Precise Timing Analysis of Four Magnetic Cataclysmic Variables with TESS

TL;DR

This study uses TESS high-resolution photometry to analyze the timing behavior of four magnetic cataclysmic variables, revealing new orbital and beat periods and insights into their accretion processes and evolution.

Contribution

It provides the first detection of a beat period in 1RXS J045707.4+452751 and refines orbital period measurements, advancing understanding of these systems' accretion and evolution.

Findings

Detected a beat period of 1290.6 s in 1RXS J045707.4+452751.

Refined the orbital period of V1460 Her and observed its long-term decrease.

Determined provisional orbital periods for Swift J0958.0-4208 and V842 Cen.

Abstract

We analysed high time-resolution optical photometric data from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) to study the timing behaviour of four intermediate polar-like objects, namely, V1460 Her, 1RXS J045707.4+452751, Swift J0958.0-4208, and V842 Cen. In the case of V1460 Her, we refined the measurement of its orbital period. Long-term observations suggest a gradual decrease in the orbital period of V1460 Her, and the stable light curve during the TESS observations indicates its quiescent state. We detected a beat period of 1290.6 $\pm$ 0.5 s for the first time for the source 1RXS J045707.4+452751, suggesting a possible disc-overflow accretion scenario. For the sources Swift J0958.0-4208 and V842 Cen, we determined periods 6.11 $\pm$ 0.02 h and 3.555 $\pm$ 0.005 h, respectively, which can be provisionally suggested to be orbital periods. These findings provide valuable insights into the accretion processes and long-term evolution of these intriguing binary systems.