Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2024/iii/paper-347/3/d/solution

Steady mass conservation gives . With specific angular momentum , multiply the angular-momentum equation by and define the signed viscous torque in an accretion disk
Then
Integration from to gives
The viscous power generated in an annulus is . Taking the inner torque to vanish and writing gives , hence
Integration by parts yields
For steady circular force balance, ; equivalently, the stated equality of gravitational- and rotational-potential differences makes the integral . Therefore
When , the outer energy and boundary term vanish. For an approximately Keplerian inner orbit, , so
Comparison with part (c) gives
A Keplerian inner flow generates the standard thin-disk power. A pressure-supported sub-Keplerian slim disk generates less through shear, and its emergent luminosity can be smaller still because photon trapping in an accretion flow carries part of that generated energy through the inner edge.

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