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Q criterion for disc stability modified by external tidal field

The standard Q criterion (with Q > 1) describes the local stability of a disc supported by rotation and random motion. Most astrophysical discs, however, are under the influence of an external gravitational field which can affect their stability. A typical example is a galactic disc embedded in a dark matter halo. Here we do a linear perturbation analysis for a disc in an external field, and obtain a generalized dispersion relation and a modified stability criterion. An external field has two effects on the disc dynamics: first, it contributes to the unperturbed rotational field, and second, it adds a tidal field term in the stability parameter. A typical disruptive tidal field results in a higher modified Q value and hence leads to a more stable disc. We apply these results to the Milky Way, and to a low surface brightness galaxy UGC 7321. We find that in each case the stellar disc by itself is barely stable and it is the dark matter halo that stabilizes the disc against local, axisymmetric gravitational instabilities. This result has been largely missed so far because in practice the value for Q for a galactic disc is obtained in a hybrid fashion using the observed rotational field that is set by both the disc and the halo, and hence is higher than for a pure disc.