First-generation supernovae in the mass range of 20-130 Mo and the metal abundance pattern of a very iron-poor star

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  • 5 March 2003
Abstract
The first-generation (or population III) stars in the Universe have been theoretically suggested to be as massive as ~ 100Mo because of inefficient gas cooling. Recently the most Fe-deficient (but C-rich) low mass star, HE0107-5240, was discovered. If this is a population III star that has gained its metal after its birth, it could challenge the above theoretical argument. Here we report that the abundance patterns of HE0107-5240 and other extremely metal poor stars are in good accord with supernova nucleosynthesis of ~ 20-130Mo stars if the explosions undergo substantial mixing-fallback to form massive black holes. Such supernovae have actually been observed as faint supernovae. In contrast, their abundance patterns are not consistent with pair-instability supernovae from 130-300 Mo stars. We propose that the first generation supernovae were mostly the explosion of ~20-130Mo stars; some of them produced Fe-poor but C, O-rich ejecta, from which the second-generation low mass stars can be formed because of C, O cooling.

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