2025ApJ...978...36F

SN 2023ixf is one of the most well-observed core-collapse supernovae in recent decades, yet there is inconsistency in the inferred zero-age main-sequence (ZAMS) mass M_ZAMS of its progenitor. Direct observations of the pre-supernova (SN) red supergiant (RSG) estimate M_ZAMS spanning widely from 11 to 18 M_⊙. Additional constraints, including the host environment and the pulsation of its progenitor RSG, suggest a massive progenitor with M_ZAMS > 17 M_⊙. However, the analysis of the SN properties, from light-curve modeling to late-phase spectroscopy, favors a relatively low-mass scenario (M_ZAMS < 15 M_⊙). In this work, we conduct a systematic analysis of SN 2023ixf, from the RSG progenitor, plateau phase light curve to late-phase spectroscopy. Using MESA+STELLA to simulate the RSG progenitor and their explosions, we find that a range of the RSG models having M_ZAMS that vary from 12 to 17.5 M_⊙ can reproduce its multiband light curves if the hydrogen-rich envelope mass and the explosion energy are allowed to vary. Using late-phase spectroscopy as an independent measurement, the oxygen line [O I] indicates an intermediate-massive progenitor (M_ZAMS ∼ 16.0 M_⊙). By incorporating the velocity structure derived from the light-curve modeling into an axisymmetric model, we generated [O I] line profiles that are consistent with the [O I] line observed in late-phase spectroscopy of SN 2023ixf. Bringing these analyses together, we conclude that SN 2023ixf is the aspherical explosion of an intermediate-massive star (M_ZAMS = 15-16 M_⊙), with the hydrogen envelope being stripped to 4-5 M_⊙ prior to its explosion.