Related papers: Mergers and Obliquities in Stellar Triples
We postulate that most stars are born in aggregates of binary systems which are dynamically equivalent to the `dominant mode cluster'. The initial binary orbits are consitent with pre-main sequence data. Stellar masses are paired at random…
We analyze the gravitational instability (GI) of a locally isothermal inclined disk around one component of a binary system. Such a disk can undergo global Kozai-Lidov (KL) cycles if the initial disk tilt is above the critical KL angle (of…
Globular clusters are among the most congested stellar systems in the Universe. Internal dynamical evolution drives them toward states of high central density, while simultaneously concentrating the most massive stars and binary systems in…
There is significant observational evidence that a large fraction of galactic centers, including those in the Milky Way and M31, host a supermassive black hole (SMBH) embedded in a triaxial nuclear star cluster. In this work, we study the…
Using Monte Carlo simulations and published radial velocity surveys we have constrained the frequency and separation (a) distribution of very low mass star (VLM) and brown dwarf (BD) binary systems. We find that simple Gaussian extensions…
Fragmentation and fission of giant molecular clouds occasionally results in a pair of gravitationally bound star clusters that orbit their mutual centre of mass for some time, under the influence of internal and external perturbations. We…
With better statistics and precision, eccentricity could prove to be a useful tool for understanding the origin and environment of binary black holes. Hierarchical triples in particular, which might be abundant in globular clusters and…
We discuss some aspects of stellar evolution in binary systems. While single stars can swell following the chemical evolution of their interior, stars belonging to binary systems cannot overflow the size of the Roche lobe and hydrostatic…
Most exoplanetary systems in binary stars are of S--type, and consist of one or more planets orbiting a primary star with a wide binary stellar companion. Gravitational forcing of a single planet by a sufficiently inclined binary orbit can…
We study the effect of external companion on the orbital and spin evolution of merging black-hole (BH) binaries. An sufficiently close by and inclined companion can excite Lidov-Kozai (LK) eccentricity oscillations in the binary, thereby…
In galactic centers, stars and binaries can be injected into low-angular-momentum orbits, resulting in close encounters with the central supermassive black hole (SMBH). Previous works have shown that under different conditions, such close…
Most extrasolar planets currently known were discovered by means of an indirect method that measures the stellar wobble caused by the planet. We previously studied a triple system composed of a star and a nearby binary on circular coplanar…
Recent theoretical studies suggest that stellar-mass binary black holes (BBHs) would merge more efficiently due to the Kozai-Lidov mechanism if these binaries form in the vicinity of supermassive black holes (SMBHs). Since SMBHs are likely…
Kozai-Lidov oscillations of Jupiter-mass planets, excited by comparable planetary or brown dwarf mass perturbers were recently shown in numerical experiments to be slowly modulated and to exhibit striking features, including extremely high…
Many population synthesis and stellar evolution studies have addressed the evolution of close binary systems in which the primary is a compact remnant and the secondary is filling its Roche lobe, thus triggering mass transfer. Although…
Von Zeipel-Lidov-Kozai (ZLK) oscillations in hierarchical triple systems have important astrophysical implications such as triggering strong interactions and producing, e.g., Type Ia supernovae and gravitational wave sources. When…
The importance of stellar encounters in producing stellar exotica in dense stellar clusters is reviewed. We discuss how collisions between main-sequence stars may be responsible for the production of blue stragglers in globular clusters. We…
Intermediate-mass galaxies, including the Milky Way, typically host both a supermassive black hole (SMBH) and a nuclear stellar cluster (NSC). Binaries in an NSC evolve via close encounters with surrounding stars and secular processes…
Hills breakup of binary systems allows massive black holes (MBH) to produce hyper-velocity stars (HVSs) and tightly bound stars. The long timescale of orbital relaxation means that binaries must spend numerous orbits around the MBH before…
Black hole (BH) triples represent one of the astrophysical pathways for BH mergers in the Universe detectable by LIGO and VIRGO. We study the formation of BH triples via binary-binary encounters in dense clusters, showing that one-third of…