Compact Stellar Core Research Articles

Formation of Transitional cE/UCD Galaxies through Massive/Dwarf Disc Galaxy Mergers

The dynamics of the merger of a dwarf disc galaxy with a massive spiral galaxy of the Milky Way type were studied in detail. The remnant of such interaction after numerous crossings of the satellite through the disc of the main galaxy was a compact stellar core, the characteristics of which were close to small compact elliptical galaxies (cEs) or large ultra-compact dwarfs (UCDs). Such transitional cE/UCD objects with an effective radius of 100–200 pc arise as a result of stripping the outer layers of the stellar core during the destruction of a dwarf disc galaxy. Numerical models of the satellite before interaction included baryonic matter (stars and gas) and dark mass. We used N-body to describe the dynamics of stars and dark matter, and we used smoothed-particle hydrodynamics to model the gas components of both galaxies. The direct method of calculating the gravitational force between all particles provided a qualitative resolution of spatial structures up to 10 pc. The dwarf galaxy fell onto the gas and stellar discs of the main galaxy almost along a radial trajectory with a large eccentricity. This ensured that the dwarf crossed the disc of the main galaxy at each pericentric approach over a time interval of more than 9 billion years. We varied the gas mass and the initial orbital characteristics of the satellite over a wide range, studying the features of mass loss in the core. The presence of the initial gas component in a dwarf galaxy significantly affects the nature of the formation and evolution of the compact stellar core. The gas-rich satellite gives birth to a more compact elliptical galaxy compared to the merging gas-free dwarf galaxy. The initial gas content in the satellite also affects the internal rotation in the stripped nucleus. The simulated cE/UCD galaxies contained very little gas and dark matter at the end of their evolution.

The van der Waals Hexaquark Chemical Potential in Dense Stellar Matter

We explore the chemical potential of a QCD-motivated van der Waals (VDW) phase change model for the six-quark color-singlet, strangeness S = −2 particle known as the hexaquark with quark content (uuddss). The hexaquark may have internal structure, indicated by short range correlations that allow for non-color-singlet diquark and triquark configurations whose interactions will change the magnitude of the chemical potential. In the multicomponent VDW Equation of State (EoS), the quark-quark particle interaction terms are sensitive to the QCD color factor, causing the pairing of these terms to give different interaction strengths for their respective contributions to the chemical potential. This results in a critical temperature near 163 MeV for the color-singlet states and tens of MeV below this for various mixed diquark and triquark states. The VDW chemical potential is also sensitive to the number density, leading to chemical potential isotherms that exhibit spinodal extrema, which also depend upon the internal hexaquark configurations. These extrema determine regions of metastability for the mixed states near the critical point. We use this chemical potential with the chemical potential-modified TOV equations to investigate the properties of hexaquark formation in cold compact stellar cores in beta equilibrium. We find thresholds for hexaquark layers and changes in maximum mass values that are consistent with observations from high mass compact stellar objects such as PSR 09043 + 10 and GW 190814. In general, we find that the VDW-TOV model has an upper stability mass and radius bound for a chemical potential of 1340 MeV with a compactness of C~0.2.

Ultramassive Black Holes Formed by Triple Quasar Mergers at z ∼ 2

The origin of rare and elusive ultramassive black holes (UMBH; with M BH > 1010 M ⊙) is an open question. Using the large volume cosmological hydrodynamic simulation ASTRID, we report on the formation of an extremely massive UMBH with M BH ∼ 1011 M ⊙ at z ∼ 2. The UMBH is assembled as a result of two successive mergers of massive galaxies each with stellar mass M * > 3 × 1011 M ⊙ that also produces a bright, rare triple quasar system powered by three ∼109 M ⊙ black holes. The second merger of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) follows the first after 150 Myr. The merger events lead to sustained Eddington accretion onto the central SMBH, forming a UMBH in the center of a massive compact stellar core with M * > 2 × 1012 M ⊙. The strong feedback of the UMBH quenches the surrounding star formation to <10 M ⊙ yr−1 in the inner 50 h −1 kpc region. There are two more UMBHs with M BH > 5 × 1010 M ⊙ at z > 2 in ASTRID that are also produced by major mergers of galaxies, and their progenitors can be observed as quasar triplets of lower luminosity. The rarely observed quasar multiples can be the cradle of UMBHs at high redshift, and likely end up in the center of the most massive clusters.

Close stellar encounters at the Galactic Centre – I. The effect on the observed stellar populations

ABSTRACT We model the effects of collisions and close encounters on the stellar populations observed in the Milky Way nuclear stellar cluster (NSC). Our analysis is based on N-body simulations in which the NSC forms by accretion of massive stellar clusters around a supermassive black hole. We attach stellar populations to our N-body particles and follow the evolution of their stars, and the rate of collisions and close encounters. The most common encounters are collisions between pairs of main-sequence (MS) stars, which lead to mergers: destructive collisions between MS stars and compact objects are rare. We find that the effects of collisions on the stellar populations are small for three reasons. First, our models possess a core that limits the maximum stellar density. Secondly, the velocity dispersion in the NSC is similar to the surface escape velocities of the stars, which minimizes the collision rate. Finally, whilst collisions between MS stars destroy bright giants by accelerating their evolution, they also create them by accelerating the evolution of lower mass stars. These two effects approximately cancel out. We also investigate whether the G2 cloud could be a fuzzball: a compact stellar core that has accreted a tenuous envelope in a close encounter with a red giant. We conclude that fuzzballs with cores below $2\, {\rm M_{\odot }}$ have thermal times-scales too short to reproduce G2. A fuzzball with a black hole core could reproduce the surface properties of G2 but the production rate of such objects in our model is low.

On the optically thick winds of Wolf-Rayet stars

(abridged) The strong winds of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are important for the mechanical and chemical feedback of the most massive stars and determine whether they end their lives as neutron stars or black holes. In this work we investigate theoretically the mass-loss properties of H-free WR stars of the nitrogen sequence (WN stars). We connect stellar structure models for He stars with wind models for optically-thick winds and assess how both types of models can simultaneously fulfill their respective sonic-point conditions. Fixing the outer wind law and terminal wind velocity, we obtain unique solutions for the mass-loss rates of optically-thick, radiatively-driven winds of WR stars in the phase of core He-burning. The resulting mass-loss relations as a function of stellar parameters, agree well with previous empirical relations. Furthermore, we encounter stellar mass limits below which no continuous solutions exist. While these mass limits agree with observations of WR stars in the Galaxy, they are in conflict with observations in the LMC. While our results confirm in particular the slope of oft-used empirical mass-loss relations, they imply that only part of the observed WN population can be understood in the framework of the standard assumptions of a smooth transonic flow and compact stellar core. This means that alternative approaches, such as a clumped and inflated wind structure, or deviations from the diffusion limit at the sonic point may have to be invoked. Qualitatively, the existence of mass limits for the formation of WR-type winds may be relevant for the non-detection of low-mass WR stars in binary systems, which are believed to be progenitors of Type Ib/c supernovae. The sonic-point conditions derived in this work may provide a possibility to include optically-thick winds in stellar evolution models in a more physically motivated form than in current models.

Substructures in hydrodynamical cluster simulations

The abundance and structure of dark matter subhalos has been analyzed extensively in recent studies of dark matter-only simulations, but comparatively little is known about the impact of baryonic physics on halo substructures. We here extend the SUBFIND algorithm for substructure identification such that it can be reliably applied to dissipative hydrodynamical simulations that include star formation. This allows, in particular, the identification of galaxies as substructures in simulations of clusters of galaxies, and a determination of their content of gravitationally bound stars, dark matter, and hot and cold gas. Using a large set of cosmological cluster simulations, we present a detailed analysis of halo substructures in hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy clusters, focusing in particular on the influence both of radiative and non-radiative gas physics, and of non-standard physics such as thermal conduction and feedback by galactic outflows. We also examine the impact of numerical nuisance parameters such as artificial viscosity parameterizations. We find that diffuse hot gas is efficiently stripped from subhalos when they enter the highly pressurized cluster atmosphere. This has the effect of decreasing the subhalo mass function relative to a corresponding dark matter-only simulation. These effects are mitigated in radiative runs, where baryons condense in the central subhalo regions and form compact stellar cores. However, in all cases, only a very small fraction, of the order of one percent, of subhalos within the cluster virial radii preserve a gravitationally bound hot gaseous atmosphere. (abridged)

On the Cosmic Nuclear Cycle and the Similarity of Nuclei and Stars

Repulsive interactions between neutrons in compact stellar cores cause luminosity and a steady outflow of hydrogen from stellar surfaces. Neutron repulsion in more massive compact objects made by gravitational collapse produces violent, energetic, cosmological events (quasars, gamma ray bursts, and active galactic centers) that had been attributed to black holes before neutron repulsion was recognized. Rather than evolving in one direction by fusion, nuclear matter on the cosmological scale cycles between fusion, gravitational collapse, and dissociation (including neutron-emission). This cycle involves neither the production of matter in an initial “Big Bang” nor the disappearance of matter into black holes. The similarity Bohr noted between atomic and planetary structures extends to a similarity between nuclear and stellar structures.

Three-dimensional simulations of stellar core collapse in full general relativity: Nonaxisymmetric dynamical instabilities

We perform fully general relativistic simulations of rotating stellar core collapse in three spatial dimensions. The hydrodynamic equations are solved using a high-resolution shock-capturing scheme. A parametric equation of state is adopted to model collapsing stellar cores and neutron stars following Dimmelmeier et al. The early stage of the collapse is followed by an axisymmetric code. When the stellar core becomes compact enough, we start a three-dimensional simulation adding a bar-mode nonaxisymmetric density perturbation. The axisymmetric simulations are performed for a wide variety of initial conditions changing the rotational velocity profile, parameters of the equations of state, and the total mass. It is clarified that the maximum density, the maximum value of the compactness, and the maximum value of the ratio of the kinetic energy $T$ to the gravitational potential energy $W$ ($\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\equiv}T/W$) achieved during the stellar collapse and bounce depend sensitively on the velocity profile and the total mass of the initial core and equations of state. It is also found that for all the models with a high degree of differential rotation, a funnel structure is formed around the rotational axis after the formation of neutron stars. For selected models in which the maximum value of $\ensuremath{\beta}$ is larger than $\ensuremath{\sim}0.27$, three-dimensional numerical simulations are performed. It is found that the bar-mode dynamical instability sets in for the case that the following conditions are satisfied: (i) the progenitor of the stellar core collapse should be rapidly rotating with the initial value of $0.01\ensuremath{\lesssim}\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\lesssim}0.02$, (ii) the degree of differential rotation for the velocity profile of the initial condition should be sufficiently high, and (iii) a depletion factor of pressure in an early stage of collapse should be large enough to induce a significant contraction to form a compact stellar core for which an efficient spin-up can be achieved surmounting the strong centrifugal force. As a result of the onset of the bar-mode dynamical instabilities, the amplitude of gravitational waves can be by a factor of $\ensuremath{\sim}10$ larger than that in the axisymmetric collapse. It is found that a dynamical instability with the $m=1$ mode is also induced for the dynamically unstable cases against the bar mode, but the perturbation does not grow significantly and, hence, it does not contribute to an outstanding amplification of gravitational waves. No evidence for fragmentation of the protoneutron stars is found in the first few 10 msec after the bounce.

Gravitational radiation from rotational instabilites in compact stellar cores with stiff equations of state.

We carry out 3-D numerical simulations of the dynamical instability in rapidly rotating stars initially modeled as polytropes with n = 1.5, 1.0, and 0.5. The calculations are done with a SPH code using Newtonian gravity, and the gravitational radiation is calculated in the quadrupole limit. All models develop the global m=2 bar mode, with mass and angular momentum being shed from the ends of the bar in two trailing spiral arms. The models then undergo successive episodes of core recontraction and spiral arm ejection, with the number of these episodes increasing as n decreases: this results in longer-lived gravitational wave signals for stiffer models. This instability may operate in a stellar core that has expended its nuclear fuel and is prevented from further collapse due to centrifugal forces. The actual values of the gravitational radiation amplitudes and frequencies depend sensitively on the radius of the star R_{eq} at which the instability develops.

Gravitational radiation from stellar collapse - Ellipsoidal models

The burst of gravitational radiation emitted during the initial collapse and rebound of a homogeneous ellipsoid with internal pressure is analyzed numerically. a configuration of mass 1.4 M/sub sun/ is assumed to collapse aspherically from rest at an initial density of 10/sup 1/0 g cm/sup -/3. The deviations from spherical symmetry arise from rotation and internal magnetic fields; deviations from axisymmetry are also considered. By following the collapse along two distinct low-entropy adiabats (''hot'' and ''cold'' collapse) on free-fall time scales, we estimate the maximum amount of gravitational radiation liberated during the initial implosion of a compact stellar core. We calculate the total gravitational (quadrupole) radiation energy loss, the radiation spectra, and the wave forms for several collapse sequences, parametrized by their initial deviations from spherical symmetry. A minimum estimate of the total neutrino losses during this initial collapse phase is also provided.

The structure of eight globular clusters

view Abstract Citations (17) References (13) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS The structure of eight globular clusters. Bahcall, N. A. ; Hausman, M. A. Abstract Star counts on short-exposure plates are presented for eight globular clusters. The data are given to several limiting magnitudes for each cluster. Projected radial distributions are determined from the star counts; no significant segregation is observed among the distributions to various limiting magnitudes. The structural parameters of the clusters (core radii and concentration factors) are determined from best-fitting King curves to the observed distributions. The central densities, total masses, central escape velocities, and relaxation times are also calculated. NGC 6093 (M80) and NGC 7099 (M30) have dense compact stellar cores, similar to the established globular X-ray sources. Upper limits are given for the masses of possible central black holes in the eight clusters. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: April 1977 DOI: 10.1086/155132 Bibcode: 1977ApJ...213...93B Keywords: Black Holes (Astronomy); Globular Clusters; Radial Distribution; Star Distribution; X Ray Sources; Escape Velocity; Galactic Structure; Relaxation Time; Stellar Mass; Astrophysics full text sources ADS |