From Accretion to Explosion and Beyond: Transforming White Dwarfs to Neutron Stars and Black Holes
Abstract
White dwarfs accreting at high rates can grow in mass, exhibiting episodes of supersoft-source activity. Some can achieve the Chandrasekhar mass and will either become Type Ia supernovae or else will collapse, becoming neutron stars. We consider white dwarfs with giant donors, computing the rates of both supernovae and collapses. For the collapses, we follow each system to the end of accretion. Some of these systems will appear as ultraluminous x-ray sources and some will go on to become low-mass black holes. This scenario should be fairly common in young stellar populations and links a wide range of astrophysical phenomena. Indeed, it is a veritable cornucopia for the high-energy astrophysicist, offering accreting white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes, Type Ia supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, supersoft sources, ultraluminous sources, and neutron star and black hole binaries in globular clusters.
- Publication:
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AAS/High Energy Astrophysics Division #11
- Pub Date:
- March 2010
- Bibcode:
- 2010HEAD...11.0102D