arXiv subjects

Jan Henneco

Publications and source records attributed to Jan Henneco.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Binary evolution at the extremes of mass-transfer efficiency: Contact, mergers, and population signatures

Binary star evolution remains inherently uncertain, and several physical processes are not well understood. These open questions in binary physics come in addition to major uncertainties in single-star evolution, such as angular momentum transport and interior mixing. For example, the efficiency of mass transfer (MT) -- which is the fraction of transferred mass that is actually accreted -- is one of the main uncertainties in binary evolution. We present a grid of 1D binary evolution models with identical initial conditions to an earlier grid in which MT was limited by the spin-up of the accretors. Now we employ fully conservative MT, allowing for a one-to-one comparison between the two grids, and covering the full range from highly non-conservative to fully conservative MT. We explore how these two maximally different MT efficiencies change the occurrence and incidence of contact phases, stellar mergers and common envelope phases, and how they affect the present-day population of (post-)mass-transferring binaries. We find that fully conservative MT increases the incidence of contact systems by roughly a factor of 6 (from 11% to 62%), and the stellar merger incidence by more than a factor of 2 (from 16% to 38%). We also find the emergence of double-core CE phases, which are absent for lower MT efficiencies. Comparing two synthetic binary populations built using the two grids with observed Algol and stripped-star binaries reveals that even though conservative MT is favoured to reproduce the observed stripped-star binaries, the observed population of Algol binaries cannot be explained by a single MT efficiency. We conclude that the MT efficiency depends on the configuration of binary systems and cannot be described by a single value. Our work highlights the need for a better understanding of binary MT and indicates that current binary-star models are incomplete.

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arXiv2026

Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): massive star variability revealed using a novel software tool for point-spread function fitting of TESS images

Massive stars, the progenitors of neutron stars and black holes, play a crucial role in shaping the chemical and radiative properties of entire galaxies through their winds and explosive deaths. Stellar pulsations are a common phenomenon in massive stars and asteroseismology -- the study of such pulsations -- provides crucial constraints on the physics of massive star interiors. The excitation of heat-driven pulsations in massive stars is expected to depend on a star's metallicity, but this remains largely uncalibrated in evolution models due to a lack of a sufficient observations. While TESS has dramatically improved the statistics for Galactic massive stars, obtaining TESS light curves for low-metallicity massive stars beyond the Milky Way is challenging, due to their faintness and heavy crowding. In this paper, we present a novel point-spread function (PSF) based light curve extraction method called {\sc Lemons}, which overcomes these challenges. We also demonstrate the limitations of the often-used simple aperture photometry (SAP) method that can provide heavily contaminated light curves. With this new technique, accurate light curves of 91 SMC massive stars in the BLOeM sample are extracted. They reveal a variety of variability types including indications of binarity (e.g. eclipses and ellipsoidal modulation) and stellar pulsations. They also enable us to investigate stochastic low-frequency (SLF) variability for massive stars in the SMC. Furthermore we demonstrate how the morphology of SLF variability probes a star's location in the Hertzsprung--Russell diagram, which appears similar to Galactic massive stars thus indicating that the underlying physical mechanism could be insensitive to metallicity.

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arXiv2026

The effect of near-core mixing on rejuvenation and the asteroseismic properties of massive accretors

The relatively recent revelation of the high occurrence rate of binary interactions, especially in intermediate- and high-mass systems, has prompted multiple investigations into their asteroseismic imprints. The near-core region just outside the convective cores of mass-accreting early-type main-sequence stars in binaries has been theorised to be sensitive to assumptions about mixing (notably semiconvection) and accretion physics. In turn, the predicted asteroseismic properties depend strongly on the physical properties of this near-core region. We explore how robust the previously identified asteroseismic imprints of mass accretion are to changes in semiconvective mixing. Using one-dimensional stellar structure and evolution models, this parameter study shows the dominant effect of convective boundary mixing on rejuvenation and the post-accretion asteroseismic properties. The recovered seismic imprint, largely robust to variations in semiconvective mixing efficiency, changes drastically when convective boundary mixing is not included in the models. We find that the post-accretion thermal relaxation is key in determining the final near-core structure and the asteroseismic imprint of accretion. We reaffirm the potential of Fourier transforms of period spacing patterns to quantify the effects of different near-core mixing and accretion-rate assumptions on asteroseismic signals. Overall, this work highlights the sensitivity of the asteroseismic imprint of accretion not only on stellar structure and evolution modelling assumptions, but also on the accretion physics. The logical next step is to arrive at a more general picture of the asteroseismic imprint of mass transfer by exploring its properties in a multi-dimensional parameter study including single- and binary-star assumptions.

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arXiv2025

1D stellar mergers: entropy sorting and PyMMAMS

Stellar multiple systems are the norm, not the exception, with many systems undergoing interaction phases during their lifetimes. A subset of these interactions can lead to stellar mergers, where the two components of a stellar binary system come close enough to coalesce into a single star. Accurately modeling stellar mergers requires computationally expensive 3D methods, which are not suited for exploring large parameter spaces as required e.g., by population synthesis studies. In this work, we compare two 1D prescriptions based on the concept of entropy sorting to their 3D counterparts. We employ a basic entropy sorting method ('ES'), which builds the merger remnant by sorting the progenitor stars' shells by increasing entropy, and a Python version of the 'Make Me A Massive Star' code ('PM'), which additionally applies a shock-heating prescription calibrated on SPH simulations of stellar head-on collisions. Comparing to a set of 39 more recent SPH head-on collisions different from the ones used for PM calibration, we find that PM reproduces the outcome of these mergers a lot better than ES in terms of thermal and composition structure post-merger. Both 1D methods produce remnants that are rejuvenated more strongly than expected for massive stars, indicating that increased amounts of hydrogen are being mixed into the core. In an effort to further improve PM, we introduce a scaling factor for the shock-heating. We compare 1D models with both down- and up-scaled heating to a 3D MHD $9 + 8\,\mathrm{M_\odot}$ merger of main-sequence stars. Decreasing the shock-heating improves the agreement in terms of the entropy profile, but has only a minor impact on the subsequent stellar evolution of the remnant. We find that 1D methods are able to approximate 3D stellar merger simulations well, and that shock-heating has to be considered to properly predict the post-merger structures.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The physical properties of post-mass-transfer binaries

Aims. We present and analyse the detailed physical properties of six binary stellar systems, originally proposed as possible star-black hole binaries on the basis of radial velocities from Gaia's third data release, but soon recognised as likely post-mass-transfer binary systems with stripped companions. Methods. We used multi-epoch high-resolution FEROS spectra and spectral disentangling paired with stellar templates to derive effective temperatures, $T_\mathrm{eff}$; stellar radii, R*; and projected rotational velocities, v$\sin{i}$ for both components in all systems along with the mass ratio, q = $M_\mathrm{accretor}/M_\mathrm{donor}$ and the components' flux ratio as a function of wavelength. Results. Our analysis directly confirms that all systems are post-mass-transfer binaries with two luminous stars, i.e. no black hole companions. Each system contains an A-type accretor component that is rapidly rotating and a cooler very low-mass donor (~ 0.25M$\odot$) that is overluminous. Five of the systems show no trace of any emission lines, implying that there is no current mass transfer, consistent with our inferred radii, in all cases within the Roche volume. The data are generally consistent with stable case AB mass transfer with $β$ (the fraction of mass lost from the accretor) less than 0.7. While the accretor components rotate rapidly, they rotate well below the critical rotation rate, $v_\mathrm{crit}$, even though there must have been enough mass transfer to spin them up to a significant fraction of $v_\mathrm{crit}$, according to theoretical models of angular momentum transfer. As neither magnetic braking nor tidal synchronisation should have been effective in spinning down the stars, our results suggest that either mass accretion does not increase the angular momentum of the accretors to their critical values or the systems never reached these values in the first place.

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arXiv2025

A Low Metallicity Massive Contact Binary Star System Candidate in WLM identified by Hubble and James Webb Space Telescope imaging

We present archival HST and JWST ultraviolet through near infrared time series photometric observations of a massive minimal-contact binary candidate in the metal-poor galaxy WLM ($Z = 0.14 Z_{\odot}$). This discovery marks the lowest metallicity contact binary candidate observed to date. We determine the nature of the two stars in the binary by using the eclipsing binary modeling software (PHysics Of Eclipsing BinariEs; PHOEBE) to train a neural network to fit our observed panchromatic multi-epoch photometry. The best fit model consists of two hot MS stars ($T_1=29800^{+2300}_{-1700}$ K, $M_1=16^{+2}_{-3}~M_{\odot}$, and $T_2=18000^{+5000}_{-5000}$ K, $M_2=7^{+5}_{-3}~M_{\odot}$). We discuss plausible evolutionary paths for the system, and suggest the system is likely to be currently in a contact phase before ultimately ending in a merger. Future spectroscopy will help to further narrow down evolutionary pathways. This work showcases a novel use of data of JWST and HST imaging originally taken to characterize RR Lyrae. We expect time series imaging from LSST, BlackGEM, etc. to uncover similar types of objects in nearby galaxies.

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arXiv2024

Merger seismology: distinguishing massive merger products from genuine single stars using asteroseismology

Products of stellar mergers are predicted to be common in stellar populations and can potentially explain stars with peculiar properties. When the merger occurs after the initially more massive star has evolved into the Hertzsprung gap (HG), the merger product may remain in the blue part of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (HRD) for millions of years. Such objects could, therefore, explain the overabundance of observed blue stars, such as blue supergiants. However, it is currently not straightforward to distinguish merger products from genuine single stars. We make detailed asteroseismic comparisons between models of massive post-main-sequence merger products and genuine single stars to identify which asteroseismic diagnostics can be used to distinguish them. In doing so, we develop tools for the relatively young field of merger seismology. Genuine single stars in the HG are fully radiative, while merger products have a convective He-burning core and convective H-burning shell while occupying similar locations in the HRD. These structural differences are reflected in lower asymptotic period spacing values for merger products and the appearance of deep dips in their period spacing patterns. Our genuine single-star models with masses above roughly 11.4 solar masses develop short-lived intermediate convective zones during their HG evolution. This also leads to deep dips in their period spacing patterns. Because of the lack of a convective core, merger products and genuine single stars can be distinguished based on their asymptotic period spacing value in this mass range. We perform the comparisons with and without the effects of slow rotation included in the pulsation equations and conclude that the two types of stars are seismically distinguishable in both cases. The observability of the distinguishing asteroseismic features of merger products can now be assessed and exploited in practice.

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arXiv2023

Contact tracing of binary stars: Pathways to stellar mergers

Stellar mergers lead to diverse phenomena: rejuvenated blue stragglers, magnetised and peculiar stars, transients and nebulae. Using a grid of about 6000 detailed 1D binary evolution models (initial component masses of 0.5-20$\,\text{M}_{\odot}$ at solar metallicity), we investigate which initial binary-star configurations lead to contact and classical common-envelope (CE) phases and assess the likelihood of a subsequent merger. Considering rotation and tides, we identify five mechanisms leading to contact and mergers: runaway mass transfer, $\text{L}_{2}$-overflow, accretor expansion, tidally-driven orbital decay, and non-conservative mass transfer. At least 40% of mass-transferring binaries with initial primary masses of 5-20$\,\text{M}_{\odot}$ enter contact, with >12% and >19% likely merging and evolving into a classical CE phase, respectively. Classical CE evolution occurs in late Case-B and Case-C binaries for initial mass ratios $q_{\text{i}}$ < 0.15-0.35, stable mass transfer for larger $q_{\text{i}}$. Early Case-B binaries enter contact for $q_{\text{i}}$ < 0.15-0.35 and in initially wider Case-A binaries, this occurs for $q_{\text{i}}$ < 0.35. All initially closest Case-A systems form contact binaries. We predict that binaries entering contact with $q$ < 0.5 merge or detach on a thermal timescale, while those formed with $q$ > 0.5 lead to long-lived contact phases. The fact that contact binaries are almost exclusively observed with $q$ > 0.5 confirms our expectations. Our contact, merger and classical CE incidences are lower limits because the mass transfer in our models is non-conservative. In most binaries, the non-accreted mass cannot be ejected and may settle in disks or lead to contact phases and mergers. Overall, contact binaries are a frequent and fascinating result of binary mass transfer of which the exact outcomes still remain to be understood and explored further.

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arXiv2021

The effect of the centrifugal acceleration on period spacings of gravito-inertial modes in intermediate-mass stars

The Kepler and TESS missions delivered high-precision, long-duration photometric time series for hundreds of main-sequence stars with gravito-inertial (g) pulsation modes. This high precision allows us to evaluate increasingly detailed theoretical stellar models. Recent theoretical work extended the traditional approximation of rotation (TAR), a framework to evaluate the effect of the Coriolis acceleration on g-modes, to include the effects of the centrifugal acceleration in the approximation of slightly deformed stars, which so far had mostly been neglected in asteroseismology. This extension of the TAR was conceived by rederiving the TAR in a centrifugally deformed, spheroidal coordinate system. We explore the effect of the centrifugal acceleration on g modes and assess its detectability in space-based photometry. We implement the new framework to calculate the centrifugal deformation of precomputed 1D spherical stellar structure models and compute the corresponding g-mode frequencies, assuming uniform rotation. The framework is evaluated for a grid of stellar structure models covering a relevant parameter space for observed g-mode pulsators. The centrifugal acceleration modifies the effect of the Coriolis acceleration on g modes, narrowing the equatorial band in which they are trapped. Furthermore, the centrifugal acceleration causes the pulsation periods and period spacings of the most common g modes (prograde dipole modes and r modes) to increase with values similar to the observational uncertainties in Kepler and TESS data. The effect of the centrifugal acceleration on g~modes is formally detectable in modern space photometry. Implementation of the new theoretical framework in stellar structure and pulsation codes will allow for more precise asteroseismic modelling of centrifugally deformed stars, to assess its effect on mode excitation, -trapping and -damping.

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