Abstract
The evolution of close binaries (with an initial separation in the range 100 – 1000 R⊙) made of intermediate mass stars ends with the formation of a compact system of two carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (Webbink,1984; Iben & Tutukov, 1984). The evolutionary path leading to this final state is complex, with two episodes of mass transfer when the two components successively evolve off the main sequence. The second episode is highly non conservative with a common envelope phase and extensive mass and angular momentum losses. If, at the end of the common envelope phase the two white dwarfs are separated by less than 2 R⊙ they can merge within a Hubble time due to the emission of gravitational radiation by the system.
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Mochkovitch, R., Guerrero, J., Segretain, L. (1997). The Merging of White Dwarfs. In: Ruiz-Lapuente, P., Canal, R., Isern, J. (eds) Thermonuclear Supernovae. NATO ASI Series, vol 486. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5710-0_13
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