Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Jul 1992
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1992a%26a...261..188d&link_type=abstract
Astronomy and Astrophysics (ISSN 0004-6361), vol. 261, no. 1, p. 188-202.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
147
Cataclysmic Variables, Main Sequence Stars, Star Formation, White Dwarf Stars, Monte Carlo Method, Stellar Envelopes, Stellar Mass Accretion, Stellar Models, Stellar Orbits
Scientific paper
A statistical study of the formation rate of cataclysmic variables (CVs) as a function of orbital period and white dwarf mass is is carried out. For this purpose, a Monte Carlo technique is used to construct a sample of zero-age binaries with likely distributions over primary mass, separation, and ratio and the evolution of these binaries is followed, using a simple analytic fits to more detailed evolutionary calculations. It is found that the properties of newly formed CVs depend strongly on the assumptions made. The paper examines the importance of particular assumptions and the sensitivity of the results to changes in parameters describing the evolution of CV progenitors. It is calculated that between 0.5 and 2 percent zero-age binaries with a primary mass greater than 0.95 solar mass will evolve into a CV, depending on the assumptions. If the formation rate of such zero-age systems is taken to be of the same order as the observed white dwarf formation rate, a CV birthrate of about (0.5-2) x 10 exp -14 pc exp -3 per yr is predicted, which is very close to the observed rate.
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