Astron. Astrophys. 358, 201-207 (2000)

Signs of a dead disk in AE Aquarii

N.R. Ikhsanov <sup>1,2

1</sup> Central Astronomical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Science at Pulkovo, Pulkovo 65-1, 196140 Saint-Petersburg, Russia (ikhsanov@gao.spb.ru)
² Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn, Germany

Received 3 February 2000 / Accepted 21 March 2000

Abstract

The mass-exchange picture in the close binary AE Aqr is discussed in the frame of the pulsar-like white dwarf model (Ikhsanov 1998, 1999). It is shown that within this approach a dead disk around the white dwarf magnetosphere is expected. The disk forms during (and/or just after) the outburst associated with the white dwarf spin-up spin-down state transition. In the current epoch the inner and the outer radii of the disk are evaluated as cm and cm, respectively, and the average mass-exchange rate in the system is . About a half of the accretion energy is released in the boundary layer at the inner edge of the disk in the optical-UV (about 80%) and soft X-ray (about 20%) spectral domains. The mass exchange between the components is governed by the stream-fed mechanism of mass transfer through the point. The plasma inflowing from the secondary interacts with the outer edge of the dead disk and streams out from the system mainly at phases . The velocity of outflowing plasma in quiescence lies within the interval and its temperature is about K. The other parts of the dead disk are relatively cool K and contribute to the system radiation in the IR spectral region.

Key words: stars: novae, cataclysmic variables stars: magnetic fields stars: pulsars: general stars: individual: AE Aqr

Online publication: June 26, 2000

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