Global Dynamics of Accretion in High-Mass X-Ray Binary Systems

高质量 X 射线双星系统中吸积的全局动力学

• 批准号: 2308141
• 负责人: John Blondin
• 金额: $ 32.55万
• 依托单位: North Carolina State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-09-01 至 2026-08-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2308141&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Global; Dynamics; Accretion; Mass; Ray; Global; Dynamics; Accretion; Mass; Ray

Some of the most spectacular X-ray sources in the sky are High Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs). These are systems where a compact object, such as a neutron star or a black hole, rapidly orbits a hot, young, massive star. The gravitational pull of the compact object pulls material from the star which then spirals onto the compact object producing bright X-ray emission. The PI and his team will run computer simulations to better understand how much material falls onto the compact companion vs. how much escapes the gravitational field of the binary and is lost to interstellar space – this quantity is key for understanding how HMXBs evolve. This work will aid the interpretation of current observations of HMXBs by relating observational properties to the mass transfer rate. Much of this research will be done by undergraduates and will be used to introduce a diverse group of young students to astrophysics research. In addition to their research, the students will present their work at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and work with staff at the Digital Media Lab in the NC State library to create short YouTube videos. The PI will continue to build a series of short (10 minute) video lessons on fluid dynamics and computational physics that help students get started in this kind of research, with more senior students presenting some of the lessons. The investigator will use a new circumbinary gas dynamics code to investigate the global dynamics of mass and angular momentum accretion in HMXBs to connect observations to system parameters relevant to the evolution and classification of these systems. This work will focus both on well-observed systems like Vela X-1 as well as the broad class of systems ranging from Be X-ray binaries to supergiant fast X-ray transients and accreting black hole systems. By coupling together numerical models of the circumstellar gas dynamics (e.g., Roche lobe overflow, acceleration of the tidally enhanced wind from the donor star, X-ray heating and photoionization of the wind) and of the accretion flow (following the gas to small radii while conserving angular momentum), the investigators have developed a circumbinary gas dynamics code that can improve our understanding of the varied properties of HMXBs. This effort will enable simulations of gravitational accretion flows in three dimensions with sufficient detail to qualitatively describe the origin of any dynamical instability and to quantitatively characterize the resulting flux of mass and angular momentum accreted onto the compact companion or lost from the system in a variety of circumstances.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

天空中一些最壮观的X射线源是高质量X射线二进制文件（HMXB）。这些系统是一个紧凑的物体，例如中性恒星或黑洞，迅速旋转着炎热，年轻，巨大的恒星。紧凑型物体的重力拉力从恒星中拉出材料，然后螺旋螺旋到紧凑的物体上，产生明亮的X射线发射。 PI和他的团队将运行计算机模拟，以更好地了解多少材料落在紧凑型伴侣上，而二进制的重力场逃脱了多少，并丢失到星际空间 - 此数量是了解HMXBS如何发展的关键。这项工作将通过将观察性质与传质率联系起来，从而有助于解释HMXB的当前观察结果。这项研究的大部分将由本科生进行，并将用于将一群潜水员的年轻学生介绍给天体物理学研究。除研究外，学生还将在北卡罗来纳州自然科学博物馆展示他们的作品，并与NC州立图书馆的数字媒体实验室的员工合作，创建简短的YouTube视频。 PI将继续建立一系列简短（10分钟）的视频课程，介绍流体动力学和计算物理学，以帮助学生开始进行此类研究，其中更多的高级学生介绍了一些课程。研究者将使用新的环形气体动力学代码来研究HMXB中质量和角动量积聚的全局动力学，以将观测值与与这些系统的进化和分类有关的系统参数连接。这项工作将侧重于观察到的系统，例如Vela X-1，以及从BE X射线二进制文件到超级快速快速X射线瞬变以及接受黑洞系统的广泛系统。通过将双歧性气体动力学的数值模型（例如，罗氏叶溢流，从供体恒星加速加速，供体恒星，X射线加热和风的光电离）和积聚流量（遵循气体到小半径的气体到小半径的潮流，在巩固角度动量的同时，会在节省角度的范围内）的属性，从而有所改善，该代码的属性是对循环的构成的。这项努力将在三个维度上对引力积聚流进行模拟，并具有足够的详细描述，以定性地描述任何动态不稳定性的起源，并定量地表征了质量和角色动量的范围，并在紧凑型伴侣身上接受了质量和角度动量的范围，或者从系统中丧失了各种情况下，这些奖项在各种情况下都表明了NSF的众多奖励，这表明了NSF的众所周知的支持。 标准。