Related papers: X-ray irradiation in low mass binary systems
We present new models for illuminated accretion disks, their structure and reprocessed emission. We consider the effects of incident X-rays on the surface of an accretion disk by solving simultaneously the equations of radiative transfer,…
We present a model of a viscously evolving accretion disc around a magnetized neutron star. The model features the varying outer radius of the hot ionized part of the disc due to cooling and the varying inner radius of the disc due to…
Three classical modes of accretion are briefly discussed: wind-fed, spherical, and disk. The three modes are illustrated with the mass transfer onto black holes in high-mass X-ray binaries. Then a new regime of mini-disk accretion is…
(abridged) We review how the recent increase in X-ray and radio data from black hole and neutron star binaries can be merged together with theoretical advances to give a coherent picture of the physics of the accretion flow in strong…
Binaries with hot massive components are strong X-ray sources. Besides the intrinsic X-ray emission of individual binary members originating in their winds, X-ray emission stems from the accretion on the compact companion or from wind…
In wind-fed X-ray binaries the accreting matter is Compton cooled and falls freely onto the compact object. The matter has a modest angular momentum $l$ and accretion is quasi-spherical at large distances from the compact object. Initially…
Neutron stars in X-ray binary systems are fascinating objects that display a wide range of timing and spectral phenomena in the X-rays. Not only parameters of the neutron stars, like magnetic field strength and spin period evolve in their…
Radiation pressure-dominated accretion disks are predicted to exhibit strong density inhomogeneities on scales much smaller than the disk scale height, due to the nonlinear development of photon bubble instability. Radiation would escape…
Binary systems are ubiquitous in the Universe and often host circumbinary discs that are misaligned with the binary orbital plane. Such misalignments can affect disc evolution and binary accretion variability. We here present 3D…
Supercritical accretion onto compact objects is expected to drive optically thick winds, resulting in observed X-ray emission as a function of viewing angle. However, their optical emission, either from the outer accretion disk or companion…
We have analyzed the X-ray spectra of the microquasar GRS 1915+105, as observed with the PCA on the Rossi XTE, during periods of stable weak emission, outbursts and rapid flaring. We find that the complicated X-ray intensity curve of this…
Accretion disks around compact objects are expected to enter an unstable phase at high luminosity. One instability may occur when the radiation pressure generated by accretion modifies the disk viscosity, resulting in the cyclic depletion…
The X-ray spectra of black hole binaries in the low/hard state first harden as the flux decreases, then soften. This change in behaviour has been variously attributed to either the X-rays switching from being produced in the flow to being…
This dissertation is written as an annotated collection of selected articles. The dissertation focuses on the modelling of accretion disks in X-ray binaries with a black hole or neutron star. The main objective is to use advanced numerical…
X-ray illumination of accretion disks is an invaluable diagnostic of the structure of these disks because of the associated iron K$\alpha$ emission. Here we point out that the resulting reflected spectra depend very sensitively on the…
During the final growth phase of giant planets, accretion is thought to be controlled by a surrounding circumplanetary disk. Current astrophysical accretion disk models rely on hydromagnetic turbulence or gravitoturbulence as the source of…
We discuss the application of simple relativistically-blurred X-ray reflection models to the determination of the spin and the inner radius of the disc in accreting black holes. Observationally, the nature of the corona is uncertain a…
Early in the study of viscous accretion disks it was realized that energy transfers from distant sources must be important, not least because the flow at the disk midplane in the bulk of the disk is likely outwards, out of the gravitational…
A large fraction of X-ray sources in our Galaxy are low-mass X-ray binaries, containing a black hole or a neutron star accreting from a gravitationally bound low-mass ($\leq$1 M$_\odot$) companion star. These systems are among the older…
We study the evolution of binary systems of Ultra-luminous X-ray sources and compute their optical emission assuming accretion onto a black hole via a non standard, advection-dominated slim disc with an outflow. We consider systems with…