Binary System Gaia22ayj Modeled with MESA

Gaia22ayj is a magnetic white dwarf binary whose behavior challenges traditional classification, showing properties of both white dwarf pulsars and magnetic polars. Discovered in outburst in 2022, the system exhibits rapid 9.36-minute modulations with amplitudes up to 2 magnitudes, exceptionally strong linear polarization (~40%), and broad cyclotron-like emission features between 4000–8000 Å. These signatures point to an intense magnetic field, while simultaneous evidence of active accretion, X-ray luminosity of ~10³² erg s⁻¹, and rapid spin-down on a ~10⁶ year timescale highlight its hybrid nature. Using the Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) code, we constructed evolutionary models of Gaia22ayj to investigate how magnetic field strength, mass transfer rate, and angular momentum loss drive its transitional state. Modeling this system with MESA allows constraints on whether Gaia22ayj represents a short-lived evolutionary bridge between non-accreting white dwarf pulsars and synchronized magnetic polars. Its rare combination of extreme variability, accretion physics, and magnetic spin-down makes Gaia22ayj a unique case study for understanding magnetic binary evolution and the late stages of compact stellar systems.