arXiv subjects

Ronald E. Taam

Publications and source records attributed to Ronald E. Taam.

84 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv1999

On the Formation of Helium Double Degenerate Stars and Pre-Cataclysmic Variables

The evolution of low mass (M < 2.5 Msun) binaries through the common envelope phase has been studied for systems in which one member is on its first ascent of the red giant branch. Three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations have been carried out for a range of red giant masses (1 - 2 Msun) with degenerate helium cores (0.28 - 0.45 Msun) and companions (0.1 - 0.45 Msun) for initial orbital periods ranging from about 15 - 1000 days. The results suggest that these low mass binary systems can survive the common envelope phase provided that the helium degenerate core is more massive than about 0.2 - 0.25 Msun and that the mass of the red giant progenitor is less than about 2 Msun. For the observed short period double degenerate systems, it is found that evolutionary scenarios involving two phases of common envelope evolution are not likely and that a scenario involving an Algol-like phase of mass transfer followed by a common envelope phase is viable, suggesting that the first-formed white dwarf is often reheated by nuclear burning on its surface. A formation mechanism for two subdwarf B stars observed in eclipsing short period binaries with low mass main sequence stars is also described.

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arXiv1999

Variable-Frequency QPOs from the Galactic Microquasar GRS 1915+105

We show that the galactic microquasar GRS 1915+105 exhibits quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) whose frequency varies continuously from 1-15 Hz, during spectrally hard dips when the source is in a flaring state. We report here analyses of simultaneous energy spectra and power density spectra at 4 s intervals. The energy spectrum is well fit at each time step by an optically thick accretion disk plus power law model, while the power density spectrum consists of a varying red noise component plus the variable frequency QPO. The features of both spectra are strongly correlated with one another. The 1-15 Hz QPOs appear when the power law component becomes hard and intense, and themselves have an energy spectrum consistent with the power law component (with root mean square amplitudes as high as 10%). The frequency of the oscillations, however, is most strikingly correlated with the parameters of the thermal disk component. The tightest correlation is between QPO frequency and the disk X-ray flux. This fact indicates that the properties of the QPO are not determined by solely a disk or solely a corona.

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arXiv1998

Planet Consumption and Stellar Metallicity Enhancements

The evolution of a giant planet within the stellar envelope of a main-sequence star is investigated as a possible mechanism for enhancing the stellar metallicities of the parent stars of extrasolar planetary systems. Three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of a planet subject to impacting stellar matter indicate that the envelope of a Jupiter-like giant planet can be completely stripped in the outer stellar convection zone of a solar-mass star. In contrast, Jupiter-like and less massive Saturn-like giant planets are able to survive through the base of the convection zone of a 1.22 solar-mass star. Although strongly dependent on details of planetary interior models, partial or total dissolution of giant planets can result in significant enhancements in the metallicity of host stars with masses between about 1.0 and 1.3 solar masses. The implications of these results with regard to planetary orbital migration are briefly discussed.

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arXiv1998

Double Core Evolution X. Through the Envelope Ejection Phase

The evolution of binary systems consisting of an asymptotic giant branch star of mass equal to 3 M_sun or 5 M_sun, and a main sequence star of mass equal to 0.4 M_sun or 0.6 M_sun with orbital periods > 200 days has been followed from the onset through the late stages of the common envelope phase. Using a nested grid technique, the three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of an asymptotic giant branch star with radii approximately 1 A.U. indicate that a significant fraction of the envelope gas is unbound (about 31% and 23% for binaries of 3 M_sun and 0.4 M_sun, and 5 M_sun and 0.6 M_sun respectively) by the ends of the simulations, and that the efficiency of the mass ejection process is about 40%. While the original volume of the giant is virtually evacuated in the late stages, most of the envelope gas remains marginally bound on the grid. At the ends of our simulations, when the orbital decay timescale exceeds about 5 years, the giant core and companion orbit one another with a period of about 1 day (2.4 days for a binary involving a more evolved giant), although this is an upper limit to the final orbital period. For a binary of 5 M_sun and 0.4 M_sun, the common envelope may not be completely ejected.

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arXiv1997

Rapid Bursts From GRS 1915+105 with RXTE

The light curves of GRS 1915+105 observed with RXTE on October 15, 1996 reveal a wide range of transient activity including regular bursts with a recurrence time of about 1 minute, irregular bursts, and dips. In contrast to bursts from other sources, a secondary (and a tertiary) weaker burst immediately following the primary burst are observed. Detailed energy spectra indicate that the source softens during the main outburst and successively hardens during the secondary and tertiary bursts. This may imply that the accretion flow has a corona-disk configuration and that the relative contribution of the hot corona decreases during the primary bursts and increases during the secondary and tertiary bursts. The primary burst profile resembles the bursts produced in the time dependent evolutions of accretion disks which are thermally and viscously unstable. The secondary burst may reflect an inward shift of the inner edge of the disk which results in a greater release of gravitational binding energy.

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arXiv1996

The Pattern of Correlated X-ray Timing and Spectral Behavior in GRS 1915+105

From data obtained from the PCA in the 2-11 keV and 11-30.5 keV energy range, GRS 1915+105 is seen during RXTE observations between 1996 May and October on two separate branches in a hardness intensity diagram. On the hard branch, GRS 1915+105 exhibits narrow quasi-periodic oscillations ranging from 0.5 to 6 Hz with ${Δν\over ν} \sim 0.2$. The QPOs are observed over intensities ranging from about 6,000 to 20,000 counts s$^{-1}$ in the 2 - 12.5 keV energy band, indicating a strong dependence on source intensity. Strong harmonics are seen, especially, at lower frequencies. As the QPO frequency increases, the harmonic feature weakens and disappears. On the soft branch, narrow QPOs are absent and the low frequency component of the power density spectrum is approximated by a power-law, with index $\sim -1.25$ for low count rates and $\sim -1.5$ for high count rates ($\gta 18000$ cts/s). Occasionally, a broad peaked feature in the 1-6 Hz frequency range is also observed on this branch. The source was probably in the very high state similar to those of other black hole candidates. Thermal-viscous instabilities in accretion disk models do not predict the correlation of the narrow QPO frequency and luminosity unless the fraction of luminosity from the disk decreases with the total luminosity.

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arXiv1996

On the morphology of accretion flows with small non-zero specific angular momentum

The morphology of adiabatic accretion flows with small non-zero specific angular momentum has been investigated in the axisymmetric and nonviscous limit. For an initial state characterized by a Bondi flow with the specific angular momentum distributed with respect to polar angle, a travelling shock wave forms which propagates more rapidly in the equatorial plane than in the plane perpendicular to it resulting in the formation of a hot torus. In cases where the incoming flow is restricted to lie near the equatorial plane, a strong wind forms directed away from this plane with the tendency for the formation of a nonsteady shock structure. As the height of the incoming flow is increased it is found that the resultant wind weakens. The parameter regime which delineates accretion flows characterized by a travelling shock and a nearly standing shock structure is presented.

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arXiv1996

Double-Diffusive Mixing-Length Theory, Semiconvection, and Massive Star Evolution

Double-diffusive convection refers to mixing where the effects of thermal and composition gradients compete to determine the stability of a fluid. In addition to the familiar fast convective instability, such fluids exhibit the slow, direct salt finger instability and the slow, overstable semiconvective instability. Previous approaches to this subject usually have been based on linear stability analyses. We develop here the nonlinear mixing-length theory (MLT) of double-diffusive convection, in analogy to the more familiar MLT for a fluid of homogeneous composition. We present approximate solutions for the mixing rate in the various regimes, and show that the familiar Schwarzschild and Ledoux stability criteria are good approximations to the precise criteria in stellar interiors. We have implemented the self-consistent computation of the temperature gradient and turbulent mixing rate in a stellar evolution code and solved a diffusion equation to mix composition at the appropriate rate. We have evolved $15\msun$ and $30\msun$ stars from the zero-age main sequence to the end of core He-burning. Semiconvective mixing is fast enough to alter stellar composition profiles on relevant time scales, but not so fast that instantaneous readjustment is appropriate.

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arXiv1996

The Spectral States of Black Hole X-ray Binary Sources

A framework for the interpretation of the spectral states of black hole X-ray transients based on the diversity of accretion disk models is introduced. Depending on the mass accretion rate, it is proposed that the accretion disk is described by one or a combination of the following structures: optically thick disk, advection-dominated disk, corona-disk, and non-steady state disk. In particular, it is suggested that the very high, high, low, and off states are characterized by mass accretion rates of decreasing magnitude. The very high state corresponds to mass accretion rates near the Eddington limit in which an optically thin non steady inner region is surrounded by an optically thick structure. In the high state, the inner region is optically thin and advection-dominated or optically thick. The low hard state is interpreted in terms of a disk-corona system and the off state in terms of an optically thin disk dominated by advective energy transport into the black hole. The possible observational consequences of such a paradigm are discussed.

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arXiv1995

THE EVOLUTION OF ACCRETION DISKS WITH CORONAE: A MODEL FOR THE LOW-FREQUENCY QUASI-PERIODIC OSCILLATIONS IN X-RAY BINARIES

The global nonlinear time dependent evolution of accretion disk-corona systems in X-ray binary sources has been investigated to provide an understanding of the low frequency ($\sim 0.04$~Hz) quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) observed recently in the Rapid Burster MXB 1730-335 and in some black hole candidates sources (Cyg X--1 and GRO~J0422+32). We consider $α$-viscosity models in which the viscous stress is proportional to the total pressure. In contrast to previous time dependent studies it is assumed that all mass accretion and angular momentum transport take place in an optically thick disk, but that a fraction of the gravitational energy that is released is dissipated in a corona. It is found that the coronal energy dissipation can effectively reduce the amplitudes of the mass flow variations generated from the thermal and viscous instabilities (in comparison to models without a corona) to a state in which the disk exhibits mild oscillatory nonsteady behavior. These oscillations are globally coherent in the unstable regions of the disk. A model for the high and low states of black hole candidate systems is also proposed. It is suggested that the low state, which is characterized by a hard X-ray spectrum, corresponds to a disk configuration in which the inner disk is in an advection dominated hot optically thin state whereas the high state corresponds to a configuration in which the inner disk is in an optically thick state surrounded by a corona. In this model, the mass accretion rate in the system is higher in the low state than in the high state. The hard X-ray spectrum of QPOs observed in the low state can be naturally explained by such a model.

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arXiv1994

Variability of Accretion Disks Surrounding Black Holes ----- the Role of Inertial-Acoustic Mode Instabilities

The global nonlinear time-dependent evolution of the inertial-acoustic mode instability in accretion disks surrounding black holes has been investigated. The viscous stress is assumed to be proportional to the gas pressure only, i.e.\,, $τ= - αp_g$. It is found that an oscillatory instability exists in the inner regions of disks ($r < 10 r_g$, where $r_g$ is the Schwarzschild radius) for sufficiently large $α$ ($\gapprox 0.2$), and for mass accretion rates less than about 0.3 times the Eddington value. The variations of the integrated bolometric luminosity from the disk, $ΔL/L$, are less than 3\%. A power spectrum analysis of these variations reveals a power spectrum which can be fit to a power law function of the frequency $P \propto f^{-γ}$, with index $γ\sim 1.4-2.3$ and a low frequency feature at about 4 Hz in one case. In addition, a narrow peak centered at a frequency corresponding to the maximum epicyclic frequency of the disk at $\sim 100-130$ Hz and its first harmonic is also seen. The low frequency modulations are remarkably similar to those observed in black hole candidate systems. The possible existence of a scattering corona in the inner region of the disk and/or to other processes contributing to the power at high frequencies in the inner region of the accretion disk may make the detection of the high frequency component difficult.

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arXiv1994

Low Frequency Quasi-Periodic Oscillations in Low Mass X-Ray Binaries and Galactic Black Hole Candidates

We consider the inner regions of accretion disks surrounding black holes and neutron stars and investigate the nonlinear time dependent evolution of thermal-viscous instabilities. The viscous stress is assumed to be proportional to the gas pressure with the viscosity parameter formulated as $α=\min[α_0 (h/r)^n, α_{\max}]$, where $h$ is the local scale height, $r$ is the distance from the central compact object, and $n$, $α_0$ and $α_{\max}$ are constants. It is found that the disk is unstable for $α$ sufficiently sensitive to $h$ ($n \gapprox 1.2$). The instabilities are globally coherent in the entire unstable region of the disk and, depending on the viscosity parameters, the time variability of the mass accretion rates are manifested as periodic or quasi-periodic oscillations. We show that, the low frequency ($\sim 0.04$~Hz) quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) discovered recently in some of the black hole candidates (Cyg~X-1 and GRO~J0422+32) and a low mass X-ray binary (Rapid Burster MXB~1730--335) may be explicable by the thermal-viscous instabilities in accretion disks. The observations of QPOs place constraints on the viscosity parameters and suggest that $(n,α_0)$ $\sim (1.6,30)$ for the Rapid Burster with a $1.4\,\msun$ neutron star. In the case of black hole candidates, the dependence of $α$ on $h/r$ is less steep corresponding to $n \sim 1.2-1.3$ for black holes less than $10\,\msun$.

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