Abstract
The appearance of transient behaviour in a low-mass X-ray binary places very strong constraints on the system. These are most easily satisfied if the accretor is a black hole, as in this case the system cannot easily attain a persistent state in which the central accretor keeps the accretion disc ionized and therefore stable by irradiating it. In contrast, neutron star systems can only become transient if the companion star is already evolved before mass transfer starts. Formation constraints actually mean that this requirement is, nevertheless, fulfilled in a significant fraction of neutron-star systems. The outburst light curves of both types of transient are dominated by irradiation. Propagation of the cooling wave that terminates dwarf nova outbursts is thus prevented in transient discs until most of the disc mass has been accreted, accounting for their long duration, shape, and long recurrence time.
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