Falling matter of supernova does work heating the core?

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The discussion centers on whether the falling matter from a supernova contributes to heating the core through work done by momentum changes and gravitational forces. As the outer layers collapse, they create shock waves and a significant change in momentum, which may exert forces on the core, compressing and heating it. The interplay of pressure, kinetic energy, and temperature across different layers is crucial, with ideal gas laws potentially offering some insight, albeit as an approximation. The dynamics of the core's violent motion could be influenced by the outer layers, suggesting a complex interaction. Overall, understanding these processes requires a thorough examination of thermodynamic principles in the context of supernova core collapse.
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Falling matter of supernova does "work" heating the core?

A supernova core collapses and the rest of the star follows, inner layers arrive first, a shock wave wave forms?

As outer layers continue to collapse and slow down is there a large radial time rate change in momentum as rapidly inwardly-flowing matter violently slows down?

Does this time rate change in momentum cause a force on the core comparable to the force given by the gravitational force due to mass of accretted outer layers?

Do both these forces do work on the core, compress it, and heat it up?

In the following video there is a simulation of a supernova core with what I guess is shown either violent motion of the matter of the inner core or pressure waves? Can one assume that the surrounding layers of the star not shown interact with this violent sloshing around by the core? See the 30 second mark. Is this violent motion ultimately "driven" by the outer layers?



Thanks for any help!
 
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This isn't an easy question to answer. I will take a stab at providing a direction of research to aid you.

In this example you involve pressure, kinetic energy, temperature and the various forms of matter involved at different layers. Those various forms of matter have different maximum density values.

So if I were you I would study how you can employ the ideal gas laws into this. Yes the ideal gas laws would only serve as an approximation as the various layers are not in thermal equilibrium. So you will only be able to loosely apply it. It may or may not simplify the various dynamics at work. Obviously the variations between layers would require the gas laws but not the ideal gas laws themself. However the layers in thermal equilibrium could be treated as such with the regions out of equlibrium serving as the boundary.

Hope that helps, I've seen similar treatments employed in metrics involving accretion disks
in this article

http://arxiv.org/abs/1104.5499

you may or may not be able to find the appropriate metric examples in this article. Hopefully you can.

As far as whether the pressure, temperature or othe factord is doing the work. One textbook I have but cannot post "Thermodynamics of the Universe" can't recall the author and the textbook is currently packed has an applicable statement. Hopefully I have it correct.

"In thermodynamics the work done by changes of pressure is done by the temperature"

my memory might be incorrect on that though
 
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You may find this link of interest I located it and other articles by googling "thermodynamics of a supernova core collapse

http://m.ptep.oxfordjournals.org/content/2012/1/01A309.full

looking at some other articles so may add more

edit this is one of the better articles.. Should answer your questions

http://arXiv.org/abs/1210.4921
 
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Mordred, many thanks for the pointers! Have a good weekend!
 
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