How a Close-in Planet Protects its White Dwarf Host from Pollution

TL;DR

This study investigates how close-in giant planets can shield white dwarfs from accreting planetary debris, revealing that planets over 0.5 Jupiter masses effectively reduce pollution by clearing eccentric small bodies.

Contribution

The paper quantifies the protective effect of close-in planets on white dwarf pollution through N-body simulations, identifying mass and orbital parameters that provide effective shielding.

Findings

Giant planets >0.5 Jupiter masses clear over 80% of eccentric small bodies.

Protection effectiveness decreases with lower planetary mass and larger orbital distance.

Findings explain why some white dwarfs with close-in planets lack metal pollution.

Abstract

Approximately 25-50% of white dwarfs (WDs) exhibit metal absorption lines in their photospheres, which are attributed to accretion from their remnant planetary systems. Although white dwarfs with detected planetary systems are more likely to show photospheric pollution, one notable exception - WD 1856+534 - hosts a close-in giant planet yet exhibits no detectable photospheric metal pollution. Previous studies have proposed that massive, close-in planets can block inward transport of small particles driven by radiative forces (e.g., Poynting-Robertson drag and the Yarkovsky effect). However, it remains unclear whether the close-in planet can similarly prevent delivery of larger bodies via dynamical interactions. We aim to quantify the protective influence of close-in planets on white-dwarf pollution by asteroids approaching on near-parabolic orbits, and to explore the planetary masses and orbital separations required to provide effective protection. We perform ensembles of short-term N-body integrations, sampling a range of planet masses and orbital separations and initializing asteroids on highly eccentric orbits with periapses near the WD Roche radius, in order to measure scattering, capture, and ejection outcomes and quantify the planet's shielding efficiency. For WD1856+534b-like configurations (a_p = 0.02 au), giant planets with masses greater than 0.5 Jupiter masses are sufficient to clear over 80% of highly eccentric small-body contaminants. The effectiveness of the protective effect diminishes with decreasing planetary mass and increasing semi-major axis. These findings help explain why some white dwarfs that host close-in giant planets do not show the photospheric metal pollution commonly observed in other systems.