Physics of Binary Star Evolution -- from Stars to X-ray Binaries and Gravitational Wave Sources

Abstract

The majority of all stars are members of a binary system. The evolution of such binary stars and their subsequent production of pairs of compact objects in tight orbits, such as double neutron stars and double black holes, play a central role in modern astrophysics, Binary evolution leads to the formation of different types of violent cosmic events such as novae, supernova explosions, gamma-ray bursts, mass transfer and accretion processes in X-ray binaries, and the formation of exotic radio millisecond pulsars. In some cases, the binary systems terminate as spectacular collisions between neutron stars and/or black holes. These collisions lead to powerful emission of gravitational waves, as detected by LIGO since 2015. The coming decade is expected to reveal a large number of discoveries of binary compact systems, as well as their progenitors and merger remnants, from major instruments such as the radio Square-Kilometre Array; the gravitational wave observatories LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA-IndIGO and LISA; the astrometric space observatory Gaia; the James Webb Space Telescope; and the X-ray space observatories eXTP, STROBE-X, and Athena. In this light, it is important to have a modern textbook on the physics of binary stars evolution, from ordinary stars to X-ray binaries and gravitational wave sources. The scope of this book is that the reader (student or educated expert) will learn the physics of binary interactions, from stellar birth to compact objects, and relate this knowledge to the latest observations. The reader will learn about stellar structure and evolution, and detailed binary interactions covering a broad range of phenomena, including mass transfer and orbital evolution, formation and accretion onto compact objects (white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes), and their observational properties. Exercises are provided throughout the book.