The formation channels and predicted populations of double-white dwarfs (DWDs) are important because a subset will evolve to be gravitational-wave sources and/or progenitors of Type Ia supernovae. Given the observed population of short-period DWDs, we calculate the outcomes of common envelope evolution when convective effects are included. For each observed white dwarf in a DWD system, we identify all progenitor stars with an equivalent proto-WD core mass from a comprehensive suite of stellar evolution models. With the second observed white dwarf as the companion, we calculate the conditions under which convection can accommodate the energy released as the orbit decays, including (if necessary), how much the envelope must spin-up during the common envelope phase. The predicted post-CE final separations closely track the observed DWD orbital parameter space, further strengthening the view that convection is a key ingredient in common envelope evolution.
It has been suggested that the absence of macroturbulence in the atmosphere of NGC 1624 - 2 is due its strong magnetic field (the strongest known for a massive O star) suppressing convection in its outer layers, removing the mechanism thought responsible for the observed macroturbulence in stars with lower field strengths. Here, we develop and apply a criterion for a uniform magnetic field to suppress convection in stellar envelopes in which radiation pressure is a significant contributor to hydrostatic balance. We find upper mass limits of ~55 Msun and ~30 Msun for magnetic suppression to be …
We argue that outward transport of energy by convection and photon diffusion in a common envelope evolution (CEE) of giant stars substantially reduces the fraction of the recombination energy of hydrogen and helium that is available for envelope removal. We base our estimate on the properties of an unperturbed asymptotic giant branch (AGB) spherical model, and on some simple arguments. Since during the CEE the envelope expands and energy removal by photon diffusion becomes more efficient, our arguments underestimate the escape of recombination energy. We hence strengthen earlier claims that re…
We assess the robustness of a low Mach number hydrodynamics algorithm for modeling helium shell convection on the surface of a white dwarf in the context of the sub-Chandrasekhar model for Type Ia supernovae. We use the low Mach number stellar hydrodynamics code, MAESTRO, to perform three-dimensional, spatially-adaptive simulations of convection leading up to the point of the ignition of a burning front. We show that the low Mach number hydrodynamics model provides a robust description of the system.
The formation pathways for gravitational-wave merger sources are predicted to include common envelope (CE) evolution. Observations of high-mass post-common envelope binaries suggest that energy transfer to the envelope during the CE phase must be highly efficient. In contrast, observations of low-mass post-CE binaries indicate energy transfer during the CE phase must be highly inefficient. Convection, a process present in low-mass and high-mass stars, naturally explains this dichotomy. Using observations of Wolf-Rayet binaries, we study the effects of convection and radiative losses on the pre…
We examine how metallicity affects convection and overshoot in the superadiabatic layer of main sequence stars. We present results from a grid of 3D radiation hydrodynamic simulations with four metallicities ($Z=0.040$, 0.020, 0.010, 0.001), and spanning a range in effective temperature ($4950 < \rm T_{\rm eff} < 6230$). We show that changing the metallicity alters properties of the convective gas dynamics, and the structure of the superadiabatic layer and atmosphere. Our grid of simulations show that the amount of superadiabaticity, which tracks the transition from efficient to inefficient co…
Delta Scuti (delta Sct) stars are opacity-driven pulsators with masses of 1.5-2.5M$_{\odot}$, their pulsations resulting from the varying ionization of helium. In less massive stars such as the Sun, convection transports mass and energy through the outer 30 per cent of the star and excites a rich spectrum of resonant acoustic modes. Based on the solar example, with no firm theoretical basis, models predict that the convective envelope in delta Sct stars extends only about 1 per cent of the radius, but with sufficient energy to excite solar-like oscillations. This was not observed before the Ke…
A widely used method for parameterizing the outcomes of common envelopes (CEs) involves defining an ejection efficiency, $\barα_{\mathrm{eff}}$, that represents the fraction of orbital energy used to unbind the envelope as the orbit decays. Given $\barα_{\mathrm{eff}}$, a prediction for the post-CE orbital separation is possible with knowledge of the energy required to unbind the primary's envelope from its core. Unfortunately, placing observational constraints on $\barα_{\mathrm{eff}}$ is challenging as it requires knowledge of the primary's structure at the onset of the common envelope phase…
A large fraction of white dwarf stars shows photospheric chemical composition polluted by heavy elements accreted from a debris disk. Such debris disks result from the tidal disruption of rocky planetesimals which had survived to whole stellar evolution from the main sequence to the final white dwarf stage. Determining the accretion rate of this material is an important step towards estimating the mass of the planetesimals and towards understanding the ultimate fate of the planetary systems. The accretion of heavy material with a mean molecular weight, $μ$, higher than the mean molecular weigh…
We present the first white dwarf mass distributions of a large and homogeneous sample of post-common envelope binaries (PCEBs) and wide white dwarf-main sequence binaries (WDMS) directly obtained from observations. Both distributions are statistically independent, with PCEBs showing a clear concentration of systems towards the low-mass end of the distribution, and the white dwarf mass distribution of wide WDMS binaries being similar to those of single white dwarfs. Our results provide evidence that the majority of low-mass (Mwd < 0.5Msun) white dwarfs are formed in close binaries.
Extremely low-mass white dwarfs (ELM WDs) are the result of binary evolution in which a low-mass donor star is stripped by its companion leaving behind a helium-core white dwarf. We explore the formation of ELM WDs in binary systems considering the Convection And Rotation Boosted magnetic braking treatment. Our evolutionary sequences were calculated using the MESA code, with initial masses of 1.0 and 1.2 Msun (donor), and 1.4 (accretor), compatible with low mass X-ray binaries (LMXB) systems. We obtain ELM models in the range 0.15 to 0.27 Msun from a broad range of initial orbital periods, 1 t…
Around 10% of white dwarfs exhibit global magnetic structures with fields ranging from 1 kG to hundreds of MG. Recently, the first radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations of the atmosphere of white dwarfs showed that convection should be suppressed in their photospheres for magnetic fields with strengths B $\gtrsim$ 50 kG. These predictions are in agreement with our knowledge of stellar physics (e.g. energy transfer in strong magnetic field regions of the solar photosphere), but have yet to be directly confirmed from white dwarf observations. We obtained COS far-UV spectroscopy of the weakl…
The scale length over which convection mixes mass in a star can be calculated as the inverse of the vertical derivative of the unidirectional (up or down) mass flux. This is related to the mixing length in the mixing length theory of stellar convection. We give the ratio of mass mixing length to pressure scale height for a grid of 3D surface convection simulations, covering from 4300\,K to 6900\,K on the main-sequence, and up to giants at $\log g = 2.2$, all for solar composition. These simulations also confirm what is already known from solar simulations, that convection doesn't proceed by di…
Recent 3D-simulations have shown that the turbulent kinetic flux (TKF) is significant. We discuss the effects of TKF on the size of convection zone and find that the TKF may help to solve the solar abundance problem. The solar abundance problem is that, with new abundances, the solar convection zone depth, sound speed in the radiative interior, the helium abundance and density in the convective envelope are not in agreement with helioseismic inversions. We have done Monte Carlo simulations on solar convective envelope models with different profile of TKF to test the effects. The solar abundanc…
Based on the turbulent convection model (TCM), we investigate chemical mixing in the bottom overshooting region of the convective envelope of intermediate-mass stars, focusing on its influence on the formation and extension of blue loops in the Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram. A diffusive mixing model is adopted during the Red Giant Branch (RGB) phase. The properties of the blue loop are changed by modification of the element profiles above the H-burning shell, which results from the incomplete mixing in the bottom overshooting region when stellar model evolves up along the RGB. Such modifica…
Recently, a class of Roche-lobe-filling binary systems consisting of hot subdwarf stars and white dwarfs with sub-hour periods has been discovered. At present, the hot subdwarf is in a shell He burning phase and is transferring some of its remaining thin H envelope to its white dwarf companion. As the evolution of the hot subdwarf continues, it is expected to detach, leaving behind a low mass C/O core white dwarf secondary with a thick He layer. Then, on a timescale of $\sim 10$ Myr, gravitational wave radiation will again bring the systems into contact. If the mass transfer is unstable and re…
The white dwarf binary pathways survey is dedicated to studying the origin and evolution of binaries containing a white dwarf and an intermediate-mass secondary star of the spectral type A, F, G, or K (WD+AFGK). Here we present CPD-65\,264, a new post common envelope binary with an orbital period of 1.37\,days that contains a massive white dwarf ($ 0.86\pm 0.06\,\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$) and an intermediate-mass ($1.00\pm0.05\,\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$) main-sequence secondary star. We characterized the secondary star and measured the orbital period using high-resolution optical spectroscopy. The white d…
The formation of a double white dwarf binary likely involves a common envelope (CE) event between a red giant and a white dwarf (WD) during the most recent episode of Roche lobe overflow mass transfer. We study the role of recombination energy with hydrodynamic simulations of such stellar interactions. We find that the recombination energy helps to expel the common envelope entirely, while if recombination energy is not taken into account, a significant fraction of the common envelope remains bound. We apply our numerical methods to constrain the progenitor system for WD 1101+364 -- a double W…
We perform a calibration of the mixing length of convection in stellar structure models against realistic 3D radiation-coupled hydrodynamics (RHD) simulations of convection in stellar surface layers, determining the adiabat deep in convective stellar envelopes. The mixing-length parameter $α$ is calibrated by matching averages of the 3D simulations to 1D stellar envelope models, ensuring identical atomic physics in the two cases. This is done for a previously published grid of solar-metallicity convection simulations, covering from 4200 K to 6900 K on the main sequence, and 4300-5000 K for gia…
It has been recently suggested that white dwarfs generate magnetic fields in a process analogous to the Earth. The crystallization of the core creates a compositional inversion that drives convection, and combined with rotation, this can sustain a magnetic dynamo. We reanalyse the dynamo mechanism, arising from the slow crystallization of the core, and find convective turnover times $t_{\rm conv}$ of weeks to months - longer by orders of magnitude than previously thought. With white dwarf spin periods $P\ll t_{\rm conv}$, crystallization-driven dynamos are almost always in the fast rotating re…
Aims: We aim at characterizing the inward transition from convective to radiative energy transport at the base of the convective envelope of the solar-like oscillator HD 52265 recently observed by the CoRoT satellite. Methods: We investigated the origin of one specific feature found in the HD 52265 frequency spectrum. We modelled the star to derive the internal structure and the oscillation frequencies that best match the observations and used a seismic indicator sensitive to the properties of the base of the envelope convection zone. Results: The seismic indicators clearly reveal that to best…
We investigate the spectral evolution of white dwarfs by considering the effects of hydrogen mass in the atmosphere and convective overshooting above the convection zone. We notice the importance of the convective overshooting and suggest that the overshooting length should be proportional to the thickness of the convection zone to better fit the observations.
Stellar models utilising one-dimensional (1D), heuristic theories of convection fail to adequately describe the energy transport in superadiabatic layers. The improper modelling leads to well-known discrepancies between observed and predicted oscillation frequencies for stars with convective envelopes. Recently, three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic simulations of stellar envelopes have been shown to facilitate a realistic depiction of superadiabatic convection in 1D stellar models. The resulting structural changes of the boundary layers have been demonstrated to impact not only the predicted os…
We present results of a large, high resolution 3D hydrodynamical simulation of the surface layers of a DA white dwarf (WD) with $T_{\rm eff}=11800$ K and $\log(g)=8$ using the ANTARES code, the widest and deepest such simulation to date. Our simulations are in good agreement with previous calculations in the Schwarzschild-unstable region and in the overshooting region immediately beneath it. Farther below, in the wave-dominated region, we find that the rms horizontal velocities decay with depth more rapidly than the vertical ones. Since mixing requires both vertical and horizontal displacement…
The origin of highly-magnetized white dwarfs has remained a mystery since their initial discovery. Recent observations indicate that the formation of high-field magnetic white dwarfs is intimately related to strong binary interactions during post-main-sequence phases of stellar evolution. If a low-mass companion, such as a planet, brown dwarf, or low-mass star is engulfed by a post-main-sequence giant, the hydrodynamic drag in the envelope of the giant leads to a reduction of the companion's orbit. Sufficiently low-mass companions in-spiral until they are shredded by the strong gravitational t…
We present a study of the dependence of the mass-radius relation for DA white dwarf stars on the hydrogen envelope mass and the impact on the value of log g, and thus the determination of the stellar mass. We employ a set of full evolutionary carbon-oxygen core white dwarf sequences with white dwarf mass between 0.493 and 1.05 Msun. Computations of the pre-white dwarf evolution uncovers an intrinsic dependence of the maximum mass of the hydrogen envelope with stellar mass, i.e., it decreases when the total mass increases. We find that a reduction of the hydrogen envelope mass can lead to a red…
A calibration of the mixing-length parameter in the local mixing-length theory (MLT) is presented for the lower part of the convection zone in pure-hydrogen atmosphere white dwarfs. The parameterization is performed from a comparison of 3D CO5BOLD simulations with a grid of 1D envelopes with a varying mixing-length parameter. In many instances, the 3D simulations are restricted to the upper part of the convection zone. The hydrodynamical calculations suggest, in those cases, that the entropy of the upflows does not change significantly from the bottom of the convection zone to regions immediat…
We present the first radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations of the atmosphere of white dwarf stars. We demonstrate that convective energy transfer is seriously impeded by magnetic fields when the plasma-beta parameter, the thermal to magnetic pressure ratio, becomes smaller than unity. The critical field strength that inhibits convection in the photosphere of white dwarfs is in the range B = 1-50 kG, which is much smaller than the typical 1-1000 MG field strengths observed in magnetic white dwarfs, implying that these objects have radiative atmospheres. We have then employed evolutionary m…
We calculate the outward energy transport time by convection and photon diffusion in an inflated common envelope and find this time to be shorter than the envelope expansion time. We conclude therefore that most of the hydrogen recombination energy ends in radiation rather than in kinetic energy of the outflowing envelope. We use the stellar evolution code MESA and inject energy inside the envelope of an asymptotic giant branch star to mimic energy deposition by a spiraling-in stellar companion. During 1.7 years the envelope expands by a factor of more than 2. Along the entire evolution the co…
Extreme mass loss during common envelope evolution: the origin of the double low-mass white dwarf system J2102--4145
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya（加泰罗尼亚理工大学）；Universidad Nacional de La Plata, CONICET-IALP（拉普拉塔国立大学，阿根廷国家科学研究委员会-拉普拉塔天体物理研究所）；Universidad de Valparaíso（瓦尔帕莱索大学）；Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC)（加泰罗尼亚空间研究院）
State-of-the-art one-dimensional (1D) stellar evolution codes rely on simplifying assumptions, such as mixing length theory, in order to describe superadiabatic convection. As a result, 1D stellar structure models do not correctly recover the surface layers of the Sun and other stars with convective envelopes. We present a method that overcomes this structural drawback by employing three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic simulations of stellar envelopes: at every time-step of the evolution interpolated 3D envelopes are appended to the 1D structure and are used to supply realistic boundary conditio…
Massive ($M >30\,$M$_{\odot}$) stars exhibit luminosities that are near the Eddington-limit for electron scattering causing the increase in opacity associated with iron at $T\approx180,000\,$K to trigger supersonic convection in their outer envelopes. Three dimensional radiative hydrodynamics simulations by Jiang and collaborators with the Athena++ computational tool have found order of magnitude density and radiative flux fluctuations in these convective regions, even at optical depths $\gg100$. We show here that radiation can diffuse out of a parcel during the timescale of convection in thes…
We report photometric observations of the eclipsing close binary CSS21055 (SDSS J141126+200911) that strongly suggest that the companion to the carbon-oxygen white dwarf is a brown dwarf with a mass between 0.030 and 0.074 Msun. The measured orbital period is 121.73min and the totality of the eclipse lasts 125s. If confirmed, CSS21055 would be the first detached eclipsing WD+BD binary. Spectroscopy in the eclipse could provide information about the companion's evolutionary state and atmospheric structure.
Convective overshooting in super asymptotic giant branch stars has been suggested to lead to the formation of hybrid white dwarfs with carbon-oxygen cores and oxygen-neon mantles. As the white dwarf cools, this core-mantle configuration becomes convectively unstable and should mix. This mixing has been previously studied using stellar evolution calculations, but these made the approximation that convection did not affect the temperature profile of the mixed region. In this work, we perform direct numerical simulations of an idealized problem representing the core-mantle interface of the hybrid…
The detection of heavy elements at suprasolar abundances in the atmospheres of some accreting white dwarfs in cataclysmic variables, coupled with the high temperatures needed to produce these elements requires explosive thermonuclear burning. The central temperatures of any formerly more massive secondary stars in CVs undergoing hydrostatic CNO burning are far too low to produce these elements. Evidence is presented that at least some cataclysmic variables contain donor secondaries that have been contaminated by repeated novae ejecta and are transferring this material back to the white dwarf. …
Recent studies of the atmospheres of carbon-rich (DQ) white dwarfs have demonstrated the existence of two different populations that are distinguished by the temperature range, but more importantly, by the extremely high masses of the hotter group. The classical DQ below 10000 K are well understood as the result of dredge-up of carbon by the expanding helium convection zone. The high-mass group poses several problems regarding their origin and also an unexpected correlation of effective temperature with mass. We propose to study the envelopes of these objects to determine the total hydrogen an…
We present a code, VeDyn, for modelling envelopes and atmospheres of A to F stars focusing on accurate treatment of convective processes. VeDyn implements the highly sophisticated convection model of Canuto and Dubovikov (1998) but is fast and handy enough to be used in practical astrophysical applications. We developed the HME envelope solver for this convection model furtheron to consistently model the envelope together with the stellar atmosphere. The synthesis code SynthV was extended to account for the resulting velocity structure. Finally, we tested our approach on atomic line bisectors.…
The dynamics of helium shell convection driven by nuclear burning establish the conditions for runaway in the sub-Chandrasekhar mass, double detonation model for Type Ia supernovae, as well as for a variety of other explosive phenomena. We explore these convection dynamics for a range of white dwarf core and helium shell masses in three dimensions using the low Mach number hydrodynamics code Maestro. We present calculations of the bulk properties of this evolution, including time-series evolution of global diagnostics, lateral averages of the 3D state, and the global 3D state. We find a variet…
Recent observations of a large number of DA and DB white dwarfs show evidence of debris disks, which are the remnants of old planetary systems. The infrared excess detected with \emph{Spitzer} and the lines of heavy elements observed in their atmospheres with high-resolution spectroscopy converge on the idea that planetary material accretes onto these stars. Accretion rates have been derived by several authors with the assumption of a steady state between accretion and gravitational settling. The results are unrealistically different for DA and DB white dwarfs. When heavy matter is accreted on…
The standard theory of pulsations deals with the frequencies and growth rates of infinitesimal perturbations in a stellar model. Modes which are calculated to be linearly driven should increase their amplitudes exponentially with time; the fact that nearly constant amplitudes are usually observed is evidence that nonlinear mechanisms inhibit the growth of finite amplitude pulsations. Models predict that the mass of convection zones in pulsating hydrogen-atmosphere (DAV) white dwarfs is very sensitive to temperature (i.e., $M_{\rm CZ} \propto T_{\rm eff}^{-90}$), leading to the possibility that…
In this Letter we investigate the role of recombination energy during a common envelope event. We confirm that taking this energy into account helps to avoid the formation of the circumbinary envelope commonly found in previous studies. For the first time, we can model a complete common envelope event, with a clean compact double white dwarf binary system formed at the end. The resulting binary orbit is almost perfectly circular. In addition to considering recombination energy, we also show that between 1/4 and 1/2 of the released orbital energy is taken away by the ejected material. We apply …
We use a thin flux tube model in a rotating spherical shell of turbulent convective flows to study how active region scale flux tubes rise buoyantly from the bottom of the convection zone to near the solar surface. We investigate toroidal flux tubes at the base of the convection zone with field strengths ranging from 15 kG to 100 kG at initial latitudes ranging from 1 degree to 40 degrees with a total flux of 10^22 Mx. We find that the dynamic evolution of the flux tube changes from convection dominated to magnetic buoyancy dominated as the initial field strength increases from 15 kG to 100 kG…
A hybrid C/O/Ne white dwarf (WD) -- an unburned C/O core surrounded by an O/Ne/Na mantle -- can be formed if the carbon flame is quenched in a super-AGB (SAGB) star or white dwarf merger remnant. We show that this segregated hybrid structure becomes unstable to rapid mixing within 2,000 years of the onset of WD cooling. Carbon burning includes a weak reaction that removes electrons, resulting in a lower electron-to-baryon ratio ($Y_{\rm e}$) in the regions processed by carbon burning compared to the unburned C/O core, making the O/Ne mantle denser than the C/O core as the WD cools. This is uns…
Establishing a large sample of post common envelope binaries (PCEBs) that consist of a white dwarf plus an intermediate mass companion star of spectral type AFGK, offers the potential to provide new constraints on theoretical models of white dwarf binary formation and evolution. Here we present a detailed analysis of two new systems, TYC 110-755-1 and TYC 3858-1215-1. Based on radial velocity measurements we find the orbital periods of the two systems to be $\sim$ 0.85 and $\sim$ 1.64 days, respectively. In addition, HST spectroscopy of TYC 110-755-1 allowed us to measure the mass of the white…
We present multidimensional modeling of convection and oscillations in main-sequence stars somewhat more massive than the Sun, using three separate approaches: 1) Using the 3-D planar StellarBox radiation hydrodynamics code to model the envelope convection zone and part of the radiative zone. Our goals are to examine the interaction of stellar pulsations with turbulent convection in the envelope, excitation of acoustic modes, and the role of convective overshooting; 2) Applying the spherical 3-D MHD ASH (Anelastic Spherical Harmonics) code to simulate the core convection and radiative zone. Ou…
Common envelope evolution is a fundamental ingredient in our understanding of the formation of close binary stars containing compact objects which includes the progenitors of type Ia supernovae, short gamma ray bursts and most stellar gravitational wave sources. To predict the outcome of common envelope evolution we still rely to a large degree on a simplified energy conservation equation. Unfortunately, this equation contains a theoretically rather poorly constrained efficiency parameter ($α_{\mathrm{CE}}$) and, even worse, it is unclear if energy sources in addition to orbital energy (such a…
Many low-mass white dwarfs are being discovered in the field of our galaxy and some of them exhibit $g$-mode pulsations, comprising the extremely low-mass variable (ELMV) stars class. Despite it is generally believed that these stars are characterized by thick H envelopes, from stellar evolution considerations, the existence of low-mass WDs with thin H envelopes is also possible. We have performed detailed asteroseismological fits to all the known ELMVs to search for a representative model by employing a set of fully evolutionary models that are representative of low-mass He-core white dwarf s…
A magnetic dynamo driven by differential rotation generated when stars merge can explain strong fields in certain classes of magnetic stars, including the high field magnetic white dwarfs (HFMWDs). In their case the site of the differential rotation has been variously proposed to be within a common envelope, the massive hot outer regions of a merged degenerate core or an accretion disc formed by a tidally disrupted companion that is subsequently incorporated into a degenerate core. We synthesize a population of binary systems to investigate the stellar merging hypothesis for observed single HF…
