English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

The tidal disruption of stars by supermassive black holes (SMBHs) can be usedto probe the SMBH mass function, the properties of individual stars, andstellar dynamics in galactic nuclei. Upcoming missions will detect thousands ofTDEs, and accurate theoretical modeling is required to interpret the data withprecision. Here we analyze the influence of more realistic stellar structure onthe outcome of TDEs; in particular, we compare the fallback rates -- being therate at which tidally-disrupted debris returns to the black hole -- fromprogenitors generated with the stellar evolution code {\sc mesa} to $\gamma =4/3$ and $\gamma = 5/3$ polytropes. We find that {\sc mesa}-generated densityprofiles yield qualitatively-different fallback rates as compared to polytropicapproximations, and that only the fallback curves from low-mass ($1M_{\odot}$or less), zero-age main-sequence stars are well fit by either a $\gamma = 4/3$or $5/3$ polytrope. Stellar age has a strong affect on the shape of thefallback curve, and can produce characteristic timescales (e.g., the time tothe peak of the fallback rate) that greatly differ from the polytropic values.We use these differences to assess the degree to which the inferred black holemass from the observed lightcurve can deviate from the true value, and findthat the discrepancy can be at the order of magnitude level. Accurate stellarstructure also leads to a substantial variation in the critical impactparameter at which the star is fully disrupted, and can increase thesusceptibility of the debris stream to fragmentation under its ownself-gravity. These results suggest that detailed modeling is required toaccurately interpret observed lightcurves of TDEs.

On the Diversity of Fallback Rates from Tidal Disruption Events with Accurate Stellar Structure