An energy approach to pulsar-disc interaction: disc stability and implications for transitional millisecond pulsars

TL;DR

This study investigates the stability of accretion discs around millisecond pulsars using magnetohydrodynamic simulations, revealing how magnetic field interactions influence disc stability and transitional pulsar behavior.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive energetic analysis of disc stability considering realistic structures and magnetic inclinations, extending previous analytical models with simulation results.

Findings

Disc stability is significantly affected when the inner radius exceeds the light cylinder.

Misaligned magnetic axes lead to greater disc disruption.

Simulation results align with prior analytical energy models.

Abstract

The stability of an accretion disc surrounding a millisecond pulsar is analysed from an energetic point of view, using magnetohydrodynamic simulations that consider realistic disc structures and a variety of magnetic field inclination angles. The time-averaged components of the magnetic field interact with the disc through ohmic dissipation, which causes heating and partial evaporation of its innermost region. The stability of the disc right after the magnetic field is turned on is analysed as a function of the location of the inner radius of the disc and the magnetic inclination angle. Our results show that the disc is severely altered in those cases where its inner radius lies well beyond the light cylinder and the magnetic axis is not totally aligned with the neutron star spin axis. Overall, the results of the simulations agree with those obtained in previous works where analytical or semi-analytical energy models were also used to discuss the stability of the disc. The implications for the understanding of the transitional millisecond pulsars are discussed. We briefly mention implications of our results for low-mass X-ray binaries and supernova fallback discs.