Ya. B. Zeldovich and foundation of the accretion theory

This short review is dedicated to academician Yakov Borisovich Zeldovich, the science of his epoch and the creation of modern accretion theory.Comment: 11 pages, 25 figures, accepted to special volume of Astronomy Report

Viscous Stability of Relativistic Keplerian Accretion Disks

We investigate the viscous stability of thin, Keplerian accretion disks in regions where general relativistic (GR) effects are essential. For gas pressure dominated (GPD) disks, we show that the Newtonian conclusion that such disks are viscously stable is reversed by GR modifications in the behaviors of viscous stress and surface density over a significantly large annular region not far from the innermost stable orbit at r=\rms. For slowly-rotating central objects, this region spans a range of radii 14\lo r\lo 19 in units of the central object's mass $M$. For radiation pressure dominated (RPD) disks, the Newtonian conclusion that they are viscously unstable remains valid after including the above GR modifications, except in a very small annulus around $r\approx 14M$, which has a negligible influence. Inclusion of the stabilizing effect of the mass-inflow through the disk's inner edge via a GR analogue of Roche-lobe overflow adds a small, stable region around \rms~for RPD disks, but leaves GPD disks unchanged. We mention possible astrophysical relevance of these results, particularly to the high-frequency X-ray variabilities observed by the $Rossi$ $X-ray$ $Timing$ $Explorer$.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, accepted by The Astrophysical Journal Letter

Comment on Viscous Stability of Relativistic Keplerian Accretion Disks

Recently Ghosh (1998) reported a new regime of instability in Keplerian accretion disks which is caused by relativistic effects. This instability appears in the gas pressure dominated region when all relativistic corrections to the disk structure equations are taken into account. We show that he uses the stability criterion in completely wrong way leading to inappropriate conclusions. We perform a standard stability analysis to show that no unstable region can be found when the relativistic disk is gas pressure dominated.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, uses aasms4.sty, submitted for ApJ Letter

Non-Steady State Accretion Disks in X-Ray Novae: Outburst Models for Nova Monocerotis 1975 and Nova Muscae 1991

We fit outbursts of two X-ray novae (Nova Monocerotis 1975=A0620-00 and Nova Muscae GS 1991=1124-683) using a time-dependent accretion disk model. The model is based on a new solution for a diffusion-type equation for the non-steady-state accretion and describes the evolution of a viscous alpha-disk in a binary system after the peak of an outburst, when matter in the disk is totally ionized. The accretion rate in the disk decreases according to a power law. We derive formulas for the accretion rate and effective temperature of the disk. The model has three free input parameters: the mass of the central object M, the turbulence parameter alpha, and the normalization parameter delta t. Results of the modeling are compared with the observed X-ray and optical B and V light curves. The resulting estimates for the turbulence parameter $\alpha$ are similar: 0.2-0.4 for A 0620-00 and 0.45-0.65 for GS 1124-683, suggesting a similar nature for the viscosity in the accretion disks around the compact objects in these sources. We also derive the distances to these systems as functions of the masses of their compact objects.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures; style improve

Photon Bubbles and the Vertical Structure of Accretion Disks

We consider the effects of "photon bubble" shock trains on the vertical structure of radiation pressure-dominated accretion disks. These density inhomogeneities are expected to develop spontaneously in radiation-dominated accretion disks where magnetic pressure exceeds gas pressure, even in the presence of magnetorotational instability. They increase the rate at which radiation escapes from the disk, and may allow disks to exceed the Eddington limit by a substantial factor. We first generalize the theory of photon bubbles to include the effects of finite optical depths and radiation damping. Modifications to the diffusion law at low optical depth tend to fill in the low-density regions of photon bubbles, while radiation damping inhibits the formation of photon bubbles at large radii, small accretion rates, and small heights above the equatorial plane. Accretion disks dominated by photon bubble transport may reach luminosities of 10 to >100 times the Eddington limit (L_E), depending on the mass of the central object, while remaining geometrically thin. However, photon bubble-dominated disks with alpha-viscosity are subject to the same thermal and viscous instabilities that plague standard radiation pressure-dominated disks, suggesting that they may be intrinsically unsteady. Photon bubbles can lead to a "core-halo" vertical disk structure. In super-Eddington disks the halo forms the base of a wind, which carries away substantial energy and mass, but not enough to prevent the luminosity from exceeding L_E. Photon bubble-dominated disks may have smaller color corrections than standard accretion disks of the same luminosity. They remain viable contenders for some ultraluminous X-ray sources and may play a role in the rapid growth of supermassive black holes at high redshift.Comment: 38 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa