Evolution of Low-Mass X-ray Binaries: the Effect of Donor Evaporation

Abstract

Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are thought to originate from low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs). The discovery of eclipsing radio MSPs including redbacks and black widows indicates that evaporation of the donor star by the MSP's irradiation takes place during the LMXB evolution. In this work, we investigate the effect of donor evaporation on the secular evolution of LMXBs, considering different evaporation efficiencies and related angular momentum loss. We find that for widening LMXBs, the donor star leaves a less massive white dwarf than without evaporation; for contracting systems, evaporation can speed up the evolution, resulting in dynamically unstable mass transfer and possibly the formation of isolated MSPs.

21 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

References in corpus (8)

• Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA)
• A Radio Pulsar/X-ray Binary Link
• The formation of low-mass helium white dwarfs orbiting pulsars: Evolution of low-mass X-ray binaries below the bifurcation period
• Stability of helium accretion discs in ultracompact binaries
• Population synthesis of ultracompact X-ray binaries in the Galactic Bulge
• Formation of the planet around the millisecond pulsar J1719-1438
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Cited by in corpus (10)

• On the progenitors of AM CVn stars as LISA sources: the evolved donor star channel
• Evolution of post-Accretion Induced Collapse Binaries: the Effect of Evaporation
• A strange star scenario for the formation of isolated millisecond pulsars
• Internal heating mechanisms in neutron stars
• Luminous Optical and X-ray Flaring of the Putative Redback Millisecond Pulsar 1FGL J0523.5$-$2529
• ELM of ELM-WD: An extremely low mass hot star discovered in LAMOST survey
• Astrophysics with the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna
• Convective dynamos of black widow companions
• On the effect of pulsar evaporation on the cooling of white dwarfs
• White Dwarf Mass Growth in Cataclysmic Variables: Roles of Dwarf Novae