arXiv subjects

Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz

Publications and source records attributed to Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

On the Assembly Rate of Highly Eccentric Binary Black Hole Mergers

In this {\it Letter} we calculate the fraction of highly eccentric binary black hole (BBH) mergers resulting from binary-single interactions. Using an $N$-body code that includes post-Newtonian correction terms, we show that $\gtrsim 1\%$ of all BBH mergers resulting from this channel will have an eccentricity $e>0.1$ when coming into the LIGO frequency band. As the majority of BBH mergers forming in globular clusters are assembled through three-body encounters, we suggest that such interactions are likely to dominate the population of high eccentricity BBH mergers detectable by LIGO. The relative frequency of highly eccentric events could eventually help to constrain the astrophysical origin of BBH mergers.

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arXiv2017

The fine line between total and partial tidal disruption events

Flares from tidal disruption events are unique tracers of quiescent black holes at the centre of galaxies. The appearance of these flares is very sensitive to whether the star is totally or partially disrupted, and in this paper we seek to identify the critical distance of the star from the black hole (r_d) that enables us to distinguish between these two outcomes. We perform here Mesh-free Finite Mass, traditional, and modern Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamical simulations of star-black hole close encounters, with the aim of checking if the value of r_d depends on the simulation technique. We find that the critical distance (or the so-called critical disruption parameter beta_d) depends only weakly on the adopted simulation method, being beta_d=0.92\pm 0.02 for a gamma=5/3 polytrope and beta_d=2.01\pm 0.01 for a gamma=4/3 polytrope.

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arXiv2017

A likely decade-long sustained tidal disruption event

Multiwavelength flares from tidal disruption and accretion of stars can be used to find and study otherwise dormant massive black holes in galactic nuclei. Previous well-monitored candidate flares are short-lived, with most emission confined to within ~1 year. Here we report the discovery of a well observed super-long (>11 years) luminous soft X-ray flare from the nuclear region of a dwarf starburst galaxy. After an apparently fast rise within ~4 months a decade ago, the X-ray luminosity, though showing a weak trend of decay, has been persistently high at around the Eddington limit (when the radiation pressure balances the gravitational force). The X-ray spectra are generally soft (steeply declining towards higher energies) and can be described with Comptonized emission from an optically thick low-temperature corona, a super-Eddington accretion signature often observed in accreting stellar-mass black holes. Dramatic spectral softening was also caught in one recent observation, implying either a temporary transition from the super-Eddington accretion state to the standard thermal state or the presence of a transient highly blueshifted (~0.36c) warm absorber. All these properties in concert suggest a tidal disruption event of an unusually long super-Eddington accretion phase that has never been observed before.

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arXiv2017

New physical insights about Tidal Disruption Events from a comprehensive observational inventory at X-ray wavelengths

We perform a comprehensive study of the X-ray emission from 70 transient sources which have been classified as a tidal disruption event (TDE) in the literature. We explore the properties of these candidates using nearly three decades of X-ray observations to quantify the properties and characteristics of X-ray TDEs observationally. We find that the emission from X-ray TDEs increase by two to four orders of magnitude compared to pre-flare constraints, which evolves significantly with time and decays with powerlaw indices that are typically shallower than the canonical $t^{-5/3}$ decay law, implying that X-ray TDEs are viscously delayed. These events exhibit enhanced column densities relative to Galactic and are quite soft in nature, with no strong correlation between the amount of detected soft and hard emission. At peak, jetted events have an X-ray to optical ratio $\gg$1, while non-jetted events have a ratio $\sim$1, which suggests that these events undergo reprocessing at different rates. X-ray TDEs have long $T_{90}$ values consistent with that expected from a viscously-driven accretion disk formed by the disruption of a main-sequence star by a black hole with a mass $<$$10^{7}M_{\odot}$. The isotropic luminosities of X-ray TDEs is bimodal such that jetted and non-jetted events are separated by a "reprocessing valley" which we suggest is naturally populated by optical/UV TDEs that most likely produce X-rays, but due to reprocessing this emission is "veiled" from observations. Our results suggest that non-jetted X-ray TDEs likely originate from partial disruptions and/or disruptions of low mass stars.

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arXiv2017

Lessons from the Onset of a Common Envelope Episode: the Remarkable M31 2015 Luminous Red Nova Outburst

This paper investigates the recent stellar merger transient M31LRN 2015 in the Andromeda galaxy. We analyze published optical photometry and spectroscopy along with a Hubble Space Telescope detection of the color and magnitude of the pre-outburst source. The transient outburst is consistent with dynamically driven ejecta at the onset of a common envelope episode, which eventually leads to the complete merger of a binary system. The light curve appears to contain two components: first $\sim10^{-2} M_\odot$ of fast ejecta driven by shocks at the onset of common envelope, and later, $\sim0.3 M_\odot$ of further ejecta as the secondary becomes more deeply engulfed within the primary. Just prior to merger, we find that the primary star is a $3-5.5 M_\odot$ sub-giant branch primary star with radius of $30-40R_\odot$. Its position in the color-magnitude diagram shows that it is growing in radius, consistent with a picture where it engulfs its companion. By matching the properties of the primary star to the transient outburst, we show that the optical transient lasts less than ten orbits of the original binary, which had a pre-merger period of $\sim 10$ days. We consider the possible orbital dynamics leading up to the merger, and argue that if the system merged due to the Darwin tidal instability it implies a lower mass main sequence companion of $0.1-0.6M_\odot$. This analysis represents a promising step toward a more detailed understanding of flows in common envelope episodes through direct observational constraints.

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arXiv2016

Formation of Tidal Captures and Gravitational Wave Inspirals in Binary-Single Interactions

We perform the first systematic study on how dynamical stellar tides and general relativistic (GR) effects affect the dynamics and outcomes of binary-single interactions. For this, we have constructed an N-body code that includes tides in the affine approximation, where stars are modeled as self-similar ellipsoidal polytropes, and GR corrections using the commonly-used post-Newtonian formalism. Using this numerical formalism, we are able resolve the leading effect from tides and GR across several orders of magnitude in both stellar radius and initial target binary separation. We find that the main effect from tides is the formation of two-body tidal captures that form during the chaotic and resonant evolution of the triple system. The two stars undergoing the capture spiral in and merge. The inclusion of tides can thus lead to an increase on the stellar coalescence rate. We also develop an analytical framework for calculating the cross section of tidal inspirals between any pair of objects with similar mass. From our analytical and numerical estimates we find that the rate of tidal inspirals relative to collisions increases as the initial semi-major axis of the target binary increases and the radius of the interacting tidal objects decreases. The largest effect is therefore found for triple systems hosting white dwarfs and neutron stars. In this case, we find the rate of highly eccentric white dwarf - neutron star mergers to likely be dominated by tidal inspirals. While tidal inspirals occur rarely, we note that they can give rise to a plethora of thermonuclear transients such as Ca-rich transients.

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arXiv2016

A high mass progenitor for the Type Ic Supernova 2007gr inferred from its environment

We present an analysis of late-time Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 and Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 observations of the site of the Type Ic SN 2007gr in NGC 1058. The SN is barely recovered in the late-time WFPC2 observations, while a possible detection in the later WFC3 data is debatable. These observations were used to conduct a multiwavelength study of the surrounding stellar population. We fit spatial profiles to a nearby bright source that was previously proposed to be a host cluster. We find that, rather than being an extended cluster, it is consistent with a single point-like object. Fitting stellar models to the observed spectral energy distribution of this source, we conclude it is A1-A3 Yellow Supergiant, possibly corresponding to a star with $M_{ZAMS} = 40M_{\odot}$. SN 2007gr is situated in a massive star association, with diameter of $\approx 300\,\mathrm{pc}$. We present a Bayesian scheme to determine the properties of the surrounding massive star population, in conjunction with the Padova isochrones. We find that the stellar population, as observed in either the WFC3 and WFPC2 observations, can be well fit by two age distributions with mean ages: ~6.3 Myr and ~50 Myr. The stellar population is clearly dominated by the younger age solution (by factors of 3.5 and 5.7 from the WFPC2 and WFC3 observations, respectively), which corresponds to the lifetime of a star with $M_{ZAMS} \sim 30M_{\odot}$. This is strong evidence in favour of the hypothesis that SN 2007gr arose from a massive progenitor star, possibly capable of becoming a Wolf-Rayet star.

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arXiv2016

A Stringent Limit on the Mass Production Rate of $r$-Process Elements in the Milky Way

We analyze data from several studies of metal-poor stars in the Milky Way, focusing on both strong (Eu) and weak (Sr) $r$-process elements. Because these elements were injected in an explosion, we calculate the mass swept up when the blast wave first becomes radiative, yielding a lower limit for the dilution of such elements and hence a lower limit on the ejecta mass which is incorporated into the next generation of stars. Our study demonstrates that in order to explain the largest enhancements in [Eu/Fe] observed in stars at low [Fe/H] metallicities, individual $r$-process production events must synthesize a minimum of $10^{-3.5} M_{\odot}$ of $r$-process material. We also show that if the site of Mg production is the same as that of Eu, individual injection events must synthesize up to $ \sim 10^{-3} M_{\odot}$ of $r$-process material. On the other hand, demanding that Sr traces Mg production results in $r$-process masses per event of $\sim 10^{-5} M_{\odot}$. This suggests that the astrophysical sites responsible for the genesis of the strong $r$-process elements need to operate at a drastically reduced rate when compared to core-collapse supernovae, while the synthesis of the weak $r$-process material is consistent with a supernova production site.

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arXiv2016

The Properties of Short gamma-ray burst Jets Triggered by neutron star mergers

The most popular model for short gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs) involves the coalescence of binary neutron stars. Because the progenitor is actually hidden from view, we must consider under which circumstances such merging systems are capable of producing a successful sGRB. Soon after coalescence, winds are launched from the merger remnant. In this paper, we use realistic wind profiles derived from global merger simulations in order to investigate the interaction of sGRB jets with these winds using numerical simulations. We analyze the conditions for which these axisymmetric winds permit relativistic jets to breakout and produce a sGRB. We find that jets with luminosities comparable to those observed in sGRBs are only successful when their half-opening angles are below ~20°. This jet collimation mechanism leads to a simple physical interpretation of the luminosities and opening angles inferred for sGRBs. If wide, low luminosity jets are observed, they might be indicative of a different progenitor avenue such as the merger of a neutron star with a black hole. We also use the observed durations of sGRB to place constraints on the lifetime of the wind phase, which is determined by the time it takes the jet to breakout. In all cases we find that the derived limits argue against completely stable remnants for binary neutron star mergers that produce sGRBs.

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arXiv2016

The X-ray through Optical Fluxes and Line Strengths of Tidal Disruption Events

Observations of luminous flares resulting from the possible tidal disruption of stars by supermassive black holes have raised a number of puzzles. Outstanding questions include the origin of the optical and ultraviolet (UV) flux, the weakness of hydrogen lines in the spectrum, and the occasional simultaneous observation of x-rays. Here we study the emission from tidal disruption events (TDEs) produced as radiation from black hole accretion propagates through an extended, optically thick envelope formed from stellar debris. We analytically describe key physics controlling spectrum formation, and present detailed radiative transfer calculations that model the spectral energy distribution (SED) and optical line strengths of TDEs near peak brightness. The steady-state transfer is coupled to a non local thermodynamic equilibrium treatment of the excitation and ionization states of hydrogen, helium and oxygen (as a representative metal). Our calculations show how an extended envelope can reprocess a fraction of soft x-rays and produce the observed optical fluxes of order 10^43 ergs per second. Variations in the mass or size of the envelope may help explain how the optical flux changes over time with roughly constant color. For high enough accretion luminosities, x-rays can highly ionize the reprocessing region and escape to be observed simultaneously with the optical flux, producing an SED not described by a single blackbody. Due to optical depth effects, hydrogen Balmer line emission is often strongly suppressed relative to helium line emission (with HeII-to-H line ratios of at least 5:1 in some cases) even in the disruption of a solar-composition star. We discuss the implications of our results to understanding the type of stars destroyed in TDEs and the physical processes responsible for producing the observed flares.

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arXiv2016

Discovery of the Candidate Off-nuclear Ultrasoft Hyper-luminous X-ray Source 3XMM J141711.1+522541

We report the discovery of an off-nuclear ultrasoft hyper-luminous X-ray source candidate 3XMM J141711.1+522541 in the inactive S0 galaxy SDSS J141711.07+522540.8 (z=0.41827, d_L=2.3 Gpc) in the Extended Groth Strip. It is located at a projected offset of ~1.0 (5.2 kpc) from the nucleus of the galaxy and was serendipitously detected in five XMM-Newton observations in 2000 July. Two observations have enough counts and can be fitted with a standard thermal disk with an apparent inner disk temperature kT_MCD ~ 0.13 keV and a 0.28-14.2 keV unabsorbed luminosity L_X ~ 4X10^{43} erg/s in the source rest frame. The source was still detected in three Chandra observations in 2002 August, with similarily ultrasoft but fainter spectra (kT_MCD ~ 0.17 keV, L_X ~ 0.5X10^{43} erg/s). It was not detected in later observations, including two by Chandra in 2005 October, one by XMM-Newton in 2014 January, and two by Chandra in 2014 September-October, implying a long-term flux variation factor of >14. Therefore the source could be a transient with an outburst in 2000-2002. It has a faint optical counterpart candidate, with apparent magnitudes of m_F606W=26.3 AB mag and m_F814W=25.5 AB mag in 2004 December (implying an absolute V-band magnitude of ~-15.9 AB mag). We discuss various explanations for the source and find that it is best explained as a massive black hole (BH) embedded in the nucleus of a possibly stripped satellite galaxy, with the X-ray outburst due to tidal disruption of a surrounding star by the BH. The BH mass is ~10^5 Msun, assuming the peak X-ray luminosity at around the Eddington limit.

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arXiv2016

An Ultramassive 1.28 M$_\odot$ White Dwarf in NGC 2099

With the Keck I Low-Resolution Imaging Spectrometer we have observed nine white dwarf candidates in the very rich open cluster NGC 2099 (M37). The spectroscopy shows seven to be DA white dwarfs, one to be a DB white dwarf, and one to be a DZ white dwarf. Three of these DA white dwarfs are consistent with singly evolved cluster membership: an ultramassive (1.28$^{+0.05}_{-0.08}$ M$_\odot$) and two intermediate-mass (0.70 and 0.75 M$_\odot$) white dwarfs. Analysis of their cooling ages allows us to calculate their progenitor masses and establish new constraints on the initial-final mass relation. The intermediate-mass white dwarfs are in strong agreement with previous work over this mass regime. The ultramassive white dwarf has $V$ = 24.5, $\sim$2 mag fainter than the other two remnants. The spectrum of this star has lower quality, so the derived stellar properties (e.g., T$_{\rm eff}$, log g) have uncertainties that are several times higher than the brighter counterparts. We measure these uncertainties and establish the star's final mass as the highest-mass white dwarf discovered thus far in a cluster, but we are unable to calculate its progenitor mass because at this high mass and cooler T$_{\rm eff}$ its inferred cooling age is highly sensitive to its mass. At the highest temperatures, however, this sensitivity of cooling age to an ultramassive white dwarf's mass is only moderate. This demonstrates that future investigations of the upper-mass end of the initial-final mass relation must identify massive, newly formed white dwarfs (i.e., in young clusters with ages 50-150 Myr).

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arXiv2016

The Close Stellar Companions to Intermediate Mass Black Holes

When embedded in dense cluster cores, intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs) acquire close stellar or stellar-remnant companions. These companions are not only gravitationally bound, they tend to hierarchically isolate from other cluster stars through series of multibody encounters. In this paper, we study the demographics of IMBH companions in compact star clusters through direct $N$-body simulation. We study clusters initially composed of $10^5$ or $2\times 10^5$ stars with IMBHs of 75 and 150 solar masses, and follow their evolution for 6-10 Gyr. A tight innermost binary pair of IMBH and stellar object rapidly forms. The IMBH has a companion with orbital semi-major axis at least three times tighter than the second-most bound object over 90% of the time. These companionships have typical periods of order years and are subject to cycles of exchange and destruction. The most frequently observed, long-lived pairings persist for $\sim 10^7$ yr. The demographics of IMBH companions in clusters are diverse; they include both main sequence, giant stars, and stellar remnants. Companion objects may reveal the presence of an IMBH in a cluster in one of several ways. Most-bound companion stars routinely suffer grazing tidal interactions with the IMBH, offering a dynamical mechanism to produce repeated flaring episodes like those seen in the IMBH candidate HLX-1. Stellar winds of companion stars provide a minimum quiescent accretion rate for IMBHs, with implications for radio searches for IMBH accretion in globular clusters. Finally, gravitational wave inspirals of compact objects are found to occur with promising frequency.

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arXiv2016

An Ultraviolet Spectrum of the Tidal Disruption Flare ASASSN-14li

We present a Hubble Space Telescope STIS spectrum of ASASSN-14li, the first rest-frame UV spectrum of a tidal disruption flare (TDF). The underlying continuum is well fit by a blackbody with $T_{\mathrm{UV}} = 3.5 \times 10^{4}$ K, an order of magnitude smaller than the temperature inferred from X-ray spectra (and significantly more precise than previous efforts based on optical and near-UV photometry). Super-imposed on this blue continuum, we detect three classes of features: narrow absorption from the Milky Way (probably a high-velocity cloud), and narrow absorption and broad (FWHM $\approx 2000$-8000 km s$^{-1}$) emission lines at/near the systemic host velocity. The absorption lines are blueshifted with respect to the emission lines by $Δv = -(250$-400) km s$^{-1}$. Due both to this velocity offset and the lack of common low-ionization features (Mg II, Fe II), we argue these arise from the same absorbing material responsible for the low-velocity outflow discovered at X-ray wavelengths. The broad nuclear emission lines display a remarkable abundance pattern: N III], N IV], He II are quite prominent, while the common quasar emission lines of C III] and Mg II are weak or entirely absent. Detailed modeling of this spectrum will help elucidate fundamental questions regarding the nature of the emission process(es) at work in TDFs, while future UV spectroscopy of ASASSN-14li would help to confirm (or refute) the previously proposed connection between TDFs and "N-rich" quasars.

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arXiv2016

Transport and mixing of r-process elements in neutron star binary merger blast waves

The r-process nuclei are robustly synthesized in the material ejected during a neutron star binary merger (NSBM), as tidal torques transport angular momentum and energy through the outer Lagrange point in the form of a vast tidal tail. If NSBM are indeed solely responsible for the solar system r- process abundances, a galaxy like our own would require to host a few NSBM per million years, with each event ejecting, on average, about 5x10^{-2} M_sun of r-process material. Because the ejecta velocities in the tidal tail are significantly larger than in ordinary supernovae, NSBM deposit a comparable amount of energy into the interstellar medium (ISM). In contrast to extensive efforts studying spherical models for supernova remnant evolution, calculations quantifying the impact of NSBM ejecta in the ISM have been lacking. To better understand their evolution in a cosmological context, we perform a suite of three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations with optically-thin radiative cooling of isolated NSBM ejecta expanding in environments with conditions adopted from Milky Way-like galaxy simulations. Although the remnant morphology is highly complex at early times, the subsequent radiative evolution that results from thermal instability in atomic gas is remarkably similar to that of a standard supernova blast wave. This implies that sub-resolution supernova feedback models can be used in galaxy-scale simulations that are unable to resolve the key evolutionary phases of NSBM blast waves. Among other quantities, we examine the radius, time, mass and kinetic energy content of the NSBM remnant at shell formation as well as the momentum injected to the ISM. We find that the shell formation epoch is attained when the swept-up mass is about 10^3 M_sun, at this point the mass fraction of r-process material is drastically enhanced up to two orders of magnitude in relation to a solar metallicity ISM.

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arXiv2016

Two Massive White Dwarfs from NGC 2323 and the Initial-Final Mass Relation for Progenitors of 4 to 6.5 M$_\odot$

We have observed a sample of 10 white dwarf candidates in the rich open cluster NGC 2323 (M50) with the Keck Low-Resolution Imaging Spectrometer. The spectroscopy shows eight to be DA white dwarfs, with six of these having high S/N appropriate for our analysis. Two of these white dwarfs are consistent with singly evolved cluster membership, and both are high mass $\sim$1.07 M$_\odot$, and give equivalent progenitor masses of 4.69 M$_\odot$. To supplement these new high-mass white dwarfs and analyze the initial-final mass relation (IFMR), we have also looked at 30 white dwarfs from publicly available data that are mostly all high-mass ($\gtrsim$0.9 M$_\odot$). These original published data exhibited significant scatter, and to test if this scatter is true or simply the result of systematics, we have uniformly analyzed the white dwarf spectra and have adopted thorough photometric techniques to derive uniform cluster parameters for their parent clusters. The resulting IFMR scatter is significantly reduced, arguing that mass-loss rates are not stochastic in nature and that within the ranges of metallicity and mass analyzed in this work mass loss is not highly sensitive to variations in metallicity. Lastly, when adopting cluster ages based on Y$^2$ isochrones, the slope of the high-mass IFMR remains steep and consistent with that found from intermediate-mass white dwarfs, giving a linear IFMR from progenitor masses between 3 to 6.5 M$_\odot$. In contrast, when adopting the slightly younger cluster ages based on PARSEC isochrones, the high-mass IFMR has a moderate turnover near an initial mass of 4 M$_\odot$.

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arXiv2015

Flows of X-ray gas reveal the disruption of a star by a massive black hole

Tidal forces close to massive black holes can violently disrupt stars that make a close approach. These extreme events are discovered via bright X-ray and optical/UV flares in galactic centers. Prior studies based on modeling decaying flux trends have been able to estimate broad properties, such as the mass accretion rate. Here we report the detection of flows of highly ionized X-ray gas in high-resolution X-ray spectra of a nearby tidal disruption event. Variability within the absorption-dominated spectra indicates that the gas is relatively close to the black hole. Narrow line widths indicate that the gas does not stretch over a large range of radii, giving a low volume filling factor. Modest outflow speeds of a few hundred kilometers per second are observed, significantly below the escape speed from the radius set by variability. The gas flow is consistent with a rotating wind from the inner, super-Eddington region of a nascent accretion disk, or with a filament of disrupted stellar gas near to the apocenter of an elliptical orbit. Flows of this sort are predicted by fundamental analytical theory and more recent numerical simulations.

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arXiv2015

Thermonuclear detonations ensuing white dwarf mergers

The merger of two white dwarfs (WDs) has for many years not been considered as the favoured model for the progenitor system of type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). But recent years have seen a change of opinion as a number of studies, both observational and theoretical, have concluded that they should contribute significantly to the observed type Ia supernova rate. In this paper, we study the ignition and propagation of detonation through post-merger remnants and we follow the resulting nucleosynthesis up to the point where a homologous expansion is reached. In our study we cover the entire range of WD masses and compositions. For the emergence of a detonation we study three different setups. The first two are guided by the merger remnants from our earlier simulations (Dan et al. 2014}, while for the third one the ignitions were set by placing hotspots with properties determined by spatially resolved calculations taken from the literature. There are some caveats to our approach which we investigate. We carefully compare the nucleosynthetic yields of successful explosions with SN Ia observations. Only three of our models are consistent with all the imposed constraints and potentially lead to a standard type Ia event. The first one, a $0.45\,M_\odot\ {\rm helium\ (He)} + 0.9 \,M_\odot$ carbon-oxygen (CO) WD system produces a sub-luminous, SN 1991bg-like event while the other two, a $0.45\,M_\odot\ {\rm He} + 1.1\,M_\odot$ oxygen-neon (ONe) WD system and a $1.05+1.05\,M_\odot$ system with two CO WDs, are good candidates for common SNe Ia.

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