In The Universe of Motion, Larson describes a supernova as the age-limit detonation of the iron-cobalt-nickel layer of the sun, where lighter elements outside this range explode outward into 3D space, and the heavier elements inside this range explode outward in 3D time--inward in 3D space--eventually creating the common red giant / white dwarf pair of stars. Comparing this combustion process to the PN junction semiconductor papers that Gopi has written, I found that the sun (and all stars) have similar to the PN junction behavior, but on a massively larger scale--and inverted from regular semiconductors.
In a semiconductor, 1D electrons flip to become 2D holes, and vice-versa. In stars, 2D holes flip to become 1D electrons. Stars appear to be based on hole (positive) current.
This shifts the substrate material needed for the "semiconductor" effect. In normal semiconductors, substrates are in the ±4 electric valence. 8 electric units form one magnetic unit, so a magnetic substrate would need an element that with a ±8 electric valence--but there aren't any in the RS Periodic Table. In the intermediate element range, there are 18 elements, making the neutral point ±9, OR the three-element pair of iron, cobalt and nickel, basically dangling off of the 8-unit valence as single-unit offsets, like a 3-fingered hand.
This structure, aside from being key to supernovas, has a unique structure in that it has all three components for a semiconductor: iron (p-type), cobalt (substrate) and nickel (n-type)--a "natural" P-N junction that emits light--making the sun a gigantic, light-emitting diode (LED).
Some interesting consequence of this structure is that the sun is NOT hot... light from an LED is much cooler than thermal sources. Also, since the "doping region" is controlled by what gravity pulls in to the sun, the depletion region will change resulting in breakdown effects. I would make an educated guess that sunspots are related to Zener breakdown and the supernova occurs as an avalanche breakdown, destroying the region.
This corrects a number of flaws in Larson's model, particularly the fact that the sun is fueled by sucking in and combusting matter from the surrounding region of space. Given that RS stellar evolution is backwards from conventional thought, starting with a dull, red giant and finishing up with a blue giant would mean that MORE material had to become available as the star got older, which makes no sense if it has been sucking the region clean of material during its youth--it should, literally, starve to death. With this "LED" model, the material is just controlling the "depletion zone," not a fuel source.
Stellar classes:
- Conventional: O (blue-white), B (blue), A (white), F (yellow-white), G (yellow) K (orange), M (red).
- RS sequence: M (red), K (orange), G (yellow), F (yellow-white), A (white), B (blue), O (blue-white), supernova.
Could just be a coincidence, but I recommend watching that section of the Dollard video above. It will make you think.