arXiv subjects

Qin-Mei Li

Publications and source records attributed to Qin-Mei Li.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Eclipse Properties and Superhump Evolution in the SU UMa-Type Dwarf Nova Z Cha

The advent of large-scale time-domain surveys provides both opportunities and challenges for understanding accretion disk evolution in cataclysmic variables (CVs). Using high-cadence photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), we investigate the eclipsing SU UMa-type dwarf nova Z Cha. Leveraging eclipses as a natural probe, we examine the evolution of the accretion disk through variations in eclipse depth, O--C of eclipse minima, and positive superhump (PSH) amplitude. During superoutbursts, all three quantities exhibit quasi-periodic modulations with a common period of $\sim$2 days, consistent with the precession period of an eccentric disk. We interpret these correlated variations as evidence of an eccentric, precessing disk: O--C traces the periodic shift of the system's brightness center, while eclipse depth and PSH amplitude vary with the orientation of the disk bulge relative to the line of sight. In quiescence (Sectors 13 and 93), PSHs with periods of $\sim$0.0762 days show linearly decreasing amplitudes and periods, indicating gradual shrinkage of the eccentric disk and a slowing precession. Remarkably, a coherent signal with a period of $\sim$0.0729~days ($\epsilon^{-}\approx-0.02$) appears in the same quiescent intervals. This signal may represent negative superhumps (NSHs) coexisting with PSHs, although an orbital sideband of the PSH cannot presently be excluded with the available data. If confirmed as NSHs, their coexistence with PSHs would challenge the classical tilted-disk model, and could be explained by retrograde apsidal precession of an eccentric disk, where the inner disk precesses retrogradely (NSHs) and the outer disk progradely (PSHs); this interpretation remains to be tested by further observations.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2026

Universal scaling between magnetar field and initial spin period for short gamma ray bursts

The $B_p$--$P_0$ correlation serves as a critical probe of magnetar engine physics. Although this scaling relation has been firmly established for long gamma-ray bursts (lGRBs), systematic investigations for short GRBs (sGRBs) remain absent, leaving the physical differences between the two populations poorly constrained. Here we analyze 33 Swift sGRBs exhibiting prominent X-ray plateaus from newborn millisecond magnetar spin-down, and derive their initial spin period $P_0$ and polar magnetic field $B_p$. sGRB magnetars span $P_0 \in [1.73,\,18.28]\ \mathrm{ms}$ and $B_p \in [0.06,\,2.82] \times 10^{17}\ \mathrm{G}$ ($\langle B_p \rangle = 7.05 \times 10^{16}\ \mathrm{G}$), significantly more magnetized than lGRB magnetars ($B_p \in [0.39,\,23.08] \times 10^{15}\ \mathrm{G}$; $\langle B_p \rangle = 3.69 \times 10^{15}\ \mathrm{G}$). For the first time, we derive consistent power-law $B_p$--$P_0$ correlations for GRBs : the scaling for sGRBs is $\log B_p = (0.84\pm0.07)\log P_0 + (15.79\pm0.07)$, whose slope is highly consistent with that of lGRBs, $\log B_p = (0.83\pm0.09)\log P_0 + (14.92\pm0.06)$. The near-identical slopes imply a universal magnetar spin-down mechanism, while the vertical offset between intercepts traces divergent progenitor channels. This scaling relation thus offers a new diagnostic to disentangle the formation pathways of GRB. Within the framework of the standard spin-up model, the mass accretion rates of sGRBs ($\dot{M} \sim 1 \times 10^{-1}$ to $3 \times 10^{-1}\,M_\odot\,\mathrm{s}^{-1}$) are substantially higher than those of lGRBs ($\dot{M} \sim 10^{-4}$ to $1 \times 10^{-1}\,M_\odot\,\mathrm{s}^{-1}$). Our work completes the missing $B_p$--$P_0$ statistics for sGRBs, quantitatively unifies their magnetar physics with lGRBs, and provides new observational constraints on the origin diversity of relativistic transients.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

New Evidence for Extragalactic Einstein Probe Transients associated with Long Gamma-ray Bursts

The origin of extragalactic fast X-ray transients (EFXTs) remains a fundamental open question in high-energy astrophysics. The Einstein Probe (EP) mission provides a transformative opportunity to investigate their nature. While mounting observations of EP-discovered EFXTs (EP-EFXTs) suggest a possible connection to long gamma-ray bursts (lGRBs), an in-depth comparative analysis between them remains lacking. Here, we present a comparative analysis of their cosmic formation histories, revealing that EP-EFXTs and lGRBs share a similar evolutionary trend-showing a marked decline at $z<1.0$ and a plateau beyond $1.0<z<5$-which clearly distinguishes them from short GRBs. This result is derived from a rigorously selected sample of EP-EFXTs, using Lynden-Bell's $c^{-}$ method to reconstruct, for the first time, the luminosity function and formation rate of EP-EFXTs without any assumptions. Our findings provide independent evidence that EP-EFXTs and lGRBs may originate from a common progenitor channel.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

The Cosmic Star Formation History: Insights from Kilonova-Associated Gamma-Ray Bursts

The origin of the Universe and its material content remains one of the most fundamental questions in science. Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), with their extreme luminosities and high-redshift detectability, provide a unique window into the history of cosmic formation and chemical evolution. Consequently, the GRB formation rate (FR) has been employed to trace the star formation rate (SFR) across cosmic time. GRBs are conventionally classified into long and short categories (lGRBs and sGRBs) based on their $ T_{90} $ duration. sGRBs are widely employed as tracers of the delayed SFR, owing to their origin linked to the inspiral timescales of compact binary systems. However, some studies suggest that the detection of supernova-associated sGRBs may indicate potential contamination by core-collapse events. In this work, we move beyond the $ T_{90} $ classification and focus exclusively on GRBs with confirmed kilonova signatures, which provide unambiguous evidence of binary compact star mergers, to reassess their connection with the delayed SFR. Through analysis of a kilonova-associated GRB (KN/GRBs) sample, we find that even within this robust subset, the KN/GRB FR displays a trend contrary to that of the delayed SFR at low redshifts ($ z < 1 $). This result challenges the conventional theory by indicating that low-redshift KN/GRBs may not accurately trace the delayed SFR, independent of core-collapse contamination, while further validation with larger KN/GRB samples is essential to determine the reliability of compact binary mergers as probes of delayed SFR.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Detection of Low-Redshift Excess in Supernova-Linked Gamma-Ray Bursts

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are traditionally classified into long (lGRBs) and short (sGRBs) durations based on their $T_{90}$, with lGRBs widely used as tracers of the cosmic star formation rate (SFR) due to their observed association with core-collapse supernovae. However, recent detections of kilonovae accompanying some lGRBs challenge this assumption, suggesting potential contamination from compact binary mergers. Here, we move beyond the conventional $T_{90}$-based classification and focus exclusively on GRBs directly associated with supernovae - the most direct signatures of massive stellar collapse - to reassess their connection to the SFR. Using a sample of SN/GRBs, we construct the luminosity - redshift ($L$-$z$) plane and uncover a significant correlation between these variables. To account for observational biases, we apply the $τ$ statistic and Lynden-Bell's $C^{-}$ method to derive the intrinsic luminosity function and formation rate. Our analysis reveals that even among this well-defined subsample, the SN/GRB formation rate still exceeds the SFR at low redshifts ($z < 1$). These findings suggest that GRBs at low redshift may not serve as reliable tracers of the SFR, and that larger samples are required to further investigate this discrepancy.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Superoutbursts and Positive Superhumps Occurred During the Standstill of a Z Cam-type Dwarf Nova

Dwarf novae are semi-detached binaries, where a white dwarf accretes material from a cool main-sequence companion via an accretion disk, and are known for their intermittent outbursts, making them key systems for studying accretion physics. The accumulation of large survey datasets has challenged traditional models, which assumed that the disk remains hot and cannot produce superoutbursts during the standstill of Z Cam-type dwarf nova and that superoutbursts require a mass ratio of $ q = M_2/M_1 \leq 0.25 - 0.33 $. Here we report the detection of superoutbursts and positive superhumps (PSHs) during a standstill in the Z Cam-type star AT Cnc with a mass ratio larger than 0.33. Notably, the PSHs evolve gradually before the superoutburst begins, suggesting that an eccentric, precessing disk forms first, with the superoutburst occurring as the disk radius continues to expand. These findings provide the first detailed observational evidence of superoutbursts and PSHs occurring during standstill, offering important new insights into the classification of dwarf novae and the underlying mechanisms of outbursts

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2025

Comparison of the Origin of Short Gamma-Ray Bursts with or without Extended Emission

The merger of compact binary stars produces short gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs), involving channels such as neutron star - neutron star (BNS) and neutron star - black hole (NS-BH). The association between sGRB 170817A and gravitational wave GW 170817 provides reliable evidence for the BNS channel. Some speculations suggest that sGRBs with extended emission (EE) may represent another distinct population. The offset is the distance between the GRB sky localization and the host galaxy center. We compared the offset distributions of these two types of samples (46 sGRBs with EE and 9 without EE samples) and found that they follow the same distribution. Utilizing non-parametric methods, we examined the luminosity function and formation rate of sGRBs without any assuming. The luminosity function can be described as $ψ(L_{0}) \propto L_{0}^{-0.12 \pm 0.01}$ for $L_{0} < L_0^b$ ($ψ(L_{0}) \propto L_{0}^{-0.73 \pm 0.02}$ for $L_{0} > L_0^b$) for sGRB without EE and $ψ(L_{0}) \propto L_{0}^{-0.13 \pm 0.003}$ for $L_{0} < L_0^b$ ($ψ(L_{0}) \propto L_{0}^{-0.61 \pm 0.01}$ for $L_{0} > L_0^b$) for sGRBs with EE. The formation rate is characterized as $ρ(z) \propto (1 + z)^{-3.04 \pm 0.10}$ for $z < 1$ and $ρ(z) \propto (1 + z)^{-0.29 \pm 0.38}$ for $1 < z < 3$ for sGRB without EE, while for sGRBs with EE, it is $ρ(z) \propto (1 + z)^{-3.85 \pm 0.15}$ for $z < 1$ and $ρ(z) \propto (1 + z)^{-0.40 \pm 1.11}$ for $1 < z < 3$. Our findings suggest no significant difference in the progenitors of sGRBs with and without EE when considered in terms of spatial offsets, formation rates, and luminosity function.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

A New IW And-Type Star: Karachurin 12 with Tilted Disks and Diverse cycles

The IW And-type phenomenon in cataclysmic variables presents a significant challenge to the accretion disk instability model. Using photometric data from the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae, the Zwicky Transient Facility, and the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, we identify Karachurin 12 as a new non-eclipsing IW And-type object with a cycle period of 35.69(3) days. We also report for the first time that Karachurin 12 is a negative superhump (NSH) system featuring a precessing tilted disks, with precession, orbital, and NSH periods of 4.9588(2) days, 0.3168895(13) days, and 0.2979861(8) days, respectively. Our analysis, using dips as index and NSHs as probe, reveals diverse cycle patterns in Karachurin 12, with NSH amplitude varying throughout the cycle. These findings offer new insights for studying tilted disks and the IW And-type phenomenon. The mass-transfer burst model has difficulty explaining the observed variations in NSH amplitude, especially given the uncertainty surrounding the origin of the mass transfer burst. Meanwhile, the tilted thermally unstable disk model indicates a possible connection to the IW And-type phenomenon, but it also struggles to account for the detailed variations in Karachurin 12. Therefore, a wider range of factors must be considered to fully understand the complex changes in Karachurin 12.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2024

Tilted Disk Precession and Negative Superhumps in HS 2325+8205: A Multi-Window Analysis

Tilted disk precession exists in different objects. Negative superhumps (NSHs) in cataclysmic variable stars (CVs) are believed to arise from the interaction between the reverse precession of a tilted disk and the streams from the secondary star.Utilizing TESS photometry, we present a comprehensive investigation into the tilted disk precession and NSHs in the dwarf nova (DN) HS 2325+8205, employing eclipse minima, eclipse depths, NSH frequencies, and NSH amplitudes and the correlation between them as the windows. We identified NSHs with a period of 0.185671(17) days in HS 2325+8205. The NSH frequency exhibits variability with a period of 3.943(9) days, akin to the tilted disk precession period validated in novae-like stars (NLs, SDSS J0812) and intermediate polars (IPs, TV Col).The O-C of eclipse minima were similarly found to vary cyclically in period 4.135(5) days, characterized by a faster rise than fall. Furthermore, the NSH amplitude exhibits complex and diverse variations, which may be linked to changes in the disk radius, mass transfer rate, and the apparent area of the hot spot. For the first time in DNe, we observe bi-periodic variations in eclipse depth (P1= 4.131(4) d and P2= 2.065(2) d ~ Pprec/2), resembling those seen in IPs, suggesting that variations with P2 are not attributable to an accretion curtain, as previously suspected. Moreover, NSH amplitude and eclipse depth decrease with increasing NSH frequency, while NSH amplitude correlates positively with eclipse depth.These complex variations observed across multiple observational windows provide substantial evidence for understanding of tilted disk precession and NSHs.

astro-ph.SR↗