Tidally distorted accretion discs in binary stars

Abstract

The non-axisymmetric features observed in the discs of dwarf novae in outburst are usually considered to be spiral shocks, which are the non-linear relatives of tidally excited waves. This interpretation suffers from a number of problems. For example, the natural site of wave excitation lies outside the Roche lobe, the disc must be especially hot, and most treatments of wave propagation do not take into account the vertical structure of the disc. In this paper I construct a detailed semi-analytical model of the non-linear tidal distortion of a thin, three-dimensional accretion disc by a binary companion on a circular orbit. The analysis presented here allows for vertical motion and radiative energy transport, and introduces a simple model for the turbulent magnetic stress. The m=2 inner vertical resonance has an important influence on the amplitude and phase of the tidal distortion. I show that the observed patterns find a natural explanation if the emission is associated with the tidally thickened sectors of the outer disc, which may be irradiated from the centre. According to this hypothesis, it may be possible to constrain the physical parameters of the disc through future observations.