INTEGRAL view on Cataclysmic Variables and Symbiotic Binaries

TL;DR

This paper reviews INTEGRAL observations of accreting white dwarfs, highlighting increased known populations, WD mass measurements, luminosity functions, and their role in Galactic ridge X-ray emission.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of INTEGRAL's findings on cataclysmic variables and symbiotic binaries, emphasizing new population data and their astrophysical implications.

Findings

Significant increase in known intermediate polar population

Determination of white dwarf masses in many systems

Establishment of the luminosity function of magnetic CVs

Abstract

Accreting white dwarfs (WDs) constitute a significant fraction of the hard X-ray sources detected by the INTEGRAL observatory. Most of them are magnetic Cataclysmic Variables (CVs) of the intermediate polar (IP) and polar types, but the contribution of the Nova-likes systems and the systems with optically thin boundary layers, Dwarf Novae (DNs) and Symbiotic Binaries (or Symbiotic Stars, SySs) in quiescence is also not negligible. Here we present a short review of the results obtained from the observations of cataclysmic variables and symbiotic binaries by INTEGRAL. The highlight results include the significant increase of the known IP population, determination of the WD mass for a significant fraction of IPs, the establishment of the luminosity function of magnetic CVs, and uncovering origin of the Galactic ridge X-ray emission which appears to largely be associated with hard emission from magnetic CVs.