The period distribution of cataclysmic variables

Details The period distribution of cataclysmic variables The period distribution of cataclysmic variables

Apr 1988

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1988apj...327l..77h&link_type=abstract

Astrophysical Journal, Part 2 - Letters to the Editor (ISSN 0004-637X), vol. 327, April 15, 1988, p. L77-L79.

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

5

Binary Stars, Cataclysmic Variables, Magnetic Stars, Star Distribution, Stellar Evolution, Angular Momentum, Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability, White Dwarf Stars

Scientific paper

In a recent paper, Warner and Livio (1987) claim that the AM Her and SU UMa cataclysmic variables (CVs) with periods P less than 2 hr show a tendency to cluster in disjoint period ranges. It is shown here that the statistical significance of this result is entirely due to the large accumulation of AM Her systems in the range 113.5-114.8 minutes. It has been shown elsewhere that this period spike is probably caused by the resumption of mass transfer after the systems cross the 2-3 hr period gap. It is emphasized that the 'synchronization-induced gap' mechanism of Lamb and Melia (1987) is based on an incorrect assumption about the contraction time scale of a mass-losing secondary star and cannot produce any significant gap in the period distribution of AM Her systems or lead to the formation of ultrashort-period CVs, as claimed by Lamb and Melia.

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