Post-dynamical inspiral phase of common envelope evolution

The role of magnetic fields

Institute of Theoretical Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, V Holešovičkách 2, Praha 8 180 00, Czech Republic
e-mail: damien.gagnier@matfyz.cuni.cz

Received: 25 October 2023
Accepted: 12 December 2023

Abstract

During common envelope evolution, an initially weak magnetic field may undergo amplification by interacting with spiral density waves and turbulence generated in the stellar envelope by the inspiralling companion. Using 3D magnetohydrodynamical simulations on adaptively refined spherical grids with excised central regions, we studied the amplification of magnetic fields and their effect on the envelope structure, dynamics, and the orbital evolution of the binary during the post-dynamical inspiral phase. About 95% of magnetic energy amplification arises from magnetic field stretching, folding, and winding due to differential rotation and turbulence while compression against magnetic pressure accounts for the remaining ∼5%. Magnetic energy production peaks at a scale of 3a_b, where a_b is the semimajor axis of the central binary’s orbit. Because the magnetic energy production declines at large radial scales, the conditions are not favorable for the formation of magnetically collimated bipolar jet-like outflows unless they are generated on small scales near the individual cores, which we did not resolve. Magnetic fields have a negligible impact on binary orbit evolution, mean kinetic energy, and the disk-like morphology of angular momentum transport, but turbulent Maxwell stress can dominate Reynolds stress when accretion onto the central binary is allowed, leading to an α-disk parameter of ≃0.034. Finally, we discovered accretion streams arising from the stabilizing effect of the magnetic tension from the toroidal field about the orbital plane, which prevents overdensities from being destroyed by turbulence and enables them to accumulate mass and eventually migrate toward the binary.