Accreting Double White Dwarf Binaries: Implications for LISA

Kyle Kremer; Katelyn Breivik; Shane L. Larson; Vassiliki Kalogera

doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557

Accreting Double White Dwarf Binaries: Implications for LISA

Kyle Kremer, Katelyn Breivik, Shane L. Larson, Vassiliki Kalogera

Physics and Astronomy

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

60 Scopus citations

Abstract

We explore the long-term evolution of mass-transferring white dwarf (WD) binaries undergoing both direct-impact and disk accretion and explore implications of such systems to gravitational-wave (GW) astronomy. We cover a broad range of initial component masses and show that these systems, the majority of which lie within the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) sensitivity range, exhibit prominent negative orbital frequency evolution (chirp) for a significant fraction of their lifetimes. Using a galactic population synthesis, we predict ∼2700 of these systems will be observable with a negative chirp of 0.1 yr^-2 by a space-based GW detector like LISA. We also show that detections of mass-transferring double WD systems by LISA may provide astronomers with unique ways of probing the physics governing close compact object binaries.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	95
Journal	Astrophysical Journal
Volume	846
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557
State	Published - Sep 10 2017

Keywords

accretion, accretion disks
binaries: general
celestial mechanics
gravitational waves
stars: mass-loss

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Astronomy and Astrophysics
Space and Planetary Science

Access to Document

10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557

Cite this

@article{6be0e77968094c5987941ba0f1b14c2e,

title = "Accreting Double White Dwarf Binaries: Implications for LISA",

abstract = "We explore the long-term evolution of mass-transferring white dwarf (WD) binaries undergoing both direct-impact and disk accretion and explore implications of such systems to gravitational-wave (GW) astronomy. We cover a broad range of initial component masses and show that these systems, the majority of which lie within the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) sensitivity range, exhibit prominent negative orbital frequency evolution (chirp) for a significant fraction of their lifetimes. Using a galactic population synthesis, we predict ∼2700 of these systems will be observable with a negative chirp of 0.1 yr-2 by a space-based GW detector like LISA. We also show that detections of mass-transferring double WD systems by LISA may provide astronomers with unique ways of probing the physics governing close compact object binaries.",

keywords = "accretion, accretion disks, binaries: general, celestial mechanics, gravitational waves, stars: mass-loss",

author = "Kyle Kremer and Katelyn Breivik and Larson, {Shane L.} and Vassiliki Kalogera",

note = "Funding Information: K.K. acknowledges support from the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program under Grant No. DGE-1324585. K.B. and S.L.L. acknowledge support from NASA Grant NNX13AM10G. V.K. acknowledges support from Northwestern University. The majority of our analysis was performed using the computational resources of the Quest high performance computing facility at North-western University, which is jointly supported by the Office of the Provost, the Office for Research, and Northwestern University Information Technology. Software: BSE (Hurley et al. 2002). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..",

year = "2017",

month = sep,

day = "10",

doi = "10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "846",

journal = "Astrophysical Journal",

issn = "0004-637X",

number = "2",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Accreting Double White Dwarf Binaries

T2 - Implications for LISA

AU - Kremer, Kyle

AU - Breivik, Katelyn

AU - Larson, Shane L.

AU - Kalogera, Vassiliki

N1 - Funding Information: K.K. acknowledges support from the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program under Grant No. DGE-1324585. K.B. and S.L.L. acknowledge support from NASA Grant NNX13AM10G. V.K. acknowledges support from Northwestern University. The majority of our analysis was performed using the computational resources of the Quest high performance computing facility at North-western University, which is jointly supported by the Office of the Provost, the Office for Research, and Northwestern University Information Technology. Software: BSE (Hurley et al. 2002). Publisher Copyright: © 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..

PY - 2017/9/10

Y1 - 2017/9/10

N2 - We explore the long-term evolution of mass-transferring white dwarf (WD) binaries undergoing both direct-impact and disk accretion and explore implications of such systems to gravitational-wave (GW) astronomy. We cover a broad range of initial component masses and show that these systems, the majority of which lie within the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) sensitivity range, exhibit prominent negative orbital frequency evolution (chirp) for a significant fraction of their lifetimes. Using a galactic population synthesis, we predict ∼2700 of these systems will be observable with a negative chirp of 0.1 yr-2 by a space-based GW detector like LISA. We also show that detections of mass-transferring double WD systems by LISA may provide astronomers with unique ways of probing the physics governing close compact object binaries.

AB - We explore the long-term evolution of mass-transferring white dwarf (WD) binaries undergoing both direct-impact and disk accretion and explore implications of such systems to gravitational-wave (GW) astronomy. We cover a broad range of initial component masses and show that these systems, the majority of which lie within the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) sensitivity range, exhibit prominent negative orbital frequency evolution (chirp) for a significant fraction of their lifetimes. Using a galactic population synthesis, we predict ∼2700 of these systems will be observable with a negative chirp of 0.1 yr-2 by a space-based GW detector like LISA. We also show that detections of mass-transferring double WD systems by LISA may provide astronomers with unique ways of probing the physics governing close compact object binaries.

KW - accretion, accretion disks

KW - binaries: general

KW - celestial mechanics

KW - gravitational waves

KW - stars: mass-loss

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85029537810&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85029537810&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557

DO - 10.3847/1538-4357/aa8557

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85029537810

SN - 0004-637X

VL - 846

JO - Astrophysical Journal

JF - Astrophysical Journal

IS - 2

M1 - 95

ER -

Accreting Double White Dwarf Binaries: Implications for LISA

Abstract

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this