Products Of Mass Transfer Research Articles

Stellar Mergers or Truly Young? Intermediate-age Stars on Highly Radial Orbits in the Milky Way’s Stellar Halo

Reconstructing the mass assembly history of the Milky Way relies on obtaining detailed measurements of the properties of many stars in the galaxy, especially in the stellar halo. One of the most constraining quantities is stellar age, as it can shed light on the accretion time and quenching of star formation in merging satellites. However, obtaining reliable age estimates for large samples of halo stars is difficult. We report published ages of 120 subgiant halo stars with highly radial orbits that likely belong to the debris of the Gaia-Enceladus/Sausage (GES) galaxy. The majority of these halo stars are old, with an age distribution characterized by a median of 11.6 Gyr and a 16th (84th) percentile of 10.5 (12.7) Gyr. However, the distribution is skewed, with a tail of younger stars that span ages down to ∼6–9 Gyr. All highly radial halo stars have chemical and kinematic/orbital quantities that associate them with the GES debris. Initial results suggest that these intermediate-age stars are not a product of mass transfer and/or stellar mergers, which can bias their age determination low. If this conclusion is upheld by upcoming spectrophotometric studies, then the presence of these stars will pose an important challenge for constraining the properties of the GES merger and the accretion history of the galaxy.

Cannibals in the thick disk

Context. Determining ages of stars for reconstructing the history of the Milky Way remains one of the most difficult tasks in astrophysics. This involves knowing when it is possible to relate the stellar mass with its age and when it is not. The young α-rich (YAR) stars present such a case in which we are still not sure about their ages because they are relatively massive, implying young ages, but their abundances are α-enhanced, which implies old ages. Aims. We report the results from new observations from a long-term radial-velocity-monitoring campaign complemented with high-resolution spectroscopy, as well as new astrometry and seismology of a sample of 41 red giants from the third version of APOKASC, which includes YAR stars. The aim is to better characterize the YAR stars in terms of binarity, mass, abundance trends, and kinematic properties. Methods. The radial velocities of HERMES, APOGEE, and Gaia were combined to determine the binary fraction among YAR stars. In combination with their mass estimate, evolutionary status, chemical composition, and kinematic properties, it allowed us to better constrain the nature of these objects. Results. We found that stars with M < 1 M⊙ were all single, whereas stars with M > 1 M⊙ could be either single or binary. This is in agreement with theoretical predictions of population synthesis models. Studying their [C/N], [C/Fe], and [N/Fe], trends with mass, it became clear that many YAR stars do not follow the APOKASC stars, favoring the scenario that most of them are the product of mass transfer. Our sample further includes two likely undermassive stars, that is to say of such as low mass that they cannot have reached the red clump within the age of the Universe, unless their low mass is the signature of mass loss in previous evolutionary phases. These stars do not show signatures of currently being binaries. Both YAR and undermassive stars might show some anomalous APOGEE abundances for the elements N, Na, P, K, and Cr; although, higher-resolution optical spectroscopy might be needed to confirm these findings. Conclusions. Considering the significant fraction of stars that are formed in pairs and the variety of ways that makes mass transfer possible, the diversity in properties in terms of binarity, and chemistry of the YAR and undermassive stars studied here implies that most of these objects are likely not young.

The Time-domain Spectroscopic Survey: Radial Velocity Variability in Dwarf Carbon Stars

Abstract Dwarf carbon (dC) stars (main-sequence stars showing carbon molecular bands) were initially thought to be an oxymoron because only asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars dredge carbon into their atmospheres. Mass transfer from a former AGB companion that has since faded to a white dwarf seems the most likely explanation. Indeed, a few types of giants known to show anomalous abundances—notably, the CH, Ba and CEMP-s stars—are known to have a high binary frequency. The dC stars may be the enhanced-abundance progenitors of most, if not all of these systems, but this requires demonstrating a high binary frequency for dCs. Here, for a sample of 240 dC stars targeted for repeat spectroscopy by the SDSS-IV’s Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey, we analyze radial velocity (RV) variability to constrain the binary frequency and orbital properties. A handful of dC systems show large velocity variability (>100 km s−1). We compare the dCs to a control sample with a similar distribution of magnitude, color, proper motion, and parallax. Using Markov chain Monte Carlo methods, we use the measured ΔRV distribution to estimate the binary fraction and the separation distribution assuming both a unimodal and bimodal distribution. We find the dC stars have an enhanced binary fraction of 95%, consistent with them being products of mass transfer. These models result in mean separations of less than 1 au corresponding to periods on the order of 1 yr. Our results support the conclusion that dC stars form from close binary systems via mass transfer.

How much mass and angular momentum can the progenitors of carbon-enriched stars accrete?

The chemically peculiar barium stars, CH stars, and most CEMP stars are all believed to be the products of mass transfer in binary systems from a now extinct AGB primary star. The mass of the AGB star and the orbital parameters of the system are the key factors usually considered when determining how much mass is transferred onto the lower-mass main-sequence companion. What is usually neglected, however, is the angular momentum of the accreted material, which should spin up the accreting star. If the star reaches critical rotation, further accretion should cease until the excess angular momentum is somehow dealt with. If the star cannot redistribute or lose the angular momentum while the primary is on the AGB, the amount of mass accreted could be much lower than otherwise expected. Here we present calculations, based on detailed stellar evolution models, of the mass that can be accreted by putative progenitors of Ba and CEMP stars before they reach critical rotation under the assumption that no angular momentum loss occurs during the mass transfer. We consider different accretion rates and values of specific angular momentum. The most stringent limits on the accreted masses result from considering accretion from a Keplerian accretion disk, which is likely present during the formation of most extrinsically-polluted carbon-enriched stars. Our calculations indicate that in this scenario only about 0.05 solar masses of material can be added to the accreting star before it reaches critical rotation, which is much too low to explain the chemical enrichment of many Ba and CEMP stars. Either the specific angular momentum of the accreted material has to effectively be lower by about a factor of ten than the Keplerian value, or significant angular momentum losses must occur for substantial accretion to take place.

Rotational mixing in carbon-enhanced metal-poor stars withs-process enrichment

Carbon-enhanced metal-poor stars with s-process enrichment (CEMP-s) are believed to be the products of mass transfer from an AGB companion, which has long since become a white dwarf. The surface abundances of CEMP-s stars are thus commonly assumed to reflect the nucleosynthesis output of the first AGB stars. We have previously shown that, for this to be the case, some physical mechanism must counter atomic diffusion in these nearly fully radiative stars, which otherwise leads to surface abundance anomalies clearly inconsistent with observations. Here we take into account angular momentum accretion by these stars. We compute in detail the evolution of typical CEMP-s stars from the ZAMS, through the mass accretion, and up the RGB for a wide range of specific angular momentum of the accreted material, corresponding to rotation velocities between about 0.3 and 300 km/s. We find that only for specific angular momentum above 1e+17 cm2/s (rotation velocities above 20 km/s) angular momentum accretion directly causes chemical dilution of the accreted material. This could nevertheless be relevant to CEMP-s stars, which are observed to rotate more slowly, if they undergo continuous angular momentum loss akin to solar-like stars. In models with rotation velocities characteristic of CEMP-s stars, rotational mixing primarily serves to inhibit atomic diffusion, such that the maximal surface abundance variations (with respect to the composition of the accreted material) prior to first dredge-up remain within about 0.4 dex without thermohaline mixing or about 0.5-1.5 dex with thermohaline mixing. Even in models with the lowest rotation velocities (under a km/s), rotational mixing is able to severely inhibit atomic diffusion, compared to non-rotating models. We thus conclude that it offers a natural solution to the problem posed by atomic diffusion and cannot be neglected in models of CEMP-s stars.

Cannibals in the thick disk: the youngα-rich stars as evolved blue stragglers

Spectro-seismic measurements of red giants enabled the recent discovery of stars in the thick disk that are more massive than 1.4 M_sun. While it has been claimed that most of these stars are younger than the rest of the typical thick disk stars, we show evidence that they might be products of mass transfer in binary evolution, notably evolved blue stragglers. We took new measurements of the radial velocities in a sample of 26 stars from APOKASC, including 13 "young" stars and 13 "old" stars with similar stellar parameters but with masses below 1.2 M_sun and found that more of the "young" stars appear to be in binary systems with respect to the "old" stars. Furthermore, we show that the "young" stars do not follow the expected trend of [C/H] ratios versus mass for individual stars. However, with a population synthesis of low-mass stars including binary evolution and mass transfer, we can reproduce the observed [C/N] ratios versus mass. Our study shows how asteroseismology of solar-type red giants provides us with a unique opportunity to study the evolution of field blue stragglers after they have left the main-sequence.

A Very Low Luminosity, Very Cool, DC White Dwarf

The star LHS 3250 is found to be a white dwarf at a distance of 30 pc. Its absolute magnitudes (M_V = 15.72; M_bol = 16.2) put it among the least-luminous white dwarfs known. Its optical spectrum shows no features, indicating it has a DC classification, and it shows no detectable polarization, indicating it does not have a very strong magnetic field. However, its broadband colors show it to have a unique spectral energy distribution, and it stands out from all other stars in BVI and other broadband photometric surveys. We discuss these properties, and conclude that LHS 3250 must be an extremely cool white dwarf with strong collision-induced absorption at red-infrared wavelengths from molecular hydrogen, in accord with models for very cool white dwarf atmospheres. If so, it is the first such star known, and the first star to provide observational evidence supporting these models. It suggests that other very cool white dwarfs, both halo white dwarfs and the oldest disk white dwarfs, also may have colors affected by similar absorption. The atmospheric composition of LHS 3250 is not known, and therefore its temperature is poorly determined. It may be a helium-core star with a mass 0.3-0.45 M_solar and a product of mass-transfer in a close binary system. However, until its temperature is better known, its mass and age remain uncertain.

Chemical Composition as a Signature of Stellar Evolution - The Barium Stars

The hypothesis that Barium stars are the product of mass transfer across a binary system is reviewed with special attention given to the chemical composition of AGB stars (the mass-losing star in the binary) and the Ba stars (the mass-gaining star).

The evaluation of mass transfer product from unsteady-state gas absorption/desorption

The evaluation of mass transfer product from unsteady-state gas absorption/desorption

Evolutionary Aspects of Circumstellar Matter in Binary Systems

Several groups of close binary stars are considered in an attempt to explain their present state as a consequence of a large-scale mass transfer or mass loss in the past: Algol-like semidetached binaries, some shell stars (AX Mon), some binary X-ray sources (Cen X-3, Her X-1), the recurrent nova T CrB, helium-rich binaries v Sgr and KS Per, and the symbiotic variables.Algol-like binaries like U Sge cannot be products of a conservative case A of mass transfer; rather, mass loss from system and/or a temporary contact stage must be invoked. Nova T CrB as well as the symbiotic variables probably contain a mass-losing giant and a helium star, which again may be a product of a previous mass transfer of type B. Similarly, some of the X-ray sources may actually be binaries undergoing a second process of mass transfer. The systems v Sgr and KS Per may contain helium stars expanding to the right of the helium main sequence, while the other component may be a rather inactive main-sequence star. Some shell stars may be products of mass transfer. Mass loss from convective envelopes is also discussed.Loss of mass and of angular momentum from many binary systems must be anticipated. Behavior of the mass-accreting stars may often be decisive for the appearance and evolution of the system.

Gas absorption in a pulsed bubble column

The absorption of oxygen from air into tap water in a pulsed bubble column has been investigated. The column consisted of two 3 in. dia. vertical tubes 9 ft. 10 in. high connected at the base and pulsed by compressed air at frequencies of 1·09–1·35 Hz and amplitudes up to 3·7 in. The mass transfer product k L a was measured by the unsteady state method using a polarographic probe. It was found that the gas holdup and k L a were increased as much as threefold by pulsing. The values of holdup, k L a and k L were compared with those given in the literature for dispersions in stirred tanks. The performance in these respects was approximately the same, but the pulsed column offers the possibility of multistage operation.