Related papers: The Magnetic Nature of the Cataclysmic Variable Pe…
A central hypothesis in the theory of cataclysmic variable (CV) evolution is the need to explain the observed lack of accreting systems in the ~2-3 h orbital period range, known as the period gap. The standard model, disrupted magnetic…
We apply the angular momentum loss rates inferred from open cluster stars to the evolution of cataclysmic variables (CVs). We show that the angular momentum prescriptions used in earlier CV studies are inconsistent with the measured…
AM Her variables -- synchronised magnetic cataclysmic variables (CVs) -- exhibit a different period distribution from other CVs across the period gap. We show that non-AM Her systems may infiltrate the longer-period end of the period gap if…
Cataclysmic Variables (CV) are close binary systems, in which the primary, the more massive star, is a white dwarf. CVs usually exhibit a number of periodicities, most of which are now understood. However, recently, a new phenomenon was…
We critically examine the basic paradigm for the origin of the 2-3 hr period gap in cataclysmic variables (CVs). We carry out an extensive population synthesis study of CVs starting from ~ 3 x 10^6 primordial binaries, and evolving some ~ 2…
Period bouncers are cataclysmic variables (CVs) that have evolved past their orbital period minimum. The strong disagreement between theory and observations of the relative fraction of period bouncers is a severe shortcoming in the…
Recently, large and homogeneous samples of cataclysmic variables (CVs) identified by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) were published. In these samples, the famous orbital period gap, which is a dearth of systems in the orbital period…
We have observed several magnetic cataclysmic variables located in the range between 2 and 3 hours, known as the period gap. This work was prompted by the recent discovery of RX J1554.2+2721. It has 2.54 hours orbital period and shows…
Magnetic wind braking drives the spin-down of low-mass stars and the evolution of most interacting binary stars. A magnetic braking prescription that was claimed to reproduce both the period distribution of cataclysmic variables (CVs) and…
Magnetic cataclysmic variables (CVs) contain a white dwarf with magnetic field strong enough to control the accretion flow from a late type secondary. In this paper, we discover a magnetic CV (CXOGSG J215544.4+380116) from the $Chandra$…
I review what we know about the donor stars in cataclysmic variables (CVs), focusing particularly on the close link between these binary components and the overall secular evolution of CVs. I begin with a brief overview of the "standard…
Assuming that white dwarf (WD) magnetic fields are generated by a crystallization- and rotation-driven dynamo, the impact of the late appearance of WD magnetic fields in cataclysmic variables (CVs) has been shown to potentially solve…
Many of the current problems related to the evolution of cataclysmic variables revolve around the magnetic nature of the main sequence secondary. It is known that magnetic fields alter the structure of low mass stars. In particular, they…
Using improved, up-to-date stellar input physics tested against observations of low-mass stars and brown dwarfs we calculate the secular evolution of low-mass donor cataclysmic variables (CVs), including those which form with a brown dwarf…
We use an independent new sample of cataclysmic variables (CVs), constructed by selecting objects for Halpha emission, to constrain the properties of the intrinsic CV population. This sample is restricted to systems that are likely to be…
Secondary stars in cataclysmic variables (CVs) follow a well defined period-density relation. Thus, canonical donor stars in CVs are generally low-mass stars of spectral type M. However, several CVs have been observed containing secondary…
We apply population synthesis techniques to calculate the present day number of two types of white dwarf-main sequence star (WDMS) binaries within the cataclysmic variable period gap. The first are post-common envelope binaries with…
Context. For decades, reproducing the orbital period distribution of non-magnetic Cataclysmic Variables (CVs) seemed to require a drastic decrease, usually termed disruption, of angular momentum loss through magnetic braking at the fully…
Cataclysmic variable (CVs) are close interacting binaries in which a white dwarf accretes materials from a low mass main sequence companion. CVs can experience nova eruptions due to low mass transfer rates. In the standard theory of CV…
We critically re-examine the available data on the spectral types, masses and radii of the secondary stars in cataclysmic variables (CVs) and low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), using the new catalogue of Ritter & Kolb (1998) as a starting…