Abstract
It has been suggested that the recently discovered radio emission from AM Her arises as a result of gyrosynchrotron radiation from electrons at energies ≈400 keV in the magnetosphere of the white dwarf. However, no mechanism for producing such energetic electrons was discussed. In this paper, we argue that small departures from synchronous rotation can cause the companion star to act as a unipolar inductor. This leads to high voltages being produced across the companion star, which provides the necessary acceleration mechanism. This also implies that if the magnetic white dwarf was formed with a rapid rotation, synchronization would be achieved on a time scale ∿104 yr.
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© 1983 D. Reidel Publishing Company
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Chanmugam, G., Dulk, G.A. (1983). Am Herculis Binaries: Particle Acceleration, Radio Emission and Synchronization. In: Livio, M., Shaviv, G. (eds) Cataclysmic Variables and Related Objects. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 101. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-7118-9_27
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-7118-9_27
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