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Abstract

Type Ic supernovae (SNe Ic) are a sub-class of core-collapse SNe that exhibit no helium or hydrogen lines in their spectra. Their progenitors are thought to be bare carbon–oxygen cores formed during the evolution of massive stars that are stripped of their hydrogen and helium envelopes sometime before collapse. SNe Ic present a range of luminosities and spectral properties, from luminous GRB-SNe with broad-lined spectra to less luminous events with narrow-line spectra. Modelling SNe Ic reveals a wide range of both kinetic energies, ejecta masses, and ⁵⁶Ni masses. To explore this diversity and how it comes about, light curves and spectra are computed from the ejecta following the explosion of an initially 22 M_⊙ progenitor that was artificially stripped of its hydrogen and helium shells, producing a bare CO core of ∼5 M_⊙, resulting in an ejected mass of ∼4 M_⊙, which is an average value for SNe Ic. Four different explosion energies are used that cover a range of observed SNe. Finally, ⁵⁶Ni and other elements are artificially mixed in the ejecta using two approximations to determine how element distribution affects light curves and spectra. The combination of different explosion energy and degree of mixing produces spectra that roughly replicate the distribution of near-peak spectroscopic features of SNe Ic. High explosion energies combined with extensive mixing can produce red, broad-lined spectra, while minimal mixing and a lower explosion energy produce bluer, narrow-lined spectra.