Degenerate dwarf
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A Degenerate dwarf is a type of star, an alternative name for what is commonly called a White dwarf (see this reference for a more complete article). It is a type of degenerate star. In degenerate stars, the weight of the star is counterbalanced by the pressure of degenerate matter, which is, in the case of a Degenerate dwarf supplied by degenerate electrons (electrons at such high density that quantum mechanical effects are dominant). Note that in stars like the Sun, a main sequence star, the pressure is dominated by the thermal motion of atoms in a hot gas. The pressure in degenerate matter only depends on the density and not on the temperature. The internal structure of degenerate stars in general, is therefore decoupled from the thermal structure. A Degenerate dwarf, once formed with a high temperature and so with blue color, will slowly but steadily cool and at the same time maintain its size. The observed color will gradually change from a blue, through white, to red. It sits there for extremely long periods, eventually becoming a black dwarf. Being part of a galaxy a dwarf might collide with other stellar remnants in the later ages of the Universe. Two higher mass dwarfs might collide and collapse into a neutron star once every trillion years or so. Most will survive the death of the Galaxies as they undergo dynamical relaxation, casting the dwarfs out into the intergalactic void. According to the currently predominant timeline of the universe, however, dwarfs will not last forever - eventually either losing all mass due to proton decay after immense ages (more likely according to current observations on the eternal expansion of the universe), or being disrupted in the Big Crunch in an oscillating universe.
To avoid such oxymoronic names as a 'red white dwarf' (which is an entirely different object than a red dwarf), the name 'Degenerate dwarf' is preferred above 'White dwarf'.
