Lindblad Zones: resonant eccentric orbits to aid bar and spiral formation in galaxy discs

TL;DR

This paper introduces the concept of Lindblad Zones, continuous sequences of resonant radii for eccentric orbits in galaxy discs, which can support bar and spiral structures through resonant eccentric orbits.

Contribution

It develops a new framework using p-ellipse approximations to identify Lindblad Zones, explaining how eccentric resonant orbits can sustain galactic bars and spirals.

Findings

Lindblad Zones form continuous resonant regions for eccentric orbits.

Eccentric resonant orbits can maintain their structure in the pattern frame.

Strong perturbations are needed to excite eccentric resonance orbits.

Abstract

The apsidal precession frequency in a fixed gravitational potential increases with the radial range of the orbit (eccentricity). Although the frequency increase is modest it can have important implications for wave dynamics in galaxy discs, which have not been previously explored in detail. One of the most interesting consequences is that for a given pattern frequency, each Lindblad resonance does not exist in isolation, but rather is the parent of a continuous sequence of resonant radii, a Lindblad Zone, with each radius in this zone characterized by a specific eccentricity. In the epicyclic approximation the precession or epicyclic frequency does not depend on epicycle size, and this phenomenon is not captured. A better approximation for eccentric orbits is provided by p-ellipse curves (Struck 2006), which do exhibit this effect. Here the p-ellipse approximation and precession-eccentricity relation are used as tools for finding the resonant radii generated from various Lindblad parent resonances. Simple, idealized examples, in flat rotation curve and near solid-body discs, are used to show that ensembles of eccentric resonant orbits excited in Lindblad Zones can provide a backbone for generating a variety of (kinematic) bars and spiral waves. In cases balancing radius-dependent circular frequencies and eccentricity-dependent precession, a range of resonant orbits can maintain their form in the pattern frame, and do not wind up. Eccentric resonance orbits require a strong perturbation to excite them, and may be produced mostly in galaxy interactions or by strong internal disturbances.