Late-time Evolution of Magnetized Disks in Tidal Disruption Events

Abstract In classic time-dependent 1D accretion-disk models, the inner radiation-pressure-dominated regime is viscously unstable. However, late-time observations of accretion disks formed in tidal disruption events (TDEs) do not exhibit evidence of such instabilities. The common theoretical response is to modify the viscosity parameterization, but the typically used viscosity parameterizations are generally ad hoc. In this study, we take a different approach and investigate a time-dependent 1D α -disk model, in which the pressure is dominated by magnetic fields rather than photons. We compare the time evolution of thermally stable, strongly magnetized TDE disks to the simpler linear viscosity model. We find that the light curves of magnetized disks evolve as L UV ∝ t −5/6 for decades to centuries and that this same evolution can be reproduced by the linear viscosity model for specific parameter choices. Additionally, we show that TDEs remain ultraviolet-bright for many years, suggesting we could possibly find fossil TDEs decades after their bursts. We estimate that ULTRASAT could detect hundreds of such events, providing an opportunity to study late-stage TDE physics and supermassive black hole properties. Finally, we explore the connection between TDE disks and quasiperiodic eruptions (QPEs) suggested by recent observations. One theoretical explanation involves TDE disks expanding to interact with extreme-mass-ratio inspirals (EMRIs), which produce X-ray flares as the EMRI passes through the disk. Our estimates indicate that magnetized TDE disks should exhibit QPEs earlier than those observed in AT2019qiz, suggesting that the QPEs may have begun before their first detection.