Tidal capture formation of low-mass X-ray binaries from wide binaries in the field

Abstract

We present a dynamical formation scenario for low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) in the field, focusing on black hole (BH) LMXBs. In this formation channel, LMXBs are formed from wide binaries >1000 au with a BH component and a stellar companion. The wide binary is perturbed by fly-bys of field stars, its orbit random walks, until driven into a sufficiently eccentric orbit such that the binary components tidally interact and the binary evolves to become a short period binary, which eventually evolves into an LMXB. We consider several models for the formation and survival of such wide binaries, and calculate the LMXB formation rates for each model. We find that models where BHs form through direct collapse with no/little natal kicks can give rise to high formation rates comparable with those inferred from observations. This formation scenario had several observational signatures: (1) the number density of LMXBs generally follows the background stellar density, beside the densest regions, where the dependence is stronger, (2) the mass function of the BH stellar companion should be comparable to the mass function of the background stellar population, likely peaking at 0.4-0.6 M⊙, and (3) the LMXBs orbit should not correlate with the spin of the BH. These aspects generally differ from the expectations from previously suggested LMXB formation models following common envelope binary stellar evolution. We note that neutron star LMXBs can similarly form from wide binaries, but their formation rate through this channel is likely significantly smaller due to their much higher natal kicks.