Colloquium on Jul. 10, 2025

Searching for white dwarf binaries associated with open clusters

Speaker: Chengyuan Li (SYSU)

Venue: SWIFAR Building 2111

Time: 16:00 PM, Thursday, Jul. 10, 2025

Abstract:

White dwarfs represent the final evolutionary stage of the vast majority of stars and constitute the most abundant compact objects in the universe. Searching for white dwarfs in binary systems or those that have experienced binary interactions is of great significance for studying how binaries influence stellar structure and evolution. Additionally, white dwarf binaries serve as important targets for space-based gravitational wave detection. Thanks to the high-precision astrometric data released by Gaia, the number of confirmed white dwarfs and open clusters in the Milky Way has increased dramatically, making it possible to constrain the evolutionary pathways of white dwarfs through star clusters. In this work, I will present our current research on the search for white dwarf binaries in star clusters and demonstrate their potential constraints on white dwarf binaries. We will also showcase a subset of highly peculiar objects as definitive evidence of their past binary interactions.