.
