In a recent study, a team of researchers from the National University of La Plata in Argentina has shed new light on the formation and nature of a specific type of binary pulsar system known as “Huntsman.” The team, comprising O. G. Benvenuto, M. A. De Vito, M. Echeveste, M. L. Novarino, N. D. Pires, L. M. de Sá, and J. E. Horvath, has published their findings in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
The researchers focused on a class of binary systems called “spider systems,” where a neutron star initially accretes matter from a normal companion star and later ablates, or erodes, the companion. The Huntsman group, a subset of these spider systems, is tentatively linked to a brief phase in the secondary star’s evolutionary track. The team’s work supports this connection and provides a more comprehensive understanding of how these systems evolve.
Using a binary evolution code, the researchers computed the evolution of various binary systems consisting of a donor star and a neutron star, with initial orbital periods ranging from 0.1 to 10 days. They considered solar composition and a metallicity of Z=0.01. The study found that the Huntsman stage, where the system remains detached for a few million years due to the dynamics of hydrogen-shell burning detachment (HSBD), is plausible. However, this feature alone cannot account for the occurrence of Redback spider pulsars, another subset of spider systems.
The researchers also explored the effects of irradiation feedback (IFB), where the neutron star’s radiation heats and inflates the donor star, leading to pulsed mass transfer. They found that IFB does not interfere with HSBD and that both processes act independently. Models including IFB displayed detachment episodes that could be naturally associated with the Redback stage. The study concludes that the Huntsman stage is an expected part of the evolution of spider systems under quite general conditions, bringing us closer to a unified picture of these binary pulsar systems.
This research provides valuable insights into the complex evolutionary processes of binary pulsar systems. While the direct applications to the energy sector may not be immediately apparent, understanding the fundamental physics of these systems can contribute to our broader knowledge of stellar evolution and the behavior of matter under extreme conditions. This knowledge can indirectly inform the development of advanced energy technologies, such as those based on nuclear fusion, which aim to harness the same processes that power the stars.
This article is based on research available at arXiv.