Related papers: Disc Instabilities in Soft X-ray Transients
Accreting low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) are capable of launching powerful outflows such as accretion disc winds. In disc winds, vast amounts of material can be carried away, potentially greatly impacting the binary and its environment.…
We have investigated the outburst properties of low-mass X-ray binary transients (LMXBTs) based on a comprehensive study of the outbursts observed in the past few decades. The outburst rates were estimated based on the X-ray monitoring data…
We have performed a statistical study of the properties of 110 bright X-ray outbursts in 36 low-mass X-ray binary transients (LMXBTs) seen with the All-Sky Monitor (2--12 keV) on board the {\it Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer} ({\it RXTE}) in…
We present a model of an outburst of the soft X-ray transient A0620-003. A two-dimensional time-dependent smoothed particle hydrodynamics scheme is used to simulate the evolution of the accretion disc through a complete outburst. The scheme…
I review several problems which arise when one tries to apply the standard dwarf nova instability model to outbursts of soft X-ray transients.
X-ray timing of neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) with RXTE has since 1996 revealed several distinct high-frequency phenomena. Among these are oscillations during thermonuclear (type-I) bursts, which (in addition to…
Stellar companions of accreting neutron stars in ultra compact X-ray binaries (UCXBs) are hydrogen-deficient. Their helium or C/O accretion discs are strongly X-ray irradiated. Both the chemical composition and irradiation determine the…
We have accumulated multiwavelength (X-ray, optical, radio) lightcurves for the eight black hole X-ray binaries which have been observed to enter a supposed `soft X-ray transient' outburst, but remained in the low/hard state throughout the…
Chandra observations of elliptical galaxies have revealed large numbers of Low Mass X-ray Binaries (LMXBs) accreting at rates above 10^-9 solar masses per year. One scenario which generates this transfer rate from an old stellar population…
X-rays trace accretion onto compact objects in binaries with low mass companions at rates ranging up to near Eddington. Accretion at high rates onto neutron stars goes through cycles with time-scales of days to months. At lower average…
The disc instability model which is supposed to describe outbursts of dwarf nova and low-mass X-ray binary transient systems is presented and reviewed in detail. Various deficiencies of the model are pointed out and various remedies and…
Context. Ultracompact X-ray binaries (UCXBs) typically consist of a white dwarf donor and a neutron star or black hole accretor. The evolution of UCXBs and very low mass ratio binaries in general is poorly understood. Aims. We investigate…
We have investigated whether the lack of X-ray pulsations from most neutron star (NS) low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) could be due to the extension of their inner disc to the NS surface. To estimate the inner disc radii, we have employed…
When applied to Be/X-ray binaries, the viscous decretion disc model for Be stars naturally predicts the truncation of the circumstellar disc. The distance at which the circumstellar disc is truncated depends mainly on the orbital parameters…
Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients (SFXTs) represent the most extreme case of X-ray variability in High Mass X-ray Binaries hosting blue supergiant companions. Mainly discovered thanks to the INTEGRAL monitoring of the Galactic plane, these…
High Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) are interesting objects that provide a wide range of observational probes to the nature of the two stellar components, accretion process, stellar wind and orbital parameters of the systems. A large fraction…
Very faint X-ray binaries (VFXBs), defined as having peak luminosities Lx of 10^34-10^36 erg/s, have been uncovered in significant numbers, but remain poorly understood. We analyse three published outburst light curves of two transient…
The outbursts of low mass X-ray binaries are prolonged relative to those of dwarf nova cataclysmic variables as a consequence of X-ray irradiation of the disc. We show that the time-scale of the decay light curve and its luminosity at a…
The X-ray transient XTE J1719-291 was discovered with RXTE/PCA during its outburst in 2008 March, which lasted at least 46 days. Its 2-10 keV peak luminosity is 7E35 erg/s assuming a distance of 8 kpc, which classifies the system as a very…
The study of outer disc radius variations in close binary systems is important for understanding the structure and evolution of accretion discs. These variations are predicted by models of both quasi steady and time-dependent discs, and…