Searching for Superhump-like variations on Cataclysmic Variables using VVV and VVVx data

At this work, we explore the presence of Superhumps(SHs) and SHs-like variations at infrared (IR) wavelengths in cataclysmic variable stars (CVs), specifically in Dwarf Nova and Classical Nova types. SHs – periodic photometric oscillations that are slightly shifted from the orbital period (Po) – are usually seen during superoutbursts and are linked to instabilities in close binary systems’s accretion disks. Previous studies have mainly studied SHs in optical bands, so this study focuses on detecting them in the IR. Using light curves from the VVV/x project and the VIVA catalogue, 140 CV systems were identified, and 85 of them were analyzed so far, for frequency detection via periodogram analysis using Period04. Although significant frequencies were detected in the periodograms, none of them corresponds strictly with a SH period. However, at some systems, we have found SHs-like variations.
Further studies using the PDM technique will be conducted in the near future.