Novae heat their food: mass transfer by irradiation

Ginzburg, Sivan; Quataert, Eliot

doi:10.48550/arxiv.2104.11250

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…In Appendix A we estimate the mass-loss ∆m fly from M 2 per close passage, following the formalism of Ginzburg & Quataert (2021). We find (Eq.…”

Section: Mass Loss From Flybysmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interacting Stellar EMRIs as Sources of Quasi-Periodic Eruptions in Galactic Nuclei

Metzger,

Stone,

Gilbaum

2021

Preprint

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A star that approaches a supermassive black hole (SMBH) on a circular extreme mass ratio inspiral (EMRI) can undergo Roche lobe overflow (RLOF), resulting in a phase of long-lived mass-transfer onto the SMBH. If the interval separating consecutive EMRIs is less than the mass-transfer timescale driven by gravitational wave emission (typically ∼ 1 − 10 Myr), the semi-major axes of the two stars will approach each another on scales of hundreds to thousands of gravitational radii. Close flybys tidally strip gas from one or both RLOFing stars, briefly enhancing the mass-transfer rate onto the SMBH and giving rise to a flare of transient X-ray emission. If both stars reside in an common orbital plane, these close interactions will repeat on a timescale as short as hours, generating a periodic series of flares with properties (amplitudes, timescales, sources lifetimes) remarkably similar to the "quasi-periodic eruptions" (QPEs) recently observed from galactic nuclei hosting low-mass SMBHs. A cessation of QPE activity is predicted on a timescale of months to years, due to nodal precession of the EMRI orbits out of alignment by the SMBH spin. Channels for generating the requisite coplanar EMRIs include the tidal separation of binaries (Hills mechanism) or Type I inwards migration through a gaseous AGN disk. Alternative scenarios for QPEs, that invoke single stellar EMRIs on an eccentric orbit undergoing a runaway sequence of RLOF events, are strongly disfavored by formation rate constraints.

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“…In Appendix A we estimate the mass-loss ∆m fly from M 2 per close passage, following the formalism of Ginzburg & Quataert (2021). We find (Eq.…”

Section: Mass Loss From Flybysmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interacting Stellar EMRIs as Sources of Quasi-Periodic Eruptions in Galactic Nuclei

Metzger,

Stone,

Gilbaum

2021

Preprint

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“…Accreting white dwarf binaries are called cataclysmic variables, as many of them display two distinct types of violent phenomena that dramatically increase their brightness (Hellier 2001;Warner 2003;Knigge et al 2011): classical nova eruptions and dwarf nova outbursts. Nova eruptions may strongly affect the evolutionary path of those binaries (Nelemans et al 2016;Ginzburg & Quataert 2021).…”

Section: Classical and Dwarf Novaementioning

confidence: 99%

The first nova eruption in a novalike variable: YZ Ret as seen in X-rays and gamma-rays

Sokolovsky,

Li,

de Oliveira

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Peaking at 3.7 mag on 2020 July 11, YZ Ret was the second-brightest nova of the decade. The nova's moderate proximity (2.7 kpc, from Gaia) provided an opportunity to explore its multi-wavelength properties in great detail. Here we report on YZ Ret as part of a long-term project to identify the physical mechanisms responsible for highenergy emission in classical novae. We use simultaneous Fermi/LAT and NuSTAR observations complemented by XMM-Newton X-ray grating spectroscopy to probe the physical parameters of the shocked ejecta and the nova-hosting white dwarf. The XMM-Newton observations revealed a super-soft X-ray emission which is dominated by emission lines of C v, C vi, N vi, N vii, and O viii rather than a blackbody-like continuum, suggesting CO-composition of the white dwarf in a high-inclination binary system. Fermi/LAT detected YZ Ret for 15 days with the γ-ray spectrum best described by a power law with an exponential cut-off at 1.9 ± 0.6 GeV. In stark contrast with theoretical predictions and in keeping with previous NuSTAR observations of Fermi-detected classical novae (V5855 Sgr and V906 Car), the 3.5-78 keV X-ray emission is found to be two orders of magnitude fainter than the GeV emission. The X-ray emission observed by NuSTAR is consistent with a single-temperature thermal plasma. We detect no non-thermal tail of the GeV emission expected to extend down to the NuSTAR band. NuSTAR observations continue to challenge theories of high-energy emission from shocks in novae.

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“…There may be other ways by which novae destroy their companion stars, in a comparatively rapid but non-dynamical manner. Some CVs exhibit elevated mass transfer rates triggered by irradiation of the secondary by the nova outburst (e.g.,Ginzburg & Quataert 2021); insofar as novae occur more frequently for higher mass transfer rates, this could in principle a positive feedback cycle that erodes the companion mass within millions of years (e.g.,Knigge et al 2000;Patterson et al 2013). 3 By contrast, if angular momentum is largely conserved during a novae, then the binary separation will expand; this may lead to a decline in accretion rate compared to that just before the novae, and is the origin of the hypothesis that CVs "hibernate" after a nova eruption(Prialnik & Shara 1986;Shara et al 1986;Kovetz et al 1988;Hillman et al 2020).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Transients from the Cataclysmic Deaths of Cataclysmic Variables

Metzger,

Zenati,

Chomiuk

et al. 2021

Preprint

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We explore the observational appearance of the merger of a low-mass star with a white dwarf (WD) binary companion. We are motivated by Schreiber et al. (2016), who found that multiple tensions between the observed properties of cataclysmic variables (CVs) and standard evolution models are resolved if a large fraction of CV binaries merge as a result of unstable mass transfer. Tidal disruption of the secondary forms a geometrically thick disk around the WD, which subsequently accretes at highly super-Eddington rates. Analytic estimates and numerical hydrodynamical simulations reveal that outflows from the accretion flow unbind a large fraction 90% of the secondary at velocities ∼ 500 − 1000 km s −1 within days of the merger. Hydrogen recombination in the expanding ejecta powers optical transient emission lasting about a month with a luminosity 10 38 erg s −1 , similar to slow classical novae and luminous red novae (LRN) from ordinary stellar mergers. Over longer timescales the mass accreted by the WD undergoes hydrogen shell burning, inflating the remnant into a giant of luminosity ∼ 300 − 5000L , effective temperature T eff ≈ 3000 K and lifetime ∼ 10 4 − 10 5 yr. We predict that ∼ 10 3 − 10 4 Milky Way giants are CV merger products, potentially distinguishable by atypical surface abundances. We explore whether any Galactic historical slow classical novae are masquerading CV mergers by identifying four such post-nova systems with potential giant counterparts for which a CV merger origin cannot be ruled out. We address whether the historical transient CK Vul and its gaseous/dusty nebula resulted from a CV merger.1. INTRODUCTION Cataclysmic variables (CVs) are semi-detached binaries in which a main sequence or moderately evolved hydrogen-rich star transfers mass onto a white dwarf (WD) primary (e.g., Patterson 1984;Kolb 1993;Warner 1995). CVs provide key laboratories for studying the physics of binary mass transfer (e.g., King et al. 1995), nucleosynthesis (e.g., José et al. 2006), disk accretion (e.g., Dubus et al. 2018) and even jet formation (e.g., Coppejans & Knigge 2020). The standard model of CV evolution postulates that the binary properties over time are driven primarily by angular momentum loss due to a magnetized wind from the secondary and gravitational wave radiation (e.g.,

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Novae heat their food: mass transfer by irradiation

Cited by 3 publications

References 47 publications

Interacting Stellar EMRIs as Sources of Quasi-Periodic Eruptions in Galactic Nuclei

Interacting Stellar EMRIs as Sources of Quasi-Periodic Eruptions in Galactic Nuclei

The first nova eruption in a novalike variable: YZ Ret as seen in X-rays and gamma-rays

Transients from the Cataclysmic Deaths of Cataclysmic Variables

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