Type Ia Supernova host galaxies as seen with IFU spectroscopy?

Received data Accepted date Context. Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) have been widely used in cosmology as distance indicators. However, to fully exploit their potential in cosmology, a better control over systematic uncertainties is required. Some of the uncertainties are related to the unknown nature of the SN Ia progenitors. Aims. We aim to test the use of integral field unit (IFU) spectroscopy for correlating the properties of nearby SNe Ia with the properties of their host galaxies at the location of the SNe. The results are to be compared with those obtained from an analysis of the total host spectrum. The goal is to explore this path of constraining the nature of the SN Ia progenitors and further improve the use of SNe Ia in cosmology. Methods. We used the wide-field IFU spectrograph PMAS/PPAK at the 3.5m telescope of Calar Alto Observatory to observe six nearby spiral galaxies that hosted SNe Ia. Spatially resolved 2D maps of the properties of the ionized gas and the stellar populations were derived. Results. Five of the observed galaxies have an ongoing star formation rate of 1-5 M yr−1 and mean stellar population ages ∼ 5 Gyr. The sixth galaxy shows no star formation and has an about 12 Gyr old stellar population. All galaxies have stellar masses larger than 2 × 1010 M and metallicities above solar. Four galaxies show negative radial metallicity gradients of the ionized gas up to −0.05