Time dilation from spectral feature age measurements of Type Ia supernovae

We have developed a quantitative, empirical method for estimating the age of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) from a single spectral epoch. The technique examines the goodness of fit of spectral features as a function of the temporal evolution of a large database of SNe Ia spectral features, When a SN Ia spectrum with good signal-to-noise ratio over the rest frame range 3800 to 6800 Angstrom is available, the precision of a spectral feature age (SFA) is (1 sigma) similar to 1.3 days. SFA estimates are made for two spectral epochs of SN 1996bj (z = 0.574) to measure the rate of aging at high redshift. In the 10.05 days which elapsed between spectral observations, SN 1996bj aged 3.35+/-13.2 days, consistent with the 6.38 days of aging expected in an expanding Universe and inconsistent with no time dilation at the 96.4% confidence level, The precision to which individual features constrain the supernova age has implications for the source of inhomogeneities among SNe Ia. (C) 1997 American Astronomical Society.