Evidence of stellar oscillations in the post-common envelop binary candidate ASASSN-V J205543.90+240033.5

TL;DR

This study presents evidence of stellar oscillations in the companion star of a post-common envelope binary, using multi-telescope photometric data to analyze a fast periodic modulation likely caused by the star's oscillation, not white dwarf spin.

Contribution

The paper provides observational evidence of M-type main-sequence star oscillations, a phenomenon previously predicted but not confirmed, in a post-common envelope binary system.

Findings

The 9.77-minute periodic signal varies significantly over time.

The oscillation is attributed to the companion star, not the white dwarf.

The system offers a unique opportunity to study stellar oscillations in M-type stars.

Abstract

ASASSN-V J205543.90+240033.5 (ASJ2055) is a possible post-common envelope binary system. Its optical photometric data shows an orbital variation about $0.52$~days and a fast period modulation of $P_0\sim 9.77$~minute, whose origin is unknown. In this {\it Letter}, we report an evidence of the stellar oscillation of the companion star as the origin of the fast period modulation. We analyze the photometric data taken by TESS, Liverpool telescope, and Lulin One-meter Telescope. It is found that the period of the 9.77-minute signal measured in 2022 August is significantly shorter than that in 2021 July/August, and the magnitude of the change is of the order of $|\triangle P_0|/P_0\sim 0.0008(4)$. Such a large variation will be incompatible with the scenario of the white dwarf spin as the origin of the 9.77-minute periodic modulation. We suggest that the fast periodic signal is related to the emission from the irradiated companion star rather than that of the white dwarf. Using existing photometric data covering a wide wavelength range, we estimate that the hot white dwarf in ASJ2055 has a temperature of $T_{eff}\sim 80000$~K and is heating the oscillating M-type main-sequence star with $T_{eff}\sim 3500$~K on its un-irradiated surface. The stellar oscillation of M-type main-sequence star has been predicted in theoretical studies, but no observational confirmation has been done. ASJ2055, therefore, has a potential to be a unique laboratory to investigate the stellar oscillation of a M-type main-sequence star and the heating effect on the stellar oscillation.