The Light Curve of Wind-reprocessed Tidal Disruption Events

Abstract The source of the optical/UV emission in tidal disruption events (TDEs) remains an enduring question in the field. Connecting the observed emission to the source is critical for both our understanding of these transients and for using TDEs to study the efficiency of super-Eddington accretion and black hole growth. To explore this connection, we ran time-dependent 1D radiation hydrodynamic simulations of TDE emission with the Sedona Monte Carlo radiative transfer code, focusing on the reprocessing paradigm. Our simulations follow a compact, evolving X-ray and EUV bright source and surrounding reprocessing outflow over multiple months, using luminosities and mass flow rates consistent with hydro simulations of tidal disruptions. We determine the efficiency of reprocessing as a function of time in this dramatically changing environment and reproduce key observables, including timescales, luminosities, and color evolution. Notably, we see a strong wavelength dependence in the emission timescale due to reprocessing effects. Early on, there is an X-ray flare that quickly fades as material builds up and obscures the hot source. At the same time, the optical/UV luminosity begins to rise. Though the optical/UV light curve has a similar shape to the bolometric light curve, the optical peak is offset by ∼3 weeks from the bolometric peak due to the time required to build up the reprocessing layer. This implies that early time, high-energy emission may be missed for TDEs discovered in optical surveys, and the initial disruption and mass return time to the black hole may occur earlier than optical light curves suggest.