Related papers: Cataclysmic Variables in Triples: Formation Models…
In dense stellar systems the frequent dynamical interactions between stars play a crucial role in the formation and evolution of compact binaries. We study these processes using a novel approach combining a state-of-the-art binary…
White dwarfs (WDs) are powerful tools to study the evolutionary history of stars and binaries in the Galaxy. But do we understand their multiplicity from a theoretical point of view? This can be tested by a comparison with the sample of WDs…
(Abridged) We present high-speed, three-colour photometry of seven short period (Porb <= 95 mins) eclipsing CVs from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We determine the system parameters via a parametrized model of the eclipse fitted to the…
We resume the discussion about irradiation-driven mass transfer cycles in semi- detached compact binary systems. The analytical model that describes the onset of these cycles, which occur on a thermal timescale of the donor star, is…
According to standard evolutionary theory for cataclysmic variables (CVs), angular momentum loss drives CVs to initially evolve from longer to shorter orbital periods until a minimum period is reached (\approx 80 min). At roughly this…
Common-envelope evolution (CEE) is among the most uncertain phases in binary evolution. To empirically constrain CEE, we construct a uniformly selected sample of eclipsing post--common-envelope binaries (PCEBs). Starting from an unresolved…
Spiral shocks in cataclysmic variables (CVs) are the result of tidal interactions of the mass donor star with the accretion disc. Their study is fundamental for our understanding of angular momentum transfer in discs. In our quest to learn…
We present 22 new (+3 confirmed) cataclysmic variables (CVs) in the non core-collapsed globular cluster 47 Tucanae (47 Tuc). The total number of CVs in the cluster is now 43, the largest sample in any globular cluster so far. For the…
The gravitational wave (GW) signals from the Galactic population of cataclysmic variables (CVs) have yet to be carefully assessed. Here we estimate these signals and evaluate their significance for LISA. First, we find that at least three…
Post-common-envelope binaries (PCEBs) containing a white dwarf (WD) and a main-sequence (MS) star can constrain the physics of common envelope evolution and calibrate binary evolution models. Most PCEBs studied to date have short orbital…
We derive metallicities for 41 cataclysmic variables (CVs) from near-infrared spectroscopy. We use synthetic spectra that cover the 0.8 $\mu$m $\leq \lambda \leq$ 2.5 $\mu$m bandpass to ascertain the value of [Fe/H] for CVs with K-type…
The space density of the various classes of cataclysmic variables (CVs) could only be weakly constrained in the past. Reasons were the small number of objects in complete X-ray flux-limited samples and the difficulty to derive precise…
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…
Context. The evolution of cataclysmic variables (CVs) - interacting binaries where a low-mass donor transfers matter to a white dwarf via an accretion disk - is critically controlled by magnetic braking (MB). Significant uncertainties…
I review our current understanding of the evolution of cataclysmic variables (CVs). I first provide a brief introductory "CV primer", in which I describe the physical structure of CVs, as well as their astrophysical significance. The main…
We present a search for excess mid-IR emission due to circumbinary material in the orbital plane of cataclysmic variables (CVs). Our motivation stems from the fact that the strong braking exerted by a circumbinary (CB) disc on the binary…
Depending on the stellar type, more than $\sim 50$\% and $\sim 15\%$ of stars in the field have at least one and two stellar companions, respectively. Hierarchical systems can be assembled dynamically in dense star clusters, as a result of…
We discuss the properties of 137 cataclysmic variables (CVs) which are included in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) spectroscopic data base, and for which accurate orbital periods have been measured. 92 of these systems are new…
Discovery and characterisation of black holes (BHs), neutron stars (NSs), and white dwarfs (WDs) with detached luminous companions (LCs) in wide orbits are exciting because they are important test beds for dark remnant (DR) formation…
Close white dwarf binaries make up a wide variety of objects such as double white dwarf binaries, which are possible SN Ia progenitors, cataclysmic variables, super soft sources, or AM CVn stars. The evolution and formation of close white…