Measuring the Mass–Radius Relation of White Dwarfs Using Wide Binaries

Autor: Stefan Arseneau, Vedant Chandra, Hsiang-Chih Hwang, Nadia L. Zakamska, Gautham Adamane Pallathadka, Nicole R. Crumpler, J. J. Hermes, Kareem El-Badry, Hans-Walter Rix, Keivan G. Stassun, Boris T. Gänsicke, Joel R. Brownstein, Sean Morrison
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: The Astrophysical Journal, Vol 963, Iss 1, p 17 (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1538-4357
DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ad2168
Popis: Measuring the mass–radius relation of individual white dwarfs is an empirically challenging task that has been performed for only a few dozen stars. We measure the white dwarf mass–radius relation using the gravitational redshifts and radii of 135 white dwarfs in wide binaries with main-sequence companions. We obtain the radial velocities of these systems using the main-sequence companion, and subtract these Doppler redshifts from the white dwarfs’ apparent motions, isolating their gravitational redshifts. We use Gaia data to calculate the surface temperatures and radii of these white dwarfs, thereby deriving an empirical gravitational redshift–radius relation. This work demonstrates the utility of low-resolution Galactic surveys to measure the white dwarf equation of state. Our results are consistent with theoretical models, and represent the largest sample of individual white dwarf gravitational redshift measurements to date.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals