Simultaneous broadband observations and high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038

Science.gov (United States)

Coti Zelati, F.; Campana, S.; Braito, V.; Baglio, M. C.; D'Avanzo, P.; Rea, N.; Torres, D. F.

2018-03-01

We report on the first simultaneous XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and Swift observations of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038 in the X-ray active state. Our multi-wavelength campaign allowed us to investigate with unprecedented detail possible spectral variability over a broad energy range in the X-rays, as well as correlations and lags among emissions in different bands. The soft and hard X-ray emissions are significantly correlated, with no lags between the two bands. On the other hand, the X-ray emission does not correlate with the UV emission. We refine our model for the observed mode switching in terms of rapid transitions between a weak propeller regime and a rotation-powered radio pulsar state, and report on a detailed high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy using all XMM-Newton Reflection Grating Spectrometer data acquired since 2013. We discuss our results in the context of the recent discoveries on the system and of the state of the art simulations on transitional millisecond pulsars, and show how the properties of the narrow emission lines in the soft X-ray spectrum are consistent with an origin within the accretion disc.

Swift observations of the accreting millisecond pulsar IGR J17498-2921 : From outburst to quiescence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Linares, M.; Bozzo, E.; Altamirano, D.; Degenaar, N.; Wijnands, R.; Soleri, P.; Belloni, T.; Di Salvo, T.; D'Ai, A.; Papitto, A.; Riggio, A.; Burderi, L.

Swift has been monitoring the accreting millisecond pulsar IGR J17498-2921 since the start of its outburst in 2011 August 12 (ATels #3551, #3555, #3556). We detected two X-ray bursts on Aug. 18 and 28. During the first ~12 days the average persistent XRT count rate remained approximately constant at

Simultaneous Chandra and VLA Observations of the Transitional Millisecond Pulsar PSR J1023+0038: Anti-correlated X-Ray and Radio Variability

Science.gov (United States)

Bogdanov, Slavko; Deller, Adam T.; Miller-Jones, James C. A.; Archibald, Anne M.; Hessels, Jason W. T.; Jaodand, Amruta; Patruno, Alessandro; Bassa, Cees; D’Angelo, Caroline

2018-03-01

We present coordinated Chandra X-ray Observatory and Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array observations of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038 in its low-luminosity accreting state. The unprecedented five hours of strictly simultaneous X-ray and radio continuum coverage for the first time unambiguously show a highly reproducible, anti-correlated variability pattern. The characteristic switches from the X-ray high mode into a low mode are always accompanied by a radio brightening with a duration that closely matches the X-ray low mode interval. This behavior cannot be explained by a canonical inflow/outflow accretion model where the radiated emission and the jet luminosity are powered by, and positively correlated with, the available accretion energy. We interpret this phenomenology as alternating episodes of low-level accretion onto the neutron star during the X-ray high mode that are interrupted by rapid ejections of plasma by the active rotation-powered pulsar, possibly initiated by a reconfiguration of the pulsar magnetosphere, that cause a transition to a less X-ray luminous mode. The observed anti-correlation between radio and X-ray luminosity has an additional consequence: transitional MSPs can make excursions into a region of the radio/X-ray luminosity plane previously thought to be occupied solely by black hole X-ray binary sources. This complicates the use of this luminosity relation for identifying candidate black holes, suggesting the need for additional discriminants when attempting to establish the true nature of the accretor.

Accretion dynamics and polarized x-ray emission of magnetized neutron stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arons, J.

1991-01-01

The basic ideas of accretion onto magnetized neutron stars are outlined. These are applied to a simple model of the structure of the plasma mound sitting at the magnetic poles of such as star, in which upward diffusion of photons is balanced by their downward advection. This steady flow model of the plasma's dynamical state is used to compute the emission of polarized X-rays from the optically thick, birefringent medium. The linear polarization of the continuum radiation emerging from the quasi-static mound is found to be as much as 40% at some rotation phases, but is insensitive to the geometry of the accretion flow. The role of the accretion shock, whose detailed polarimetric and spectral characteristics have yet to be calculated, is emphasized as the final determinant of the properties of the emerging X-rays. Some results describing the fully time dependent dynamics of the flow are also presented. In particular, steady flow onto a neutron star is shown to exhibit formation of ''photon bubbles,'' regions of greatly reduced plasma density filled with radiation which form and rise on millisecond time scales. The possible role of these complex structures in the flow for the formation of the emergent spectrum is briefly outlined

Discovery of an Accreting Millisecond Pulsar in the Eclipsing Binary System SWIFT J1749.4-2807

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Altamirano, D.; Cavecchi, Y.; Patruno, A.; Watts, A.; Linares, M.; Degenaar, N.; Kalamkar, M.; van der Klis, M.; Rea, N.; Casella, P.; Padilla, M. Armas; Kaur, R.; Yang, Y. J.; Soleri, P.; Wijnands, R.

2011-01-01

We report on the discovery and the timing analysis of the first eclipsing accretion-powered millisecond X-ray pulsar (AMXP): SWIFT J1749.4-2807. The neutron star rotates at a frequency of similar to 517.9 Hz and is in a binary system with an orbital period of 8.8 hr and a projected semimajor axis of

Accretion Disks and Coronae in the X-Ray Flashlight

Science.gov (United States)

Degenaar, Nathalie; Ballantyne, David R.; Belloni, Tomaso; Chakraborty, Manoneeta; Chen, Yu-Peng; Ji, Long; Kretschmar, Peter; Kuulkers, Erik; Li, Jian; Maccarone, Thomas J.; Malzac, Julien; Zhang, Shu; Zhang, Shuang-Nan

2018-02-01

Plasma accreted onto the surface of a neutron star can ignite due to unstable thermonuclear burning and produce a bright flash of X-ray emission called a Type-I X-ray burst. Such events are very common; thousands have been observed to date from over a hundred accreting neutron stars. The intense, often Eddington-limited, radiation generated in these thermonuclear explosions can have a discernible effect on the surrounding accretion flow that consists of an accretion disk and a hot electron corona. Type-I X-ray bursts can therefore serve as direct, repeating probes of the internal dynamics of the accretion process. In this work we review and interpret the observational evidence for the impact that Type-I X-ray bursts have on accretion disks and coronae. We also provide an outlook of how to make further progress in this research field with prospective experiments and analysis techniques, and by exploiting the technical capabilities of the new and concept X-ray missions ASTROSAT, NICER, Insight-HXMT, eXTP, and STROBE-X.

Evolution towards and beyond accretion-induced collapse of massive white dwarfs and formation of millisecond pulsars

OpenAIRE

Tauris, Thomas M.; Sanyal, Debashis; Yoon, Sung-Chul; Langer, Norbert

2013-01-01

Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are generally believed to be old neutron stars (NSs), formed via type Ib/c core-collapse supernovae (SNe), which have been spun up to high rotation rates via accretion from a companion star in a low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB). In an alternative formation channel, NSs are produced via the accretion-induced collapse (AIC) of a massive white dwarf (WD) in a close binary. Here we investigate binary evolution leading to AIC and examine if NSs formed in this way can subsequ...

X-ray pulsars: accretion flow deceleration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, G.S.

1987-01-01

X-ray pulsars are thought to be neutron stars that derive the energy for their x-ray emission by accreting material onto their magnetic polar caps. The accreting material and the x-ray pulsar atmospheres were idealized as fully ionized plasmas consisting only of electrons and protons. A high magnetic field (∼ 5 x 10 12 Gauss) permeates the atmospheric plasma, and causes the motion of atmospheric electrons perpendicular to the field to be quantized into discrete Landau levels. All atmospheric electrons initially lie in the Landau ground state, but in the author's calculations of Coulomb collisions between atmospheric electrons and accreting protons, he allows for processes that leave the electrons in the first excited Landau level. He also considers interactions between accreting protons and the collective modes of the atmospheric plasma. Division of the electromagnetic interaction of a fast proton with a magnetized plasma into single particle and collective effects is described in detail in Chapter 2. Deceleration of the accretion flow due to Coulomb collisions with atmospheric electrons and collective plasma effects was studied in a number of computer simulations. These simulations, along with a discussion of the physical state of the atmospheric plasma and its interactions with a past proton, are presented in Chapter 3. Details of the atmospheric model and a description of the results of the simulations are given in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 contains some brief concluding remarks, and some thoughts on future research

A soft mHz quasi periodic oscillation in the fastest accreting millisecond pulsar.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrigno, C.; Bozzo, E.; Sanna, A.; Pintore, F.; Papitto, A.; Riggio, A.; Burderi, L.; Di Salvo, T.; Iaria, R.; D'ai, A.

2017-10-01

We illustrate the peculiar X-ray variability displayed by the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar IGR J00291+5934 in a 80 ks-long joint Nustar and XMM-Newton observation performed during the source outburst in 2015. The lightcurve of the source is characterized by a flaring behavior, with typical rise and decay timescales of ˜120 s. The flares are accompanied by a remarkable spectral variability, with the X- ray emission being generally softer at the peak of the flares. A strong QPO is detected at ˜8 mHz in the power spectrum of the source and clearly associated to its flaring-like behaviour. This feature has the strongest power at soft X-rays (hearth-beat in the black-hole binary GRS 1915+105, or, less likely, to unstable nuclear burning on the neutron star surface, as observed in the burster 4U 1636-536. This phenomenology could be ideally studied with the large throughput and wide energy coverage of present and future instruments.

An x-ray nebula associated with the millisecond pulsar B1957+20.

Science.gov (United States)

Stappers, B W; Gaensler, B M; Kaspi, V M; van der Klis, M; Lewin, W H G

2003-02-28

We have detected an x-ray nebula around the binary millisecond pulsar B1957+20. A narrow tail, corresponding to the shocked pulsar wind, is seen interior to the known Halpha bow shock and proves the long-held assumption that the rotational energy of millisecond pulsars is dissipated through relativistic winds. Unresolved x-ray emission likely represents the shock where the winds of the pulsar and its companion collide. This emission indicates that the efficiency with which relativistic particles are accelerated in the postshock flow is similar to that for young pulsars, despite the shock proximity and much weaker surface magnetic field of this millisecond pulsar.

Discovery of the Accretion-Powered Millisecond Pulsar SWIFT 51756.9-2508 with a Low-Mass Companion

Science.gov (United States)

Krimm, H.A.; Markwardt, C.B.; Deloye, C.J.; Romano, P.; Chakrabarty, S.; Campana. S.; Cummings, J.C.; Galloway, D.K.; Gehrels, N.; Hartman, J.M.;

Accretion dynamics and polarized X-ray emission of magnetized neutron stars

Science.gov (United States)

Arons, Jonathan

1991-01-01

The basic ideas of accretion onto magnetized neutron stars are outlined. These are applied to a simple model of the structure of the plasma mound sitting at the magnetic poles of such a star, in which upward diffusion of photons is balanced by their downward advection. This steady flow model of the plasma's dynamical state is used to compute the emission of polarized X-raysfrom the optically thick, birefringent medium. The linear polarization of the continuum radiation emerging from the quasi-static mound is found to be as much as 40 percent at some rotation phases, but is insensitive to the geometry of the accretion flow. The role of the accretion shock, whose detailed polarimetric and spectral characteristics have yet to be calculated, is emphasized as the final determinant of the properties of the emerging X-rays. Some results describing the fully time dependent dynamics of the flow are also presented. In particular, steady flow onto a neutron star is shown to exhibit formation of 'photon bubbles', regions of greatly reduced plasma density filled with radiation which form and rise on millisecond time scale. The possible role of these complex structures in the flow for the formation of the emergent spectrum is briefly outlined.

SAX J1808.4−3658, an accreting millisecond pulsar shining in gamma rays?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oña Wilhelmi, E. de; Papitto, A.; Li, J.; Rea, N.

2015-01-01

We report the detection of a possible gamma-ray counterpart of the accreting millisec- ond pulsar SAXJ1808.4–3658. The analysis of ~6 years of data from the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi-LAT) within a re- gion of 15° radius around the position of the pulsar reveals a point gamma-ray source detected at a significance of ~6σ (Test Statistic TS = 32), with position compatible with that of SAXJ1808.4–3658 within 95% Confidence Level. The energy flux in the energy range between 0.6 GeV and 10 GeV amounts to (2.1 ± 0.5) × 10 -12 erg cm -2 s -1 and the spectrum is well-represented by a power-law function with photon index 2.1±0.1. We searched for significant variation of the flux at the spin frequency of the pulsar and for orbital modulation, taking into account the trials due to the uncertain- ties in the position, the orbital motion of the pulsar and the intrinsic evolution of the pulsar spin. No significant deviation from a constant flux at any time scale was found, preventing a firm identification via time variability. Nonetheless, the association of the LAT source as the gamma-ray counterpart of SAXJ1808.4–3658 would match the emission expected from the millisecond pulsar, if it switches on as a rotation-powered source during X-ray quiescence.

Multiwavelength diagnostics of accretion in an X-ray selected sample of CTTSs

Science.gov (United States)

Curran, R. L.; Argiroffi, C.; Sacco, G. G.; Orlando, S.; Peres, G.; Reale, F.; Maggio, A.

2011-02-01

Context. High resolution X-ray spectroscopy has revealed soft X-rays from high density plasma in classical T Tauri stars (CTTSs), probably arising from the accretion shock region. However, the mass accretion rates derived from the X-ray observations are consistently lower than those derived from UV/optical/NIR studies. Aims: We aim to test the hypothesis that the high density soft X-ray emission originates from accretion by analysing, in a homogeneous manner, optical accretion indicators for an X-ray selected sample of CTTSs. Methods: We analyse optical spectra of the X-ray selected sample of CTTSs and calculate the accretion rates based on measuring the Hα, Hβ, Hγ, He ii 4686 Å, He i 5016 Å, He i 5876 Å, O i 6300 Å, and He i 6678 Å equivalent widths. In addition, we also calculate the accretion rates based on the full width at 10% maximum of the Hα line. The different optical tracers of accretion are compared and discussed. The derived accretion rates are then compared to the accretion rates derived from the X-ray spectroscopy. Results: We find that, for each CTTS in our sample, the different optical tracers predict mass-accretion rates that agree within the errors, albeit with a spread of ≈ 1 order of magnitude. Typically, mass-accretion rates derived from Hα and He i 5876 Å are larger than those derived from Hβ, Hγ, and O i. In addition, the Hα full width at 10%, whilst a good indicator of accretion, may not accurately measure the mass-accretion rate. When the optical mass-accretion rates are compared to the X-ray derived mass-accretion rates, we find that: a) the latter are always lower (but by varying amounts); b) the latter range within a factor of ≈ 2 around 2 × 10-10 M⊙ yr-1, despite the former spanning a range of ≈ 3 orders of magnitude. We suggest that the systematic underestimate of the X-ray derived mass-accretion rates could depend on the density distribution inside the accretion streams, where the densest part of the stream is

Accretion torques and motion of the hot spot on the accreting millisecond pulsar XTE J1807-294

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Patruno, A.; Hartman, J.M.; Wijnands, R.; Chakrabarty, D.; van der Klis, M.

2010-01-01

We present a coherent timing analysis of the 2003 outburst of the accreting millisecond pulsar (AMXP) XTEJ1807-294. We find a 95% confidence interval for the pulse frequency derivative of (+0.7, +4.7) x 10(-14) Hz s(-1) and (-0.6, +3.8) x 10(-14) Hz s(-1) for the fundamental and second harmonics,

Chandra and RXTE studies of the X-ray/gamma-ray millisecond pulsar PSR J0218+4232

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kuiper, L.; Hermsen, W.; Stappers, B.W.

2004-01-01

We report on high-resolution spatial and timing observations of the millisecond pulsar PSR J0218+4232 performed with the Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO) and the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). With these observations we were able to study: (a) the possible spatial extent at X-ray energies of the

THE EFFECT OF TRANSIENT ACCRETION ON THE SPIN-UP OF MILLISECOND PULSARS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhattacharyya, Sudip; Chakrabarty, Deepto, E-mail: sudip@tifr.res.in [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, 1 Homi Bhabha Road, Colaba, Mumbai 400005 (India)

2017-01-20

A millisecond pulsar is a neutron star that has been substantially spun up by accretion from a binary companion. A previously unrecognized factor governing the spin evolution of such pulsars is the crucial effect of nonsteady or transient accretion. We numerically compute the evolution of accreting neutron stars through a series of outburst and quiescent phases, considering the drastic variation of the accretion rate and the standard disk–magnetosphere interaction. We find that, for the same long-term average accretion rate, X-ray transients can spin up pulsars to rates several times higher than can persistent accretors, even when the spin-down due to electromagnetic radiation during quiescence is included. We also compute an analytical expression for the equilibrium spin frequency in transients, by taking spin equilibrium to mean that no net angular momentum is transferred to the neutron star in each outburst cycle. We find that the equilibrium spin rate for transients, which depends on the peak accretion rate during outbursts, can be much higher than that for persistent sources. This explains our numerical finding. This finding implies that any meaningful study of neutron star spin and magnetic field distributions requires the inclusion of the transient accretion effect, since most accreting neutron star sources are transients. Our finding also implies the existence of a submillisecond pulsar population, which is not observed. This may point to the need for a competing spin-down mechanism for the fastest-rotating accreting pulsars, such as gravitational radiation.

Do we see accreting magnetars in X-ray pulsars?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Postnov K.A.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Strong magnetic field of accreting neutron stars (1014 G is hard to probe by Xray spectroscopy but can be indirectly inferred from spin-up/spin-down measurement in X-ray pulsars. The existing observations of slowly rotating X-ray pulsars are discussed. It is shown that magnetic fields of neutron stars derived from these observations (or lower limits in some cases fall within the standard 1012-1013 G range. Claims about the evidence for accreting magnetars are critically discussed in the light of recent progress in understanding of accretion onto slowly rotating neutron stars in the subsonic regime.

Quasi-periodic Pulse Amplitude Modulation in the Accreting Millisecond Pulsar IGR J00291+5934

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bult, Peter [Astrophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Doesburgh, Marieke van; Klis, Michiel van der [Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, Postbus 94249, 1090 GE Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2017-08-20

We introduce a new method for analyzing the aperiodic variability of coherent pulsations in accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars (AMXPs). Our method involves applying a complex frequency correction to the time-domain light curve, allowing for the aperiodic modulation of the pulse amplitude to be robustly extracted in the frequency domain. We discuss the statistical properties of the resulting modulation spectrum and show how it can be correlated with the non-pulsed emission to determine if the periodic and aperiodic variability are coupled processes. Using this method, we study the 598.88 Hz coherent pulsations of the AMXP IGR J00291+5934 as observed with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer and XMM-Newton . We demonstrate that our method easily confirms the known coupling between the pulsations and a strong 8 mHz quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) in XMM-Newton observations. Applying our method to the RXTE observations, we further show, for the first time, that the much weaker 20 mHz QPO and its harmonic are also coupled with the pulsations. We discuss the implications of this coupling and indicate how it may be used to extract new information on the underlying accretion process.

Quasi-Periodic Pulse Amplitude Modulation in the Accreting Millisecond Pulsar IGR J00291+5934

Science.gov (United States)

Bult, Peter; van Doesburgh, Marieke; van der Klis, Michiel

2017-01-01

We introduce a new method for analyzing the a periodic variability of coherent pulsations in accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars (AMXPs). Our method involves applying a complex frequency correction to the time-domain lightcurve, allowing for the aperiodic modulation of the pulse amplitude to be robustly extracted in the frequency domain. We discuss the statistical properties of the resulting modulation spectrum and show how it can be correlated with the non-pulsed emission to determine if the periodic and a periodic variability are coupled processes. Using this method, we study the 598.88 Hz coherent pulsations of the AMXP IGR J00291+5934 as observed with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer and XMM-Newton. We demonstrate that our method easily confirms the known coupling between the pulsations and a strong 8 mHz quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) in XMM-Newton observations. Applying our method to the RXTE observations, we further show, for the first time, that the much weaker 20 mHz QPO and its harmonic are also coupled with the pulsations. We discuss the implications of this coupling and indicate how it may be used to extract new information on the underlying accretion process.

A Search for Millisecond-pulsar Radio Emission from the Faint Quiescent Soft X-Ray Transient 1H 1905+000

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mikhailov, K.; Van Leeuwen, J. [Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, P.O. Box 94249, 1090 GE Amsterdam (Netherlands); Jonker, P. G., E-mail: K.Mikhailov@uva.nl [SRON, the Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Sorbonnelaan 2, 3584 CA, Utrecht (Netherlands)

2017-05-01

Transitional millisecond pulsars (tMSPs) switch between an accretion-powered state without radio pulsations and a rotation-powered state with radio pulsations. In the former state, tMSPs are X-ray bright, while in the latter state, they are X-ray dim. Soft X-ray transients (SXTs) undergo similar switches in X-ray, between “high” states with bright X-ray outbursts and “low” states of quiescence. The upper limit on the quiescent X-ray luminosity of SXT 1H 1905+000 suggests that its luminosity might be similar to that of the known tMSPs. A detection of radio pulsations would link SXTs more strongly with tMSPs; and thus, e.g., put stricter constraints on tMSP transitional timescales through the connection with the well-known SXT periods of quiescence. A nondetection allows us, based on the telescope sensitivity, to estimate how likely these sources are to pulsate in radio. Over a 10-year span, 2006–2015, we carried out targeted radio observations at 400/800 MHz with Arecibo, and searched for radio pulsations from the quiescent SXT 1H 1905+000. None of the observations have revealed radio pulsations from the targeted SXT. For a 1 ms pulsar, our flux density upper limit is 10.3 μ Jy. At an assumed distance of 10 kpc this translates to a pseudo-luminosity upper limit of 1.0 mJy kpc{sup 2}, which makes our search complete to ∼85% of the known MSP population. Given the high sensitivity, and the generally large beaming fraction of millisecond pulsars, we conclude that SXT 1H 1905+000 is unlikely to emit in radio as a tMSP.

Theory of quasi-spherical accretion in X-ray pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Shakura, N.; Postnov, K.; Kochetkova, A.; Hjalmarsdotter, L.

2012-02-01

A theoretical model for quasi-spherical subsonic accretion on to slowly rotating magnetized neutron stars is constructed. In this model, the accreting matter subsonically settles down on to the rotating magnetosphere forming an extended quasi-static shell. This shell mediates the angular momentum removal from the rotating neutron star magnetosphere during spin-down episodes by large-scale convective motions. The accretion rate through the shell is determined by the ability of the plasma to enter the magnetosphere. The settling regime of accretion can be realized for moderate accretion rates ? g s-1. At higher accretion rates, a free-fall gap above the neutron star magnetosphere appears due to rapid Compton cooling, and accretion becomes highly non-stationary. From observations of the spin-up/spin-down rates (the angular rotation frequency derivative ?, and ? near the torque reversal) of X-ray pulsars with known orbital periods, it is possible to determine the main dimensionless parameters of the model, as well as to estimate the magnetic field of the neutron star. We illustrate the model by determining these parameters for three wind-fed X-ray pulsars GX 301-2, Vela X-1 and GX 1+4. The model explains both the spin-up/spin-down of the pulsar frequency on large time-scales and the irregular short-term frequency fluctuations, which can correlate or anticorrelate with the X-ray flux fluctuations in different systems. It is shown that in real pulsars an almost iso-angular-momentum rotation law with ω˜ 1/R2, due to strongly anisotropic radial turbulent motions sustained by large-scale convection, is preferred.

Binary millisecond pulsar discovery via gamma-ray pulsations.

Science.gov (United States)

Pletsch, H J; Guillemot, L; Fehrmann, H; Allen, B; Kramer, M; Aulbert, C; Ackermann, M; Ajello, M; de Angelis, A; Atwood, W B; Baldini, L; Ballet, J; Barbiellini, G; Bastieri, D; Bechtol, K; Bellazzini, R; Borgland, A W; Bottacini, E; Brandt, T J; Bregeon, J; Brigida, M; Bruel, P; Buehler, R; Buson, S; Caliandro, G A; Cameron, R A; Caraveo, P A; Casandjian, J M; Cecchi, C; Çelik, Ö; Charles, E; Chaves, R C G; Cheung, C C; Chiang, J; Ciprini, S; Claus, R; Cohen-Tanugi, J; Conrad, J; Cutini, S; D'Ammando, F; Dermer, C D; Digel, S W; Drell, P S; Drlica-Wagner, A; Dubois, R; Dumora, D; Favuzzi, C; Ferrara, E C; Franckowiak, A; Fukazawa, Y; Fusco, P; Gargano, F; Gehrels, N; Germani, S; Giglietto, N; Giordano, F; Giroletti, M; Godfrey, G; Grenier, I A; Grondin, M-H; Grove, J E; Guiriec, S; Hadasch, D; Hanabata, Y; Harding, A K; den Hartog, P R; Hayashida, M; Hays, E; Hill, A B; Hou, X; Hughes, R E; Jóhannesson, G; Jackson, M S; Jogler, T; Johnson, A S; Johnson, W N; Kataoka, J; Kerr, M; Knödlseder, J; Kuss, M; Lande, J; Larsson, S; Latronico, L; Lemoine-Goumard, M; Longo, F; Loparco, F; Lovellette, M N; Lubrano, P; Massaro, F; Mayer, M; Mazziotta, M N; McEnery, J E; Mehault, J; Michelson, P F; Mitthumsiri, W; Mizuno, T; Monzani, M E; Morselli, A; Moskalenko, I V; Murgia, S; Nakamori, T; Nemmen, R; Nuss, E; Ohno, M; Ohsugi, T; Omodei, N; Orienti, M; Orlando, E; de Palma, F; Paneque, D; Perkins, J S; Piron, F; Pivato, G; Porter, T A; Rainò, S; Rando, R; Ray, P S; Razzano, M; Reimer, A; Reimer, O; Reposeur, T; Ritz, S; Romani, R W; Romoli, C; Sanchez, D A; Saz Parkinson, P M; Schulz, A; Sgrò, C; do Couto e Silva, E; Siskind, E J; Smith, D A; Spandre, G; Spinelli, P; Suson, D J; Takahashi, H; Tanaka, T; Thayer, J B; Thayer, J G; Thompson, D J; Tibaldo, L; Tinivella, M; Troja, E; Usher, T L; Vandenbroucke, J; Vasileiou, V; Vianello, G; Vitale, V; Waite, A P; Winer, B L; Wood, K S; Wood, M; Yang, Z; Zimmer, S

2012-12-07

Millisecond pulsars, old neutron stars spun up by accreting matter from a companion star, can reach high rotation rates of hundreds of revolutions per second. Until now, all such "recycled" rotation-powered pulsars have been detected by their spin-modulated radio emission. In a computing-intensive blind search of gamma-ray data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope (with partial constraints from optical data), we detected a 2.5-millisecond pulsar, PSR J1311-3430. This unambiguously explains a formerly unidentified gamma-ray source that had been a decade-long enigma, confirming previous conjectures. The pulsar is in a circular orbit with an orbital period of only 93 minutes, the shortest of any spin-powered pulsar binary ever found.

Astronomy and astrophysics of galactic X-ray binaries: from the nature of the X-ray sources to the physics of accretion processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodriguez, Jerome

2010-01-01

In this HDR (Accreditation to supervise research) report, the author proposes an overview of his research works in the field of accretion of X-ray binaries. After a presentation of X-ray binaries, neutron stars and black holes, micro-quasars, and of the main issues regarding X-ray binaries, the author presents and comments his activities in X-ray astronomy and gamma-ray astronomy (the INTEGRAL observatory, the discovery of new sources of X and gamma radiation, studies of new sources at different wavelengths). The second part addresses the understanding of source accretion: phenomenological studies in astronomy, relationships between accretion and ejection. The third part presents and comments several studies of the physics of phenomena related to matter accretion and ejection. (author) [fr

On hard X-ray spectra of accreting neutron stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheleznyakov, V.V.

1982-01-01

Formation of the spectra of X-ray pulsars and gamma bursters is investigated. Interpretation of a hard X-ray spectrum of pulsars containing cyclotron lines is feasible on the basis of an isothermal model of a polar spot heated due to acccretion to a neutron star. It has been ascertained that in the regions responsible for the formation of continuum radiation and lines the mode polarization is determined by a magnetized vacuum rather than by a plasma. Bearing this in mind, the influence of the magnetic field of a star on the wide wings of the cyclotron line and on its depth is discussed. The part played by the accreting column in the case of strong accretion (approx. equal to 10 19 el cm -3 ) needed for long sustaining of the high level of X-rays from a neutron star-pulsar is studied. There occur the gaps in spectrum at frequencies close to the electron gyro-frequency and its harmonics due to the screening of the hot spot by the opaque gyro-resonant layer located within the accreting column. These gaps ensure the formation of cyclotron lines in absorption irrespective of the presence of such lines in the X-ray spectrum of a polar hot spot. (orig./WL)

Clumpy wind accretion in Supergiant X-ray Binaries

Science.gov (United States)

El Mellah, I.; Sundqvist, J. O.; Keppens, R.

2017-12-01

Supergiant X-ray binaries (\\sgx) contain a neutron star (NS) orbiting a Supergiant O/B star. The fraction of the dense and fast line-driven wind from the stellar companion which is accreted by the NS is responsible for most of the X-ray emission from those system. Classic \\sgx display photometric variability of their hard X-ray emission, typically from a few 10^{35} to a few 10^{37}erg\\cdots^{-1}. Inhomogeneities (\\aka clumps) in the wind from the star are expected to play a role in this time variability. We run 3D hydrodynamical (HD) finite volume simulations to follow the accretion of the inhomogeneous stellar wind by the NS over almost 3 orders of magnitude. To model the unperturbed wind far upstream the NS, we use recent simulations which managed to resolve its micro-structure. We observe the formation of a Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton (BHL) like bow shock around the accretor and follow the clumps as they cross it, down to the NS magnetosphere. Compared to previous estimations discarding the HD effects, we measure lower time variability due to both the damping effect of the shock and the necessity to evacuate angular momentum to enable accretion. We also compute the associated time-variable column density and compare it to recent observations in Vela X-1.

NICER Discovers the Ultracompact Orbit of the Accreting Millisecond Pulsar IGR J17062–6143

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strohmayer, T. E.; Arzoumanian, Z.; Bogdanov, S.

2018-01-01

We present results of recent Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) observations of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar (AMXP) IGR J17062−6143 that show that it resides in a circular, ultracompact binary with a 38-minute orbital period. NICER observed the source for ≈26 ks over a 5...... of the neutron star. A coherent search for the orbital solution using the Z2 method finds a best-fitting circular orbit with a period of 2278.21 s (37.97 minutes), a projected semimajor axis of 0.00390 lt-s, and a barycentric pulsar frequency of 163.6561105 Hz. This is currently the shortest known orbital period...

Vacuum birefringence and the x-ray polarization from black-hole accretion disks

Science.gov (United States)

Caiazzo, Ilaria; Heyl, Jeremy

2018-04-01

In the next decade, x-ray polarimetry will open a new window on the high-energy Universe, as several missions that include an x-ray polarimeter are currently under development. Observations of the polarization of x rays coming from the accretion disks of stellar-mass and supermassive black holes are among the new polarimeters' major objectives. In this paper, we show that these observations can be affected by the quantum electrodynamic (QED) effect of vacuum birefringence: after an x-ray photon is emitted from the accretion disk, its polarization changes as the photon travels through the accretion disk's magnetosphere, as a result of the vacuum becoming birefringent in the presence of a magnetic field. We show that this effect can be important for black holes in the energy band of the upcoming polarimeters and has to be taken into account in a complete model of the x-ray polarization that we expect to detect from black-hole accretion disks, both for stellar mass and for supermassive black holes. We find that, for a chaotic magnetic field in the disk, QED can significantly decrease the linear polarization fraction of edge-on photons, depending on the spin of the hole and on the strength of the magnetic field. This effect can provide, for the first time, a direct way to probe the magnetic field strength close to the innermost stable orbit of black-hole accretion disks and to study the role of magnetic fields in astrophysical accretion in general.

WORKSHOP: Accreting X-ray sources

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anon.

1986-09-15

Earlier this year a workshop on 'High Energy/Ultra High Energy Behaviour of Accreting X-Ray Sources' was held in Vulcano, a small island near Sicily, jointly organized by the Italian Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare and Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche. About 60 astrophysicists and particle physicists attended the meeting which covered the study of galactic cosmic sources emitting in the wide energy range from the optical region to some 10{sup 15} eV.

A PROPELLER MODEL FOR THE SUB-LUMINOUS STATE OF THE TRANSITIONAL MILLISECOND PULSAR PSR J1023+0038

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Papitto, A.; Torres, D. F. [Institute of Space Sciences (CSIC-IEEC), Campus UAB, Carrer de Can Magrans, S/N, E-08193, Cerdanyola del Vallés, Barcelona (Spain)

2015-07-01

The discovery of millisecond pulsars switching between states powered either by the rotation of their magnetic field or by the accretion of matter has recently proved the tight link shared by millisecond radio pulsars and neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries. Transitional millisecond pulsars also show an enigmatic intermediate state in which the neutron star is surrounded by an accretion disk and emits coherent X-ray pulsations, but is sub-luminous in X-rays with respect to accreting neutron stars, and is brighter in gamma-rays than millisecond pulsars in the rotation-powered state. Here, we model the X-ray and gamma-ray emission observed from PSR J1023+0038 in such a state based on the assumptions that most of the disk in-flow is propelled away by the rapidly rotating neutron star magnetosphere, and that electrons can be accelerated to energies of a few GeV at the turbulent disk–magnetosphere boundary. We show that the synchrotron and self-synchrotron Compton emission coming from such a region, together with the hard disk emission typical of low states of accreting compact objects, is able to explain the radiation observed in the X-ray and gamma-ray bands. The average emission observed from PSR J1023+0038 is modeled by a disk in-flow with a rate of 1–3 × 10{sup −11} M{sub ⊙} yr{sup −1}, truncated at a radius ranging between 30 and 45 km, compatible with the hypothesis of a propelling magnetosphere. We compare the results we obtained with models that assume that a rotation-powered pulsar is turned on, showing how the spin-down power released in similar scenarios is hardly able to account for the magnitude of the observed emission.

X-RAY OUTFLOWS AND SUPER-EDDINGTON ACCRETION IN THE ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCE HOLMBERG IX X-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walton, D. J.; Harrison, F. A.; Miller, J. M.; Reis, R. C.; Fabian, A. C.; Roberts, T. P.; Middleton, M. J.

2013-01-01

Studies of X-ray continuum emission and flux variability have not conclusively revealed the nature of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) at the high-luminosity end of the distribution (those with L X ≥ 10 40 erg s –1 ). These are of particular interest because the luminosity requires either super-Eddington accretion onto a black hole of mass ∼10 M ☉ or more standard accretion onto an intermediate-mass black hole. Super-Eddington accretion models predict strong outflowing winds, making atomic absorption lines a key diagnostic of the nature of extreme ULXs. To search for such features, we have undertaken a long, 500 ks observing campaign on Holmberg IX X-1 with Suzaku. This is the most sensitive data set in the iron K bandpass for a bright, isolated ULX to date, yet we find no statistically significant atomic features in either emission or absorption; any undetected narrow features must have equivalent widths less than 15-20 eV at 99% confidence. These limits are far below the ∼>150 eV lines expected if observed trends between mass inflow and outflow rates extend into the super-Eddington regime and in fact rule out the line strengths observed from disk winds in a variety of sub-Eddington black holes. We therefore cannot be viewing the central regions of Holmberg IX X-1 through any substantial column of material, ruling out models of spherical super-Eddington accretion. If Holmberg IX X-1 is a super-Eddington source, any associated outflow must have an anisotropic geometry. Finally, the lack of iron emission suggests that the stellar companion cannot be launching a strong wind and that Holmberg IX X-1 must primarily accrete via Roche-lobe overflow

MN Lup: X-RAYS FROM A WEAKLY ACCRETING T TAURI STAR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Günther, H. M.; Wolk, S. J.; Wolter, U.; Robrade, J.

2013-01-01

Young T Tauri stars (TTS) are surrounded by an accretion disk, which over time disperses due to photoevaporation, accretion, and possibly planet formation. The accretion shock on the central star produces an UV/optical veiling continuum, line emission, and X-ray signatures. As the accretion rate decreases, the impact on the central star must change. In this article we study MN Lup, a young star where no indications of a disk are seen in IR observations. We present XMM-Newton and VLT/UVES observations, some of them taken simultaneously. The X-ray data show that MN Lup is an active star with L X /L bol close to the saturation limit. However, we find high densities (n e > 3 × 10 10 cm –3 ) in the X-ray grating spectrum. This can be well fitted using an accretion shock model with an accretion rate of 2 × 10 –11 M ☉ yr –1 . Despite the simple Hα line profile which has a broad component, but no absorption signatures as typically seen on accreting TTS, we find rotational modulation in Ca II K and in photospheric absorption lines. These line profile modulations do not clearly indicate the presence of a localized hot accretion spot on the star. In the Hα line we see a prominence in absorption about 2R * above the stellar surface—the first of its kind on a TTS. MN Lup is also the only TTS where accretion is seen, but no dust disk is detected that could fuel it. We suggest that MN Lup presents a unique and short-lived state in the disk evolution. It may have lost its dust disk only recently and is now accreting the remaining gas at a very low rate.

SWIFT J1749.4-2807 : X-ray decay, refined position and optical observation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yang, Y.J.; Russell, D. M.; Wijnands, R.; van der Klis, M.; Altamirano, D.; Patruno, A.; Watts, A.; Armas Padilla, M.; Cavecchi, Y.; Degenaar, N.; Kalamkar, M.; Kaur, R.; Linares, M.; Casella, P.; Rea, N.; Soleri, P.; Lewis, F.; Kong, A. K. H.

We analyzed seven, target ID 31686, Swift follow-up observations of the neutron-star X-ray transient Swfit J1749.4-2807 (Wijnands et al. 2009) currently in outburst and which was found to be an accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar (ATel #2565). The observations span from April 11 to April 20.

Mass accretion rate fluctuations in black hole X-ray binaries

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rapisarda, S.

2017-01-01

This thesis is about the first systematic and quantitative application of propagating mass accretion rate fluctuations models to black hole X-ray binaries. Black hole X-ray binaries are systems consisting of a solar mass star orbiting around a stellar mass black hole. Eventually, the black hole

Physics of accretion and ejection processes: a multi-wavelengths study of galactic X-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prat, Lionel

2010-01-01

This manuscript is dedicated to the study of the accretion and ejection processes in X-ray Binaries, using radio and X-ray observations as well as numerical simulations. The links and interplay between the accretion disc, the corona and the compact jet. In an introductory part, I first describe the main observational and theoretical properties of the X-ray binaries. I especially emphasize the aspects required to understand the work reported in this manuscript. I also describe the main X-ray and radio observatories used during this work. Then, the first part of this manuscript is dedicated to the accretion processes in X-ray Binaries. I use high energy observations to study one High Mass X-ray Binary (IGR J19140+0951) and two Low-Mass X-ray Binaries (XTE J1818-245 and H1743-322). In the case of IGR Jl9140+0951, observations show that the luminosity generated by the accretion processes can deeply alter the stellar wind. In the case of the two Low Mass X-ray Binaries, I estimate several important parameters of the Systems using the behavior of their accretion discs. The second part is dedicated to the interplay between the accretion disc and the other components of the Systems, namely the corona and the compact jet. Using simultaneous X-ray and radio observations, I show that the corona undergo a strong evolution prior to a discrete ejection of matter, in the case of several binary Systems. In the case of GRS 1915+105, evolution of the corona and detection of a discrete ejection appear within a few seconds, while for other sources it takes a few hours. I study also the link between the accretion disc and the compact jet using a correlation between radio and X-ray flux: depending on the System, the link between the accretion energy brought by the accretion disc and the luminosity of the jet is different, indicating that different physical processes are at work. Finally, the third part is dedicated to numerical simulations of the accretion disc, in the case where an

An X-ray outburst from the rapidly accreting young star that illuminates McNeil's nebula.

Science.gov (United States)

Kastner, J H; Richmond, M; Grosso, N; Weintraub, D A; Simon, T; Frank, A; Hamaguchi, K; Ozawa, H; Henden, A

2004-07-22

Young, low-mass stars are luminous X-ray sources whose powerful X-ray flares may exert a profound influence over the process of planet formation. The origin of the X-ray emission is uncertain. Although many (or perhaps most) recently formed, low-mass stars emit X-rays as a consequence of solar-like coronal activity, it has also been suggested that X-ray emission may be a direct result of mass accretion onto the forming star. Here we report X-ray imaging spectroscopy observations which reveal a factor approximately 50 increase in the X-ray flux from a young star that is at present undergoing a spectacular optical/infrared outburst (this star illuminates McNeil's nebula). The outburst seems to be due to the sudden onset of a phase of rapid accretion. The coincidence of a surge in X-ray brightness with the optical/infrared eruption demonstrates that strongly enhanced high-energy emission from young stars can occur as a consequence of high accretion rates. We suggest that such accretion-enhanced X-ray emission from erupting young stars may be short-lived, because intense star-disk magnetospheric interactions are quenched rapidly by the subsequent flood of new material onto the star.

A model of two-stream non-radial accretion for binary X-ray pulsars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lipunov, V.M.

1982-01-01

The general case of non-radial accretion is assumed to occur in real binary systems containing X-ray pulsars. The structure and the stability of the magnetosphere, the interaction between the magnetosphere and accreted matter, as well as evolution of neutron star in close binary system are examined within the framework of the two-stream model of nonradial accretion onto a magnetized neutron star. Observable parameters of X-ray pulsars are explained in terms of the model considered. (orig.)

X-Ray and Optical Study of the Gamma-ray Source 3FGL J0838.8–2829: Identification of a Candidate Millisecond Pulsar Binary and an Asynchronous Polar

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Halpern, Jules P.; Bogdanov, Slavko [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, 550 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027-6601 (United States); Thorstensen, John R., E-mail: jules@astro.columbia.edu [Department of Physics and Astronomy, 6127 Wilder Laboratory, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755-3528 (United States)

2017-04-01

We observed the field of the Fermi source 3FGL J0838.8−2829 in optical and X-rays, initially motivated by the cataclysmic variable (CV) 1RXS J083842.1−282723 that lies within its error circle. Several X-ray sources first classified as CVs have turned out to be γ -ray emitting millisecond pulsars (MSPs). We find that 1RXS J083842.1−282723 is in fact an unusual CV, a stream-fed asynchronous polar in which accretion switches between magnetic poles (that are ≈120° apart) when the accretion rate is at minimum. High-amplitude X-ray modulation at periods of 94.8 ± 0.4 minutes and 14.7 ± 1.2 hr are seen. The former appears to be the spin period, while the latter is inferred to be one-third of the beat period between the spin and the orbit, implying an orbital period of 98.3 ± 0.5 minutes. We also measure an optical emission-line spectroscopic period of 98.413 ± 0.004 minutes, which is consistent with the orbital period inferred from the X-rays. In any case, this system is unlikely to be the γ -ray source. Instead, we find a fainter variable X-ray and optical source, XMMU J083850.38−282756.8, that is modulated on a timescale of hours in addition to exhibiting occasional sharp flares. It resembles the black widow or redback pulsars that have been discovered as counterparts of Fermi sources, with the optical modulation due to heating of the photosphere of a low-mass companion star by, in this case, an as-yet undetected MSP. We propose XMMU J083850.38−282756.8 as the MSP counterpart of 3FGL J0838.8−2829.

X-ray detectability of accreting isolated black holes in our Galaxy

Science.gov (United States)

Tsuna, Daichi; Kawanaka, Norita; Totani, Tomonori

2018-06-01

Detectability of isolated black holes (IBHs) without a companion star but emitting X-rays by accretion from dense interstellar medium (ISM) or molecular cloud gas is investigated. We calculate orbits of IBHs in the Galaxy to derive a realistic spatial distribution of IBHs for various mean values of kick velocity at their birth υavg. X-ray luminosities of these IBHs are then calculated considering various phases of ISM and molecular clouds for a wide range of the accretion efficiency λ (a ratio of the actual accretion rate to the Bondi rate) that is rather uncertain. It is found that detectable IBHs mostly reside near the Galactic Centre (GC), and hence taking the Galactic structure into account is essential. In the hard X-ray band, where identification of IBHs from other contaminating X-ray sources may be easier, the expected number of IBHs detectable by the past survey by NuSTAR towards GC is at most order unity. However, 30-100 IBHs may be detected by the future survey by FORCE with an optimistic parameter set of υavg = 50 km s-1 and λ = 0.1, implying that it may be possible to detect IBHs or constrain the model parameters.

Swinging between rotation and accretion power in a binary millisecond pulsar

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Papitto A.

2014-01-01

While accreting mass, the X-ray emission of IGR J18245–2452 varies dramatically on time-scales ranging from a second to a few hours. We interpret a state characterised by a lower flux and pulsed fraction, and by sudden increases of the hardness of the X-ray emission, in terms of the onset of a magnetospheric centrifugal inhibition of the accretion flow. Prospects of finding new members of the newly established class of transitional pulsars are also briefly discussed.

Discovery of burst oscillations in the intermittent accretion-powered millisecond pulsar HETE J1900.1-2455

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Watts, A.L.; Altamirano, D.; Linares, M.; Patruno, A.; Casella, P.; Cavecchi, Y.; Degenaar, N.; Rea, N.; Soleri, P.; van der Klis, M.; Wijnands, R.

2009-01-01

We report the discovery of burst oscillations from the intermittent accretion-powered millisecond pulsar (AMP) HETE J1900.1-2455, with a frequency ~1 Hz below the known spin frequency. The burst oscillation properties are far more similar to those of the non-AMPs and Aql X-1 (an intermittent AMP

High-energy X-ray production in a boundary layer of an accreting neutron star

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanawa, Tomoyuki

1991-01-01

It is shown by Monte Carlo simulation that high-energy X-rays are produced through Compton scattering in a boundary layer of an accreting neutron star. The following is the mechanism for the high-energy X-ray production. An accreting neutron star has a boundary layer rotating rapidly on the surface. X-rays radiated from the star's surface are scattered in part in the boundary layer. Since the boundary layer rotates at a semirelativistic speed, the scattered X-ray energy is changed by the Compton effect. Some X-rays are scattered repeatedly between the neutron star and the boundary layer and become high-energy X-rays. This mechanism is a photon analog of the second-order Fermi acceleration of cosmic rays. When the boundary layer is semitransparent, high-energy X-rays are produced efficiently. 17 refs

Restablished Accretion in Post-outburst Classical Novae Revealed by X-rays

Science.gov (United States)

Hernanz, Margarita; Ferri, Carlo; Sala, Glòria

2009-05-01

Classical novae are explosions on accreting white dwarfs (hereinafter WDs) in cataclysmic variables (hereinafter CVs) a hydrogen thermonuclear runaway on top of the WD is responsible for the outburst. X-rays provide a unique way to study the turn-off of H-burning, because super soft X-rays reveal the hot WD photosphere, but also to understand how accretion is established again in the binary system. Observations with XMM-Newton of some post-outburst novae have revealed such a process, but a coverage up to larger energies -as Simbol-X will provide- is fundamental to well understand the characteristics of the binary system and of the nova ejecta. We present a brief summary of our results up to now and prospects for the Simbol-X mission.

Pulse-to-pulse variations in accreting X-ray pulsars

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kretschmar Peter

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In most accreting X-ray pulsars, the periodic signal is very clear and easily shows up as soon as data covering sufficient pulse periods (a few ten are available. The mean pulse profile is often quite typical for a given source and with minor variations repeated and recognisable across observations done years or even decades apart. At the time scale of individual pulses, significant pulse-to-pulse variations are commonly observed. While at low energies some of these variations might be explained by absorption, in the hard X-rays they will reflect changes in the accretion and subsequent emission. The amount of these variations appears to be quite different between sources and contains information about the surrounding material as well ass possibly interactions at the magnetosphere. We investigate such variations for a sample of well-known sources.

ACCRETION DISK SIGNATURES IN TYPE I X-RAY BURSTS: PROSPECTS FOR FUTURE MISSIONS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Keek, L. [CRESST and X-ray Astrophysics Laboratory NASA/GSFC, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Wolf, Z.; Ballantyne, D. R., E-mail: laurens.keek@nasa.gov [Center for Relativistic Astrophysics, School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, 837 State Street, Atlanta, GA 30332-0430 (United States)

2016-07-20

Type I X-ray bursts and superbursts from accreting neutron stars illuminate the accretion disk and produce a reflection signal that evolves as the burst fades. Examining the evolution of reflection features in the spectra will provide insight into the burst–disk interaction, a potentially powerful probe of accretion disk physics. At present, reflection has been observed during only two bursts of exceptional duration. We investigate the detectability of reflection signatures with four of the latest well-studied X-ray observatory concepts: Hitomi , Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer ( NICER ), Athena , and Large Observatory For X-ray Timing ( LOFT ). Burst spectra are modeled for different values for the flux, temperature, and the disk ionization parameter, which are representative for most known bursts and sources. The effective area and throughput of a Hitomi -like telescope are insufficient for characterizing burst reflection features. NICER and Athena will detect reflection signatures in Type I bursts with peak fluxes ≳10{sup 7.5} erg cm{sup 2} s{sup 1} and also effectively constrain the reflection parameters for bright bursts with fluxes of ∼10{sup 7} erg cm{sup 2} s{sup 1} in exposures of several seconds. Thus, these observatories will provide crucial new insight into the interaction of accretion flows and X-ray bursts. For sources with low line-of-sight absorption, the wide bandpass of these instruments allows for the detection of soft X-ray reflection features, which are sensitive to the disk metallicity and density. The large collecting area that is part of the LOFT design would revolutionize the field by tracing the evolution of the accretion geometry in detail throughout short bursts.

An ultraluminous X-ray source powered by an accreting neutron star

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bachetti, M.; Harrison, F. A.; Walton, D. J.

2014-01-01

the Eddington limit for a 1.4-solar-mass object, or more than ten times brighter than any known accreting pulsar. This implies that neutron stars may not be rare in the ultraluminous X-ray population, and it challenges physical models for the accretion of matter onto magnetized compact objects....

Neutron star crustal plate tectonics. I. Magnetic dipole evolution in millisecond pulsars and low-mass X-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruderman, M.

1991-01-01

Crust lattices in spinning-up or spinning-down neutron stars have growing shear stresses caused by neutron superfluid vortex lines pinned to lattice nuclei. For the most rapidly spinning stars, this stress will break and move the crust before vortex unpinning occurs. In spinning-down neutron stars, crustal plates will move an equatorial subduction zone in which the plates are forced into the stellar core below the crust. The opposite plate motion occurs in spinning-up stars. Magnetic fields which pass through the crust or have sources in it move with the crust. Spun-up neutron stars in accreting low-mass X-ray binaries LMXBs should then have almost axially symmetric magnetic fields. Spun-down ones with very weak magnetic fields should have external magnetic fields which enter and leave the neutron star surface only near its equator. The lowest field millisecond radiopulsars seem to be orthogonal rotators implying that they have not previously been spun-up in LMXBs but are neutron stars initially formed with periods near 0.001 s that subsequently spin down to their present periods. Accretion-induced white dwarf collapse is then the most plausible genesis for them. 29 refs

Low-mass X-ray binary evolution and the origin of millisecond pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Frank, Juhan; King, Andrew R.; Lasota, Jean-Pierre

1992-01-01

The evolution of low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) is considered. It is shown that X-ray irradiation of the companion stars causes these systems to undergo episodes of rapid mass transfer followed by detached phases. The systems are visible as bright X-ray binaries only for a short part of each cycle, so that their space density must be considerably larger than previously estimated. This removes the difficulty in regarding LMXBs as the progenitors of low-mass binary pulsars. The low-accretion-rate phase of the cycle with the soft X-ray transients is identified. It is shown that 3 hr is likely to be the minimum orbital period for LMXBs with main-sequence companions and it is suggested that the evolutionary endpoint for many LMXBs may be systems which are the sites of gamma-ray bursts.

The gravitational microlens influence on X-ray spectral line generated by an AGN accretion disc

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Popović L.Č.

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The influence of gravitational microlensing on the X-ray spectral line profiles originated from a relativistic accretion disc has been studied. Using a disc model, we show that microlensing can induce noticeable changes in the line shapes when the Einstein ring radius associated with the microlens is of a size comparable to that of the accretion disc. Taking into account the relatively small size of the X-ray accretion disc, we found that compact objects (of about a Solar mass which belong to the bulge of the host galaxy can produce significant changes in the X-ray line profile of AGN.

Hard state neutron star and black hole X-ray binaries in the radio:X-ray luminosity plane

Science.gov (United States)

Gallo, Elena; Degenaar, Nathalie; van den Eijnden, Jakob

2018-05-01

Motivated by the large body of literature around the phenomenological properties of accreting black hole (BH) and neutron star (NS) X-ray binaries in the radio:X-ray luminosity plane, we carry out a comparative regression analysis on 36 BHs and 41 NSs in hard X-ray states, with data over 7 dex in X-ray luminosity for both. The BHs follow a radio to X-ray (logarithmic) luminosity relation with slope β = 0.59 ± 0.02, consistent with the NSs' slope (β =0.44^{+0.05}_{-0.04}) within 2.5σ. The best-fitting intercept for the BHs significantly exceeds that for the NSs, cementing BHs as more radio loud, by a factor ˜22. This discrepancy can not be fully accounted for by the mass or bolometric correction gap, nor by the NS boundary layer contribution to the X-rays, and is likely to reflect physical differences in the accretion flow efficiency, or the jet powering mechanism. Once importance sampling is implemented to account for the different luminosity distributions, the slopes of the non-pulsating and pulsating NS subsamples are formally inconsistent (>3σ), unless the transitional millisecond pulsars (whose incoherent radio emission mechanism is not firmly established) are excluded from the analysis. We confirm the lack of a robust partitioning of the BH data set into separate luminosity tracks.

A New Model for Thermal and Bulk Comptonization in Accretion-Powered X-ray Pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Becker, Peter A.; Wolff, Michael T.

2018-01-01

The theory of spectral formation in accretion-powered X-ray pulsars has advanced considerably in the past decade, with the development of new models for the continuum and the cyclotron line formation processes. In many sources, the cyclotron line centroid energy is observed to vary as a function of source luminosity (and therefore accretion rate). In some cases, the variations in the luminosity seem to indicate a change in the structure of the accretion column, as the source passes from the sub-critical to the super-critical regime. With the recent launches of NuSTAR and NICER, observations of accreting X-ray pulsars are entering a new era, with large effective areas, broadband energy coverage, and good temporal resolution. These observations are already presenting new challenges to the theory, requiring the development of a new generation of more sophisticated physical models. In this paper, we discuss an improved model for bulk and thermal Comptonization in X-ray pulsars that will allow greater self-consistency in the data analysis process than current models, leading to more rigorous determinations of source parameters such as magnetic field strength, temperature, etc. The model improvements include (1) a more realistic geometry for the accretion column; (2) a more rigorous accretion velocity profile that merges smoothly with Newtonian free-fall as r → ∞ and (3) a more realistic free-streaming radiative boundary condition at the top of the column. This latter improvement means that we can now compute the pencil and fan beam components separately, which is necessary in order to analyze phase-dependent spectral data. We discuss applications of the new model to Her X-1, LMC X-4, and Cen X-3, and also to the Be X-ray binary 4U 0115+63.

Super-Eddington Accretion in the Ultraluminous X-Ray Source NGC 1313 X-2: An Ephemeral Feast

Science.gov (United States)

Weng, Shan-Shan; Zhang, Shuang-Nan; Zhao, Hai-Hui

2014-01-01

We investigate the X-ray spectrum, variability, and the surrounding ionized bubble of NGC 1313 X-2 to explore the physics of super-Eddington accretion. Beyond the Eddington luminosity, the accretion disk of NGC 1313 X-2 is truncated at a large radius (~50 times the innermost stable circular orbit), and displays the similar evolution track with both luminous Galactic black-hole and neutron star X-ray binaries (XRBs). In super-critical accretion, the speed of radiatively driven outflows from the inner disk is mildly relativistic. Such ultra-fast outflows would be overionized and might produce weak Fe K absorption lines, which may be detected by the coming X-ray mission Astro-H. If NGC 1313 X-2 is a massive stellar XRB, the high luminosity indicates that an ephemeral feast is held in the source. That is, the source must be accreting at a hyper-Eddington mass rate to give the super-Eddington emission over ~104-105 yr. The expansion of the surrounding bubble nebula with a velocity of ~100 km s-1 might indicate that it has existed over ~106 yr and is inflated by the radiatively driven outflows from the transient with a duty cycle of activity of ~ a few percent. Alternatively, if the surrounding bubble nebula is produced by line-driven winds, less energy is required than the radiatively driven outflow scenario, and the radius of the Strömgren radius agrees with the nebula size. Our results are in favor of the line-driven winds scenario, which can avoid the conflict between the short accretion age and the apparently much longer bubble age inferred from the expansion velocity in the nebula.

INTERFERENCE AS AN ORIGIN OF THE PEAKED NOISE IN ACCRETING X-RAY BINARIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Veledina, Alexandra, E-mail: alexandra.veledina@gmail.com [Nordita, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University, Roslagstullsbacken 23, SE-10691 Stockholm (Sweden)

2016-12-01

We propose a physical model for the peaked noise in the X-ray power density spectra of accreting X-ray binaries. We interpret its appearance as an interference of two Comptonization continua: one coming from the upscattering of seed photons from the cold thin disk and the other fed by the synchrotron emission of the hot flow. Variations of both X-ray components are caused by fluctuations in mass accretion rate, but there is a delay between them corresponding to the propagation timescale from the disk Comptonization radius to the region of synchrotron Comptonization. If the disk and synchrotron Comptonization are correlated, the humps in the power spectra are harmonically related and the dips between them appear at frequencies related as odd numbers 1:3:5. If they are anti-correlated, the humps are related as 1:3:5, but the dips are harmonically related. Similar structures are expected to be observed in accreting neutron star binaries and supermassive black holes. The delay can be easily recovered from the frequency of peaked noise and further used to constrain the combination of the viscosity parameter and disk height-to-radius ratio α ( H / R ){sup 2} of the accretion flow. We model multi-peak power spectra of black hole X-ray binaries GX 339–4 and XTE J1748–288 to constrain these parameters.

Accretion from a clumpy massive-star wind in supergiant X-ray binaries

Science.gov (United States)

El Mellah, I.; Sundqvist, J. O.; Keppens, R.

2018-04-01

Supergiant X-ray binaries (SgXB) host a compact object, often a neutron star (NS), orbiting an evolved O/B star. Mass transfer proceeds through the intense line-driven wind of the stellar donor, a fraction of which is captured by the gravitational field of the NS. The subsequent accretion process on to the NS is responsible for the abundant X-ray emission from SgXB. They also display peak-to-peak variability of the X-ray flux by a factor of a few 10-100, along with changes in the hardness ratios possibly due to varying absorption along the line of sight. We use recent radiation-hydrodynamic simulations of inhomogeneities (a.k.a. clumps) in the non-stationary wind of massive hot stars to evaluate their impact on the time-variable accretion process. For this, we run 3D hydrodynamic simulations of the wind in the vicinity of the accretor to investigate the formation of the bow shock and follow the inhomogeneous flow over several spatial orders of magnitude, down to the NS magnetosphere. In particular, we show that the impact of the wind clumps on the time variability of the intrinsic mass accretion rate is severely tempered by the crossing of the shock, compared to the purely ballistic Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton estimation. We also account for the variable absorption due to clumps passing by the line of sight and estimate the final effective variability of the column density and mass accretion rate for different orbital separations. Finally, we compare our results to the most recent analysis of the X-ray flux and the hardness ratio in Vela X-1.

Probing the Accretion Geometry of Black Holes with X-Ray Polarization

Science.gov (United States)

Schnitman, Jeremy D.

2011-01-01

In the coming years, new space missions will be able to measure X-ray polarization at levels of 1% or better in the approx.1-10 keV energy band. In particular, X-ray polarization is an ideal tool for determining the nature of black hole (BH) accretion disks surrounded by hot coronae. Using a Monte Carlo radiation transport code in full general relativity, we calculate the spectra and polarization features of these BH systems. At low energies, the signal is dominated by the thermal flux coming directly from the optically thick disk. At higher energies, the thermal seed photons have been inverse-Compton scattered by the corona, often reflecting back off the disk before reaching the observer, giving a distinctive polarization signature. By measuring the degree and angle of this X-ray polarization, we can infer the BH inclination, the emission geometry of the accretion flow, and also determine the spin of the black hole.

An accreting pulsar with extreme properties drives an ultraluminous x-ray source in NGC 5907.

Science.gov (United States)

Israel, Gian Luca; Belfiore, Andrea; Stella, Luigi; Esposito, Paolo; Casella, Piergiorgio; De Luca, Andrea; Marelli, Martino; Papitto, Alessandro; Perri, Matteo; Puccetti, Simonetta; Castillo, Guillermo A Rodríguez; Salvetti, David; Tiengo, Andrea; Zampieri, Luca; D'Agostino, Daniele; Greiner, Jochen; Haberl, Frank; Novara, Giovanni; Salvaterra, Ruben; Turolla, Roberto; Watson, Mike; Wilms, Joern; Wolter, Anna

2017-02-24

Ultraluminous x-ray sources (ULXs) in nearby galaxies shine brighter than any x-ray source in our Galaxy. ULXs are usually modeled as stellar-mass black holes (BHs) accreting at very high rates or intermediate-mass BHs. We present observations showing that NGC 5907 ULX is instead an x-ray accreting neutron star (NS) with a spin period evolving from 1.43 seconds in 2003 to 1.13 seconds in 2014. It has an isotropic peak luminosity of [Formula: see text]1000 times the Eddington limit for a NS at 17.1 megaparsec. Standard accretion models fail to explain its luminosity, even assuming beamed emission, but a strong multipolar magnetic field can describe its properties. These findings suggest that other extreme ULXs (x-ray luminosity [Formula: see text] 10 41 erg second[Formula: see text]) might harbor NSs. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Super-eddington accretion in the ultraluminous x-ray source NGC 1313 X-2: An ephemeral feast

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weng, Shan-Shan [Department of Physics, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105 (China); Zhang, Shuang-Nan; Zhao, Hai-Hui, E-mail: wengss@ihep.ac.cn, E-mail: zhangsn@ihep.ac.cn, E-mail: zhaohh@ihep.ac.cn [Key Laboratory of Particle Astrophysics, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China)

2014-01-10

We investigate the X-ray spectrum, variability, and the surrounding ionized bubble of NGC 1313 X-2 to explore the physics of super-Eddington accretion. Beyond the Eddington luminosity, the accretion disk of NGC 1313 X-2 is truncated at a large radius (∼50 times the innermost stable circular orbit), and displays the similar evolution track with both luminous Galactic black-hole and neutron star X-ray binaries (XRBs). In super-critical accretion, the speed of radiatively driven outflows from the inner disk is mildly relativistic. Such ultra-fast outflows would be overionized and might produce weak Fe K absorption lines, which may be detected by the coming X-ray mission Astro-H. If NGC 1313 X-2 is a massive stellar XRB, the high luminosity indicates that an ephemeral feast is held in the source. That is, the source must be accreting at a hyper-Eddington mass rate to give the super-Eddington emission over ∼10{sup 4}-10{sup 5} yr. The expansion of the surrounding bubble nebula with a velocity of ∼100 km s{sup –1} might indicate that it has existed over ∼10{sup 6} yr and is inflated by the radiatively driven outflows from the transient with a duty cycle of activity of ∼ a few percent. Alternatively, if the surrounding bubble nebula is produced by line-driven winds, less energy is required than the radiatively driven outflow scenario, and the radius of the Strömgren radius agrees with the nebula size. Our results are in favor of the line-driven winds scenario, which can avoid the conflict between the short accretion age and the apparently much longer bubble age inferred from the expansion velocity in the nebula.

Super-eddington accretion in the ultraluminous x-ray source NGC 1313 X-2: An ephemeral feast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weng, Shan-Shan; Zhang, Shuang-Nan; Zhao, Hai-Hui

2014-01-01

We investigate the X-ray spectrum, variability, and the surrounding ionized bubble of NGC 1313 X-2 to explore the physics of super-Eddington accretion. Beyond the Eddington luminosity, the accretion disk of NGC 1313 X-2 is truncated at a large radius (∼50 times the innermost stable circular orbit), and displays the similar evolution track with both luminous Galactic black-hole and neutron star X-ray binaries (XRBs). In super-critical accretion, the speed of radiatively driven outflows from the inner disk is mildly relativistic. Such ultra-fast outflows would be overionized and might produce weak Fe K absorption lines, which may be detected by the coming X-ray mission Astro-H. If NGC 1313 X-2 is a massive stellar XRB, the high luminosity indicates that an ephemeral feast is held in the source. That is, the source must be accreting at a hyper-Eddington mass rate to give the super-Eddington emission over ∼10 4 -10 5 yr. The expansion of the surrounding bubble nebula with a velocity of ∼100 km s –1 might indicate that it has existed over ∼10 6 yr and is inflated by the radiatively driven outflows from the transient with a duty cycle of activity of ∼ a few percent. Alternatively, if the surrounding bubble nebula is produced by line-driven winds, less energy is required than the radiatively driven outflow scenario, and the radius of the Strömgren radius agrees with the nebula size. Our results are in favor of the line-driven winds scenario, which can avoid the conflict between the short accretion age and the apparently much longer bubble age inferred from the expansion velocity in the nebula.

X-Rays from the Nearby Solitary Millisecond Pulsar PSR J0030+0451 - the Final ROSAT Observations

CERN Document Server

Becker, W; Bäcker, A N; Lommen, D; Becker, Werner; Tr"umper, Joachim; Backer, Andrea N.Lommen & Donald C.

2000-01-01

We report on X-ray observations of the solitary 4.8 ms pulsar PSR J0030+0451. The pulsar was one of the last targets observed in DEC-98 by the ROSAT PSPC. X-ray pulses are detected on a $4.5\\sigma$ level and make the source the $11^{th}$ millisecond pulsar detected in the X-ray domain. The pulsed fraction is found to be $69\\pm18%$. The X-ray pulse profile is characterized by two narrow peaks which match the gross pulse profile observed at 1.4 GHz. Assuming a Crab-like spectrum the X-ray flux is in the range $f_x= 2-3\\times 10^{-13}$ erg s$^{-1}$ cm$^{-2} $ ($0.1-2.4$ keV), implying an X-ray efficiency of $L_x/\\dot{E}\\sim 0.5-5 \\times 10^{-3} (d/0.23 {kpc})^2$.

A non-radial oscillation mode in an accreting millisecond pulsar?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Strohmayer, Tod [Astrophysics Science Division and Joint Space-Science Institute, NASA' s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Mahmoodifar, Simin [Department of Physics and Joint Space-Science Institute, University of Maryland College Park, MD 20742 (United States)

2014-03-20

We present results of targeted searches for signatures of non-radial oscillation modes (such as r- and g-modes) in neutron stars using RXTE data from several accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars (AMXPs). We search for potentially coherent signals in the neutron star rest frame by first removing the phase delays associated with the star's binary motion and computing fast Fourier transform power spectra of continuous light curves with up to 2{sup 30} time bins. We search a range of frequencies in which both r- and g-modes are theoretically expected to reside. Using data from the discovery outburst of the 435 Hz pulsar XTE J1751–305 we find a single candidate, coherent oscillation with a frequency of 0.5727597 × ν{sub spin} = 249.332609 Hz, and a fractional Fourier amplitude of 7.46 × 10{sup –4}. We estimate the significance of this feature at the 1.6 × 10{sup –3} level, slightly better than a 3σ detection. Based on the observed frequency we argue that possible mode identifications include rotationally modified g-modes associated with either a helium-rich surface layer or a density discontinuity due to electron captures on hydrogen in the accreted ocean. In the latter case the presence of sufficient hydrogen in this ultracompact system with a likely helium-rich donor would present an interesting puzzle. Alternatively, the frequency could be identified with that of an inertial mode or a core r-mode modified by the presence of a solid crust; however, the r-mode amplitude required to account for the observed modulation amplitude would induce a large spin-down rate inconsistent with the observed pulse timing measurements. For the AMXPs XTE J1814–338 and NGC 6440 X–2 we do not find any candidate oscillation signals, and we place upper limits on the fractional Fourier amplitude of any coherent oscillations in our frequency search range of 7.8 × 10{sup –4} and 5.6 × 10{sup –3}, respectively. We briefly discuss the prospects and sensitivity for

An Accretion Model for Anomalous X-Ray Pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Chatterjee, Pinaki; Hernquist, Lars; Narayan, Ramesh

2000-05-01

We present a model for the anomalous X-ray pulsars (AXPs) in which the emission is powered by accretion from a fossil disk, established from matter falling back onto the neutron star following its birth. The time-dependent accretion drives the neutron star toward a ``tracking'' solution in which the rotation period of the star increases slowly, in tandem with the declining accretion rate. For appropriate choices of disk mass, neutron star magnetic field strength, and initial spin period, we demonstrate that a rapidly rotating neutron star can be spun down to periods characteristic of AXPs on timescales comparable to the estimated ages of these sources. In other cases, accretion onto the neutron star switches off after a short time and the star becomes an ordinary radio pulsar. Thus, in our picture, radio pulsars and AXPs are drawn from the same underlying population, in contrast to the situation in models involving neutron stars with ultrastrong magnetic fields, which require a new population of stars with very different properties.

Theoretical modeling of Comptonized X-ray spectra of super-Eddington accretion flow: Origin of hard excess in ultraluminous X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Kitaki, Takaaki; Mineshige, Shin; Ohsuga, Ken; Kawashima, Tomohisa

2017-12-01

X-ray continuum spectra of super-Eddington accretion flow are studied by means of Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations based on the radiation hydrodynamic simulation data, in which both thermal- and bulk-Compton scatterings are taken into account. We compare the calculated spectra of accretion flow around black holes with masses of MBH = 10, 102, 103, and 104 M⊙ for a fixed mass injection rate (from the computational boundary at 103 rs) of 103 LEdd/c2 (with rs, LEdd, and c being the Schwarzschild radius, the Eddington luminosity, and the speed of light, respectively). The soft X-ray spectra exhibit mass dependence in accordance with the standard-disk relation; the maximum surface temperature is scaled as T ∝ M_{ BH}^{ -1/4}. The spectra in the hard X-ray band, by contrast with soft X-ray, look to be quite similar among different models, if we normalize the radiation luminosity by MBH. This reflects that the hard component is created by thermal- and bulk-Compton scatterings of soft photons originating from an accretion flow in the overheated and/or funnel regions, the temperatures of which have no dependence on mass. The hard X-ray spectra can be reproduced by a Wien spectrum with the temperature of T ˜ 3 keV accompanied by a hard excess at photon energy above several keV. The excess spectrum can be fitted well with a power law with a photon index of Γ ˜ 3. This feature is in good agreement with that of the recent NuSTAR observations of ULXs (ultra-luminous X-ray sources).

Applying a physical continuum model to describe the broadband X-ray spectra of accreting pulsars at high luminosity

Science.gov (United States)

Pottschmidt, Katja; Hemphill, Paul B.; Wolff, Michael T.; Cheatham, Diana M.; Iwakiri, Wataru; Gottlieb, Amy M.; Falkner, Sebastian; Ballhausen, Ralf; Fuerst, Felix; Kuehnel, Matthias; Ferrigno, Carlo; Becker, Peter A.; Wood, Kent S.; Wilms, Joern

2018-01-01

A new window for better understanding the accretion onto strongly magnetized neutron stars in X-ray binaries is opening. In these systems the accreted material follows the magnetic field lines as it approaches the neutron star, forming accretion columns above the magnetic poles. The plasma falls toward the neutron star surface at near-relativistic speeds, losing energy by emitting X-rays. The X-ray spectral continua are commonly described using phenomenological models, i.e., power laws with different types of curved cut-offs at higher energies. Here we consider high luminosity pulsars. In these systems the mass transfer rate is high enough that the accreting plasma is thought to be decelerated in a radiation-dominated radiative shock in the accretion columns. While the theory of the emission from such shocks had already been developed by 2007, a model for direct comparison with X-ray continuum spectra in xspec or isis has only recently become available. Characteristic parameters of this model are the accretion column radius and the plasma temperature, among others. Here we analyze the broadband X-ray spectra of the accreting pulsars Centaurus X-3 and 4U 1626-67 obtained with NuSTAR. We present results from traditional empirical modeling as well as successfully apply the radiation-dominated radiative shock model. We also take the opportunity to compare to similar recent analyses of both sources using these and other observations.

Spin-down of radio millisecond pulsars at genesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tauris, Thomas M

2012-02-03

Millisecond pulsars are old neutron stars that have been spun up to high rotational frequencies via accretion of mass from a binary companion star. An important issue for understanding the physics of the early spin evolution of millisecond pulsars is the impact of the expanding magnetosphere during the terminal stages of the mass-transfer process. Here, I report binary stellar evolution calculations that show that the braking torque acting on a neutron star, when the companion star decouples from its Roche lobe, is able to dissipate >50% of the rotational energy of the pulsar. This effect may explain the apparent difference in observed spin distributions between x-ray and radio millisecond pulsars and help account for the noticeable age discrepancy with their young white dwarf companions.

The peculiar galactic center neutron star X-ray binary XMM J174457-2850.3

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Degenaar, N.; Reynolds, M. T.; Miller, J. M. [Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 500 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States); Wijnands, R. [Anton Pannekoek Institute of Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam (Netherlands); Altamirano, D. [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom); Kennea, J. [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, 525 Davey Lab, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Gehrels, N. [Astrophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Haggard, D. [CIERA, Physics and Astronomy Department, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208 (United States); Ponti, G., E-mail: degenaar@umich.edu [Max Planck Institute fur Extraterrestriche Physik, D-85748 Garching (Germany)

2014-09-10

The recent discovery of a millisecond radio pulsar experiencing an accretion outburst similar to those seen in low mass X-ray binaries, has opened up a new opportunity to investigate the evolutionary link between these two different neutron star manifestations. The remarkable X-ray variability and hard X-ray spectrum of this object can potentially serve as a template to search for other X-ray binary/radio pulsar transitional objects. Here we demonstrate that the transient X-ray source XMM J174457-2850.3 near the Galactic center displays similar X-ray properties. We report on the detection of an energetic thermonuclear burst with an estimated duration of ≅2 hr and a radiated energy output of ≅ 5 × 10{sup 40} erg, which unambiguously demonstrates that the source harbors an accreting neutron star. It has a quiescent X-ray luminosity of L {sub X} ≅ 5 × 10{sup 32}(D/6.5 kpc){sup 2} erg s{sup –1} and exhibits occasional accretion outbursts during which it brightens to L {sub X} ≅ 10{sup 35}-10{sup 36}(D/6.5 kpc){sup 2} erg s{sup –1} for a few weeks (2-10 keV). However, the source often lingers in between outburst and quiescence at L {sub X} ≅ 10{sup 33}-10{sup 34}(D/6.5 kpc){sup 2} erg s{sup –1}. This peculiar X-ray flux behavior and its relatively hard X-ray spectrum, a power law with an index of Γ ≅ 1.4, could possibly be explained in terms of the interaction between the accretion flow and the magnetic field of the neutron star.

Radio Pulse Search and X-Ray Monitoring of SAX J1808.4−3658: What Causes Its Orbital Evolution?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Patruno, Alessandro; King, Andrew R. [Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Neils Bohrweg 2, 2333 CA, Leiden (Netherlands); Jaodand, Amruta; Hessels, Jason W. T. [ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7900 AA, Dwingeloo (Netherlands); Kuiper, Lucien [SRON-National Institute for Space Research, Sorbonnelaan 2, NL-3584 CA, Utrecht (Netherlands); Bult, Peter; Wijnands, Rudy; Van der Klis, Michiel [Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Knigge, Christian [University of Southampton, School of Physics and Astronomy, Southampton SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom)

2017-06-01

The accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SAX J1808.4−3658 shows a peculiar orbital evolution that proceeds at a very fast pace. It is important to identify the underlying mechanism responsible for this behavior because it can help to understand how this system evolves and which physical processes (such as mass loss or spin–orbit coupling) are occurring in the binary. It has also been suggested that, when in quiescence, SAX J1808.4−3658 turns on as a radio pulsar, a circumstance that might provide a link between accreting millisecond pulsars and black-widow (BW) radio pulsars. In this work, we report the results of a deep radio pulsation search at 2 GHz using the Green Bank Telescope in 2014 August and an X-ray study of the 2015 outburst with Chandra , Swift XRT, and INTEGRAL . In quiescence, we detect no radio pulsations and place the strongest limit to date on the pulsed radio flux density of any accreting millisecond pulsar. We also find that the orbit of SAX J1808.4−3658 continues evolving at a fast pace. We compare the orbital evolution of SAX J1808.4−3658 to that of several other accreting and nonaccreting binaries, including BWs, redbacks, cataclysmic variables, black holes, and neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries. We discuss two possible scenarios: either the neutron star has a large moment of inertia and is ablating the donor, generating mass loss with an efficiency of 40%, or the donor star has a strong magnetic field of at least 1 kG and is undergoing quasi-cyclic variations due to spin–orbit coupling.

Sub-millisecond time-resolved SAXS using a continuous-flow mixer and X-ray microbeam.

Science.gov (United States)

Graceffa, Rita; Nobrega, R Paul; Barrea, Raul A; Kathuria, Sagar V; Chakravarthy, Srinivas; Bilsel, Osman; Irving, Thomas C

2013-11-01

Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is a well established technique to probe the nanoscale structure and interactions in soft matter. It allows one to study the structure of native particles in near physiological environments and to analyze structural changes in response to variations in external conditions. The combination of microfluidics and SAXS provides a powerful tool to investigate dynamic processes on a molecular level with sub-millisecond time resolution. Reaction kinetics in the sub-millisecond time range has been achieved using continuous-flow mixers manufactured using micromachining techniques. The time resolution of these devices has previously been limited, in part, by the X-ray beam sizes delivered by typical SAXS beamlines. These limitations can be overcome using optics to focus X-rays to the micrometer size range providing that beam divergence and photon flux suitable for performing SAXS experiments can be maintained. Such micro-SAXS in combination with microfluidic devices would be an attractive probe for time-resolved studies. Here, the development of a high-duty-cycle scanning microsecond-time-resolution SAXS capability, built around the Kirkpatrick-Baez mirror-based microbeam system at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team (BioCAT) beamline 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, is reported. A detailed description of the microbeam small-angle-scattering instrument, the turbulent flow mixer, as well as the data acquisition and control and analysis software is provided. Results are presented where this apparatus was used to study the folding of cytochrome c. Future prospects for this technique are discussed.

The Cosmic History of Black Hole Accretion from Chandra X-ray Stacking

Science.gov (United States)

Treister, Ezequiel; Urry, C.; Schawinski, K.; Lee, N.; Natarajan, P.; Volonteri, M.; Sanders, D. B.

2012-05-01

In order to fully understand galaxy formation we need to know when in the cosmic history are black holes growing more intensively, in what type of galaxies this growth is happening and what fraction of these sources are invisible at most wavelengths due to obscuration. We take advantage of the rich multi-wavelength data available in the Chandra Deep Field South (CDF-S), including the 4 Msec Chandra observations (the deepest X-ray data to date), in order to measure the amount of black hole accretion as a function of cosmic history, from z 0 to z 6. We obtain stacked rest-frame X-ray spectra for samples of galaxies binned in terms of their IR luminosity, stellar mass and other galaxy properties. We find that the AGN fraction and their typical luminosities, and thus black hole accretion rates, increase with IR luminosity and stellar mass. The integrated intensity at high energies indicates that a significant fraction of the total black hole growth, 22%, occurs in heavily-obscured systems that are not individually detected in even the deepest X-ray observations. We find evidence for a strong connection between significant black hole growth events and major galaxy mergers from z 0 to z 3, while less spectacular but longer accretion episodes are most likely due to other (stochastic) processes. E.T. and K.S. gratefully acknowledges the support provided by NASA through Chandra Postdoctoral Fellowship Award Numbers PF8-90055 and PF9-00069, respectively issued by the Chandra X-ray Observatory Center. E.T. also thanks support by NASA through Chandra Award SP1-12005X Center of Excellence in Astrophysics and Associated Technologies (PFB 06). C. M. Urry acknowledges support from NSF Grants AST-0407295, AST-0449678, AST-0807570, and Yale University.

X-Ray Spectra from MHD Simulations of Accreting Black Holes

Science.gov (United States)

Schnittman, Jeremy D.; Krolik, Julian H.; Noble, Scott C.

2012-01-01

We present the results of a new global radiation transport code coupled to a general relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic simulation of an accreting, nonrotating black hole. For the first time, we are able to explain from first principles in a self-consistent way the X-ray spectra observed from stellar-mass black holes, including a thermal peak, Compton reflection hump, power-law tail, and broad iron line. Varying only the mass accretion rate, we are able to reproduce the low/hard, steep power-law, and thermal-dominant states seen in most galactic black hole sources. The temperature in the corona is T(sub e) 10 keV in a boundary layer near the disk and rises smoothly to T(sub e) greater than or approximately 100 keV in low-density regions far above the disk. Even as the disk's reflection edge varies from the horizon out to approximately equal to 6M as the accretion rate decreases, we find that the shape of the Fe Ka line is remarkably constant. This is because photons emitted from the plunging region are strongly beamed into the horizon and never reach the observer. We have also carried out a basic timing analysis of the spectra and find that the fractional variability increases with photon energy and viewer inclination angle, consistent with the coronal hot spot model for X-ray fluctuations.

Accretion by rotating magnetic neutron stars. III. Accretion torques and period changes in pulsating X-ray sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, P.; Lamb, F.K.

1979-01-01

We use the solutions of the two-dimensional hydromagnetic equations obtained previously to calculate the torque on a magnetic neutron star accreting from a Keplerian disk. We find that the magnetic coupling between the star and the plasma outside the inner edge of the disk is appreciable. As a result of this coupling the spin-up torque on fast rotators is substantially less than that on slow rotators; for sufficiently high stellar angular velocities or sufficiently low accretion rates this coupling dominates that de to the plasma and the magnetic field at the inner edge of the disk, braking the star's rotation even while accretion, and hence X-ray emission, continues.We apply these results to pulsating X-ray sources, and show that the observed secular spin-up rates of all the sources in which this rate has been measured can be accounted for quantitatively if one assumes that these sources are accreting from Keplerian disks and have magnetic moments approx.10 29 --10 32 gauss cm 3 . The reduction of the torque on fast rotators provides a natural explanation of the spin-up rate of Her X-1, which is much below that expected for slow rotators. We show further that a simple relation between the secular spin-up rate : P and the quantity PL/sup 3/7/ adequately represents almost all the observational data, P and L being the pulse period and the luminosity of the source, respectively. This ''universal'' relation enables one to estimate any one of the parameters P, P, and L for a given source if the other two are known. We show that the short-term period fluctuations observed in Her X-1, Cen X-3, Vela X-1, and X Per can be accounted for quite naturally as consequences of torque variations caused by fluctuations in the mass transfer rate. We also indicate how the spin-down torque at low luminosities found here may account for the paradoxical existence of a large number of long-period sources with short spin-up time scales

X-ray luminosity by matter accretion on a neutron star

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baroni, L [Bologna Univ. (Italy). Ist. di Fisica; Fortini, P L [Instituto di Astronomia, Bologna (Italy); Gualdi, C; Callegari, G [Ferrara Univ. (Italy). Ist. di Fisica

1980-11-20

When the accretion rate on a non magnetic neutron star is determined by stellar wind and not by overflowing the Roche lobe, it is shown that X-ray luminosity cannot exceed 10sup(36)-10sup(37) erg/sec. This very low limit is essentially set by radiation pressure which causes an effective braking on the falling matter.

DISCOVERY OF PSR J1227−4853: A TRANSITION FROM A LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY TO A REDBACK MILLISECOND PULSAR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roy, Jayanta; Bhattacharyya, Bhaswati; Stappers, Ben [Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, M13 9PL (United Kingdom); Ray, Paul S.; Wolff, Michael; Wood, Kent S. [Space Science Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375-5352 (United States); Chengalur, Jayaram N. [National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Pune 411 007 (India); Deneva, Julia [NRC Research Associate, resident at Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375-5352 (United States); Camilo, Fernando [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States); Johnson, Tyrel J. [College of Science, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA, resident at Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375 (United States); Hessels, Jason W. T.; Bassa, Cees G. [ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA, Dwingeloo (Netherlands); Keane, Evan F. [Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Swinburne University of Technology, Mail H30, P.O. Box 218, VIC 3122 (Australia); Ferrara, Elizabeth C.; Harding, Alice K. [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

2015-02-10

XSS J12270−4859 is an X-ray binary associated with the Fermi Large Area Telescope gamma-ray source 1FGL J1227.9−4852. In 2012 December, this source underwent a transition where the X-ray and optical luminosity dropped and the spectral signatures of an accretion disk disappeared. We report the discovery of a 1.69 millisecond pulsar (MSP), PSR J1227−4853, at a dispersion measure of 43.4 pc cm{sup −3} associated with this source, using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) at 607 MHz. This demonstrates that, post-transition, the system hosts an active radio MSP. This is the third system after PSR J1023+0038 and PSR J1824−2452I showing evidence of state switching between radio MSP and low-mass X-ray binary states. We report timing observations of PSR J1227−4853 with the GMRT and Parkes, which give a precise determination of the rotational and orbital parameters of the system. The companion mass measurement of 0.17–0.46 M{sub ⊙} suggests that this is a redback system. PSR J1227−4853 is eclipsed for about 40% of its orbit at 607 MHz with additional short-duration eclipses at all orbital phases. We also find that the pulsar is very energetic, with a spin-down luminosity of ∼10{sup 35} erg s{sup −1}. We report simultaneous imaging and timing observations with the GMRT, which suggests that eclipses are caused by absorption rather than dispersion smearing or scattering.

A New Two-fluid Radiation-hydrodynamical Model for X-Ray Pulsar Accretion Columns

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

West, Brent F. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD (United States); Wolfram, Kenneth D. [Naval Research Laboratory (retired), Washington, DC (United States); Becker, Peter A., E-mail: bwest@usna.edu, E-mail: kswolfram@gmail.com, E-mail: pbecker@gmu.edu [Department of Physics and Astronomy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA USA (United States)

2017-02-01

Previous research centered on the hydrodynamics in X-ray pulsar accretion columns has largely focused on the single-fluid model, in which the super-Eddington luminosity inside the column decelerates the flow to rest at the stellar surface. This type of model has been relatively successful in describing the overall properties of the accretion flows, but it does not account for the possible dynamical effect of the gas pressure. On the other hand, the most successful radiative transport models for pulsars generally do not include a rigorous treatment of the dynamical structure of the column, instead assuming an ad hoc velocity profile. In this paper, we explore the structure of X-ray pulsar accretion columns using a new, self-consistent, “two-fluid” model, which incorporates the dynamical effect of the gas and radiation pressures, the dipole variation of the magnetic field, the thermodynamic effect of all of the relevant coupling and cooling processes, and a rigorous set of physical boundary conditions. The model has six free parameters, which we vary in order to approximately fit the phase-averaged spectra in Her X-1, Cen X-3, and LMC X-4. In this paper, we focus on the dynamical results, which shed new light on the surface magnetic field strength, the inclination of the magnetic field axis relative to the rotation axis, the relative importance of gas and radiation pressures, and the radial variation of the ion, electron, and inverse-Compton temperatures. The results obtained for the X-ray spectra are presented in a separate paper.

Motion of the hot spot and spin torque in accreting millisecond pulsars

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Patruno, A.

2008-01-01

The primary concern of this contribution is that accreting millisecond pulsars (AMXPs) show a much larger amount of information than is commonly believed. The three questions to be addressed are: 1. Is the apparent spin torque observed in AMXPs real ? 2. Why do we see correlations and

X-RAY REFLECTED SPECTRA FROM ACCRETION DISK MODELS. I. CONSTANT DENSITY ATMOSPHERES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia, J.; Kallman, T. R.

2010-01-01

We present new models for illuminated accretion disks, their structure, and reprocessed emission. We consider the effects of incident X-rays on the surface of an accretion disk by simultaneously solving the equations of radiative transfer, energy balance, and ionization equilibrium over a large range of column densities. We assume plane-parallel geometry and azimuthal symmetry, such that each calculation corresponds to a ring at a given distance from the central object. Our models include recent and complete atomic data for K-shell processes of the iron and oxygen isonuclear sequences. We examine the effect on the spectrum of fluorescent Kα line emission and absorption in the emitted spectrum. We also explore the dependence of the spectrum on the strength of the incident X-rays and other input parameters, and discuss the importance of Comptonization on the emitted spectrum.

Steep Hard-X-ray Spectra Indicate Extremely High Accretion Rates in Weak Emission-Line Quasars

Science.gov (United States)

Marlar, Andrea; Shemmer, Ohad; Anderson, Scott F.; Brandt, W. Niel; Diamond-Stanic, Aleksandar M.; Fan, Xiaohui; Luo, Bin; Plotkin, Richard; Richards, Gordon T.; Schneider, Donald P.; Wu, Jianfeng

2018-06-01

We present XMM-Newton imaging spectroscopy of ten weak emission-line quasars (WLQs) at 0.928 ≤ z ≤ 3.767, six of which are radio quiet and four which are radio intermediate. The new X-ray data enabled us to measure the hard-X-ray power-law photon index (Γ) in each source with relatively high accuracy. These measurements allowed us to confirm previous reports that WLQs have steeper X-ray spectra, therefore indicating higher accretion rates with respect to "typical" quasars. A comparison between the Γ values of our radio-quiet WLQs and those of a carefully-selected, uniform sample of 84 quasars shows that the first are significantly higher, at the ≥ 3σ level. Collectively, the four radio-intermediate WLQs have lower Γ values with respect to the six radio-quiet WLQs, as may be expected if the spectra of the first group are contaminated by X-ray emission from a jet. These results suggest that, in the absence of significant jet emission along our line of sight, WLQs constitute the extreme high end of the accretion rate distribution in quasars. We detect soft excess emission in our lowest-redshift radio-quiet WLQ, in agreement with previous findings suggesting that the prominence of this feature is associated with a high accretion rate. We have not detected signatures of Compton reflection, Fe Kα lines, or strong variability between two X-ray epochs in any of our WLQs.

TIMING OBSERVATIONS OF PSR J1023+0038 DURING A LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY STATE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jaodand, Amruta; Archibald, Anne M.; Hessels, Jason W. T.; Bassa, Cees; Deller, Adam T. [ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA, Dwingeloo (Netherlands); Bogdanov, Slavko [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, 550 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027 (United States); D’Angelo, Caroline R.; Patruno, Alessandro [Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9513, NL-2300 RA Leiden (Netherlands)

2016-10-20

Transitional millisecond pulsars (tMSPs) switch, on roughly multi-year timescales, between rotation-powered radio millisecond pulsar (RMSP) and accretion-powered low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) states. The tMSPs have raised several questions related to the nature of accretion flow in their LMXB state and the mechanism that causes the state switch. The discovery of coherent X-ray pulsations from PSR J1023+0038 (while in the LMXB state) provides us with the first opportunity to perform timing observations and to compare the neutron star’s spin variation during this state to the measured spin-down in the RMSP state. Whereas the X-ray pulsations in the LMXB state likely indicate that some material is accreting onto the neutron star’s magnetic polar caps, radio continuum observations indicate the presence of an outflow. The fraction of the inflowing material being ejected is not clear, but it may be much larger than that reaching the neutron star’s surface. Timing observations can measure the total torque on the neutron star. We have phase-connected nine XMM-Newton observations of PSR J1023+0038 over the last 2.5 years of the LMXB state to establish a precise measurement of spin evolution. We find that the average spin-down rate as an LMXB is 26.8 ± 0.4% faster than the rate (−2.39 × 10{sup −15} Hz s{sup −1}) determined during the RMSP state. This shows that negative angular momentum contributions (dipolar magnetic braking, and outflow) exceed positive ones (accreted material), and suggests that the pulsar wind continues to operate at a largely unmodified level. We discuss implications of this tight observational constraint in the context of possible accretion models.

The White Dwarf Mass and the Accretion Rate of Recurrent Novae: An X-ray Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Mukai, Koji; Sokoloski, Jennifer L.; Nelson, Thomas; Luna, Gerardo J. M.

2011-01-01

We present recent results of quiescent X-ray observations of recurrent novae (RNe) and related objects. Several RNe are luminous hard X-ray sources in quiescence, consistent with accretion onto a near Chandrasekhar mass white dwarf. Detection of similar hard X-ray emissions in old novae and other cataclysmic variables may lead to identification of additional RN candidates. On the other hand, other RNe are found to be comparatively hard X-ray faint. We present several scenarios that may explain this dichotomy, which should be explored further.

Multi-time-scale X-ray reverberation mapping of accreting black holes

Science.gov (United States)

Mastroserio, Guglielmo; Ingram, Adam; van der Klis, Michiel

2018-04-01

Accreting black holes show characteristic reflection features in their X-ray spectrum, including an iron Kα line, resulting from hard X-ray continuum photons illuminating the accretion disc. The reverberation lag resulting from the path-length difference between direct and reflected emission provides a powerful tool to probe the innermost regions around both stellar-mass and supermassive black holes. Here, we present for the first time a reverberation mapping formalism that enables modelling of energy-dependent time lags and variability amplitude for a wide range of variability time-scales, taking the complete information of the cross-spectrum into account. We use a pivoting power-law model to account for the spectral variability of the continuum that dominates over the reverberation lags for longer time-scale variability. We use an analytic approximation to self-consistently account for the non-linear effects caused by this continuum spectral variability, which have been ignored by all previous reverberation studies. We find that ignoring these non-linear effects can bias measurements of the reverberation lags, particularly at low frequencies. Since our model is analytic, we are able to fit simultaneously for a wide range of Fourier frequencies without prohibitive computational expense. We also introduce a formalism of fitting to real and imaginary parts of our cross-spectrum statistic, which naturally avoids some mistakes/inaccuracies previously common in the literature. We perform proof-of-principle fits to Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer data of Cygnus X-1.

Sub-millisecond time-resolved SAXS using a continuous-flow mixer and X-ray microbeam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Graceffa, Rita; Nobrega, R. Paul; Barrea, Raul A.; Kathuria, Sagar V.; Chakravarthy, Srinivas; Bilsel, Osman; Irving, Thomas C.

2013-01-01

The development of a high-duty-cycle microsecond time-resolution SAXS capability at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team beamline (BioCAT) 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, USA, is reported. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is a well established technique to probe the nanoscale structure and interactions in soft matter. It allows one to study the structure of native particles in near physiological environments and to analyze structural changes in response to variations in external conditions. The combination of microfluidics and SAXS provides a powerful tool to investigate dynamic processes on a molecular level with sub-millisecond time resolution. Reaction kinetics in the sub-millisecond time range has been achieved using continuous-flow mixers manufactured using micromachining techniques. The time resolution of these devices has previously been limited, in part, by the X-ray beam sizes delivered by typical SAXS beamlines. These limitations can be overcome using optics to focus X-rays to the micrometer size range providing that beam divergence and photon flux suitable for performing SAXS experiments can be maintained. Such micro-SAXS in combination with microfluidic devices would be an attractive probe for time-resolved studies. Here, the development of a high-duty-cycle scanning microsecond-time-resolution SAXS capability, built around the Kirkpatrick–Baez mirror-based microbeam system at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team (BioCAT) beamline 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, is reported. A detailed description of the microbeam small-angle-scattering instrument, the turbulent flow mixer, as well as the data acquisition and control and analysis software is provided. Results are presented where this apparatus was used to study the folding of cytochrome c. Future prospects for this technique are discussed

Sub-millisecond time-resolved SAXS using a continuous-flow mixer and X-ray microbeam

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Graceffa, Rita, E-mail: rita.graceffa@gmail.com [Illinois Institute of Technology, 3101 South Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); Nobrega, R. Paul [University of Massachusetts Medical School, 364 Plantation Street, LRB 919, Worcester, MA 01605 (United States); Barrea, Raul A. [Illinois Institute of Technology, 3101 South Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); Kathuria, Sagar V. [University of Massachusetts Medical School, 364 Plantation Street, LRB 919, Worcester, MA 01605 (United States); Chakravarthy, Srinivas [Illinois Institute of Technology, 3101 South Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); Bilsel, Osman [University of Massachusetts Medical School, 364 Plantation Street, LRB 919, Worcester, MA 01605 (United States); Irving, Thomas C. [Illinois Institute of Technology, 3101 South Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States)

2013-11-01

The development of a high-duty-cycle microsecond time-resolution SAXS capability at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team beamline (BioCAT) 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, USA, is reported. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is a well established technique to probe the nanoscale structure and interactions in soft matter. It allows one to study the structure of native particles in near physiological environments and to analyze structural changes in response to variations in external conditions. The combination of microfluidics and SAXS provides a powerful tool to investigate dynamic processes on a molecular level with sub-millisecond time resolution. Reaction kinetics in the sub-millisecond time range has been achieved using continuous-flow mixers manufactured using micromachining techniques. The time resolution of these devices has previously been limited, in part, by the X-ray beam sizes delivered by typical SAXS beamlines. These limitations can be overcome using optics to focus X-rays to the micrometer size range providing that beam divergence and photon flux suitable for performing SAXS experiments can be maintained. Such micro-SAXS in combination with microfluidic devices would be an attractive probe for time-resolved studies. Here, the development of a high-duty-cycle scanning microsecond-time-resolution SAXS capability, built around the Kirkpatrick–Baez mirror-based microbeam system at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team (BioCAT) beamline 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, is reported. A detailed description of the microbeam small-angle-scattering instrument, the turbulent flow mixer, as well as the data acquisition and control and analysis software is provided. Results are presented where this apparatus was used to study the folding of cytochrome c. Future prospects for this technique are discussed.

Accretion of matter onto white dwarfs as a possible x-ray mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DeGregoria, A.J.

1973-01-01

Accretion of matter onto white dwarfs is investigated; to see if x-rays are produced; to see what type of radiation spectrum one gets; to see what type of short term time dependent behavior one gets; and, finally, to see how everything varies as the rate of inflow of matter is varied and as the mass and radius of the white dwarf under consideration are varied. The main approximation used is the assumption of spherical symmetry. The motivation behind the investigation is to see how well one can explain the various x-ray sources known

Stellar X-ray sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Katz, J.I.; Washington Univ., St. Louis, MO

1988-01-01

I Review some of the salient accomplishments of X-rap studies of compact objects. Progress in this field has closely followed the improvement of observational methods, particularly in angular resolution and duration of exposure. Luminous compact X-ray sources are accreting neutron stars or black holes. Accreting neutron stars may have characteristic temporal signatures, but the only way to establish that an X-ray source is a black hole is to measure its mass. A rough phenomenological theory is succesful, but the transport of angular momentum in accretion flows is not onderstood. A number of interesting complications have been observed, including precessing accretion discs, X-ray bursts, and the acceleration of jets in SS433. Many puzzles remain unsolved, including the excitation of disc precession, the nature of the enigmatic A- and gamma-ray source Cyg X-3, the mechanism by which slowly spinning accreting neutron stars lose angular momentum, and the superabundance of X-ray sources in globular clusters. 41 refs.; 5 figs

Where Are the r-modes? Chandra Observations of Millisecond Pulsars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mahmoodifar, Simin; Strohmayer, Tod [Astrophysics Science Division and Joint Space-Science Institute, NASA' s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

2017-05-10

We present the results of Chandra observations of two non-accreting millisecond pulsars, PSRs J1640+2224 (J1640) and J1709+2313 (J1709), with low inferred magnetic fields and spin-down rates in order to constrain their surface temperatures, obtain limits on the amplitude of unstable r -modes in them, and make comparisons with similar limits obtained for a sample of accreting low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) neutron stars. We detect both pulsars in the X-ray band for the first time. They are faint, with inferred soft X-ray fluxes (0.3–3 keV) of ≈6 × 10{sup −15} and 3 × 10{sup −15} erg cm{sup −2} s{sup −1} for J1640 and J1709, respectively. Spectral analysis assuming hydrogen atmosphere emission gives global effective temperature upper limits (90% confidence) of 3.3–4.3 × 10{sup 5} K for J1640 and 3.6–4.7 × 10{sup 5} K for J1709, where the low end of the range corresponds to canonical neutron stars ( M = 1.4 M {sub ⊙}), and the upper end corresponds to higher-mass stars ( M = 2.21 M {sub ⊙}). Under the assumption that r -mode heating provides the thermal support, we obtain dimensionless r -mode amplitude upper limits of 3.2–4.8 × 10{sup −8} and 1.8–2.8 × 10{sup −7} for J1640 and J1709, respectively, where again the low end of the range corresponds to lower-mass, canonical neutron stars ( M = 1.4 M {sub ⊙}). These limits are about an order of magnitude lower than those we derived previously for a sample of LMXBs, except for the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SAX J1808.4–3658, which has a comparable amplitude limit to J1640 and J1709.

RXTE PCA and Swift BAT detects the millisecond pulsar Swift J1756.9-2508 in outburst

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Patruno, A.; Markwardt, C.B.; Strohmayer, T.E.; Swank, J.H.; Smith, S.E.; Pereira, D.

2009-01-01

We report a detection of increased activity of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar Swift J1756.9-2508 observed with the RXTE-PCA monitoring on July 8, 9hr UTC. Increased flux is detected simultaneously on the Swift-BAT camera. RXTE-PCA follow up observations starting on July 13, 23hr UTC,

X-RAY PROPERTIES OF INTERMEDIATE-MASS BLACK HOLES IN ACTIVE GALAXIES. II. X-RAY-BRIGHT ACCRETION AND POSSIBLE EVIDENCE FOR SLIM DISKS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Desroches, Louis-Benoit; Greene, Jenny E.; Ho, Luis C.

2009-01-01

We present X-ray properties of optically selected intermediate-mass (∼10 5 -10 6 M sun ) black holes (BHs) in active galactic nuclei (AGNs), using data from the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. Our observations are a continuation of a pilot study by Greene and Ho. Of the eight objects observed, five are detected with X-ray luminosities in the range L 0.5-2keV = 10 41 -10 43 erg s -1 , consistent with the previously observed sample. Objects with enough counts to extract a spectrum are well fit by an absorbed power law. We continue to find a range of soft photon indices 1 s -Γ s , consistent with previous AGN studies, but generally flatter than other narrow-line Seyfert 1 active nuclei (NLS1s). The soft photon index correlates strongly with X-ray luminosity and Eddington ratio, but does not depend on BH mass. There is no justification for the inclusion of any additional components, such as a soft excess, although this may be a function of the relative inefficiency of detecting counts above 2 keV in these relatively shallow observations. As a whole, the X-ray-to-optical spectral slope α ox is flatter than in more massive systems, even other NLS1s. Only X-ray-selected NLS1s with very high Eddington ratios share a similar α ox . This is suggestive of a physical change in the accretion structure at low masses and at very high accretion rates, possibly due to the onset of slim disks. Although the detailed physical explanation for the X-ray loudness of these intermediate-mass BHs is not certain, it is very striking that targets selected on the basis of optical properties should be so distinctly offset in their broader spectral energy distributions.

Testing the deep-crustal heating model using quiescent neutron-star very-faint X-ray transients and the possibility of partially accreted crusts in accreting neutron stars

Science.gov (United States)

Wijnands, R.; Degenaar, N.; Page, D.

2013-07-01

It is assumed that accreting neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries are heated due to the compression of the existing crust by the freshly accreted matter which gives rise to a variety of nuclear reactions in the crust. It has been shown that most of the energy is released deep in the crust by pycnonuclear reactions involving low-Z elements (the deep-crustal heating scenario). In this paper we discuss if neutron stars in the so-called very-faint X-ray transients (VFXTs; those transients have outburst peak 2-10 keV X-ray luminosities short-term (less than a few tens of thousands of years) and the one throughout their lifetime. The latter is particularly important because it can be so low that the neutron stars might not have accreted enough matter to become massive enough that enhanced core cooling processes become active. Therefore, they could be relatively warm compared to other systems for which such enhanced cooling processes have been inferred. However, the amount of matter can also not be too low because then the crust might not have been replaced significantly by accreted matter and thus a hybrid crust of partly accreted and partly original, albeit further compressed matter, might be present. This would inhibit the full range of pycnonuclear reactions to occur and therefore possibly decrease the amount of heat deposited in the crust. More detailed calculations of the heating and cooling properties of such hybrid crusts have to be performed to be conclusive. Furthermore, better understanding is needed about how a hybrid crust affects other properties such as the thermal conductivity. A potentially interesting way to observe the effects of a hybrid crust on the heating and cooling of an accreting neutron star is to observe the crust cooling of such a neutron star after a prolonged (years to decades) accretion episode and compare the results with similar studies performed for neutron stars with a fully accreted crust. We also show that some individual neutron

Partial Accretion in the Propeller Stage of Low-mass X-Ray Binary Aql X–1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Güngör, C.; Ekşi, K. Y.; Göğüş, E.; Güver, T.

2017-01-01

Aql X–1 is one of the most prolific low-mass X-ray binary transients (LMXBTs) showing outbursts almost annually. We present the results of our spectral analyses of Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer /proportional counter-array observations of the 2000 and 2011 outbursts. We investigate the spectral changes related to the changing disk-magnetosphere interaction modes of Aql X–1. The X-ray light curves of the outbursts of LMXBTs typically show phases of fast rise and exponential decay. The decay phase shows a “knee” where the flux goes from the slow-decay to the rapid-decay stage. We assume that the rapid decay corresponds to a weak propeller stage at which a fraction of the inflowing matter in the disk accretes onto the star. We introduce a novel method for inferring, from the light curve, the fraction of the inflowing matter in the disk that accretes onto the neutron star depending on the fastness parameter. We determine the fastness parameter range within which the transition from the accretion to the partial propeller stage is realized. This fastness parameter range is a measure of the scale height of the disk in units of the inner disk radius. We applied the method to a sample of outbursts of Aql X–1 with different maximum flux and duration times. We show that different outbursts with different maximum luminosity and duration follow a similar path in the parameter space of accreted/inflowing mass flux fraction versus fastness parameter.

Partial Accretion in the Propeller Stage of Low-mass X-Ray Binary Aql X–1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Güngör, C.; Ekşi, K. Y. [İstanbul Technical University, Faculty of Science and Letters, Physics Engineering Department, 34469, İstanbul (Turkey); Göğüş, E. [Sabancı University, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Orhanlı—Tuzla, 34956, İstanbul (Turkey); Güver, T., E-mail: gungorcan@itu.edu.tr [İstanbul University, Science Faculty, Department of Astronomy and Space Sciences, Beyazıt, 34119, İstanbul (Turkey)

2017-10-10

Aql X–1 is one of the most prolific low-mass X-ray binary transients (LMXBTs) showing outbursts almost annually. We present the results of our spectral analyses of Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer /proportional counter-array observations of the 2000 and 2011 outbursts. We investigate the spectral changes related to the changing disk-magnetosphere interaction modes of Aql X–1. The X-ray light curves of the outbursts of LMXBTs typically show phases of fast rise and exponential decay. The decay phase shows a “knee” where the flux goes from the slow-decay to the rapid-decay stage. We assume that the rapid decay corresponds to a weak propeller stage at which a fraction of the inflowing matter in the disk accretes onto the star. We introduce a novel method for inferring, from the light curve, the fraction of the inflowing matter in the disk that accretes onto the neutron star depending on the fastness parameter. We determine the fastness parameter range within which the transition from the accretion to the partial propeller stage is realized. This fastness parameter range is a measure of the scale height of the disk in units of the inner disk radius. We applied the method to a sample of outbursts of Aql X–1 with different maximum flux and duration times. We show that different outbursts with different maximum luminosity and duration follow a similar path in the parameter space of accreted/inflowing mass flux fraction versus fastness parameter.

Discovery of Psr J1227-4853: A Transition from a Low-mass X-Ray Binary to a Redback Millisecond Pulsar

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roy, J.; Ray, P.S.; Bhattacharyya, B.; Stappers, B.; Chengalur, J.N.; Deneva, J.; Camilo, F.; Johnson, T.J.; Wolff, M.; Hessels, J.W.T.; Bassa, C.G.; Keane, E.F.; Ferrara, E.C.; Harding, A.K.; Wood, K.S.

2015-01-01

XSS J12270−4859 is an X-ray binary associated with the Fermi Large Area Telescope gamma-ray source 1FGL J1227.9−4852. In 2012 December, this source underwent a transition where the X-ray and optical luminosity dropped and the spectral signatures of an accretion disk disappeared. We report the

STROBE-X: X-ray Timing & Spectroscopy on Dynamical Timescales from Milliseconds to Years

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson-Hodge, Colleen A.; Ray, P. S.; Maccarone, T; Chakrabarty, D.; Gendreau, K.; Arzoumanian, Z.; Jenke, P.; Ballantyne, D.; Bozzo, E.; Brandt, S.;

GIANT X-RAY BUMP IN GRB 121027A: EVIDENCE FOR FALL-BACK DISK ACCRETION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu Xuefeng [Purple Mountain Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008 (China); Hou Shujin [Department of Astronomy and Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361005 (China); Lei Weihua, E-mail: xfwu@pmo.ac.cn, E-mail: leiwh@hust.edu.cn [School of Physics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074 (China)

2013-04-20

A particularly interesting discovery in observations of GRB 121027A is that of a giant X-ray bump detected by the Swift/X-Ray Telescope. The X-ray afterglow re-brightens sharply at {approx}10{sup 3} s after the trigger by more than two orders of magnitude in less than 200 s. This X-ray bump lasts for more than 10{sup 4} s. It is quite different from typical X-ray flares. In this Letter we propose a fall-back accretion model to interpret this X-ray bump within the context of the collapse of a massive star for a long-duration gamma-ray burst. The required fall-back radius of {approx}3.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 10} cm and mass of {approx}0.9-2.6 M{sub Sun} imply that a significant part of the helium envelope should survive through the mass loss during the last stage of the massive progenitor of GRB 121027A.

Dynamical and Radiative Properties of X-Ray Pulsar Accretion Columns: Phase-averaged Spectra

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

West, Brent F. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD (United States); Wolfram, Kenneth D. [Naval Research Laboratory (retired), Washington, DC (United States); Becker, Peter A., E-mail: bwest@usna.edu, E-mail: kswolfram@gmail.com, E-mail: pbecker@gmu.edu [Department of Physics and Astronomy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA (United States)

2017-02-01

The availability of the unprecedented spectral resolution provided by modern X-ray observatories is opening up new areas for study involving the coupled formation of the continuum emission and the cyclotron absorption features in accretion-powered X-ray pulsar spectra. Previous research focusing on the dynamics and the associated formation of the observed spectra has largely been confined to the single-fluid model, in which the super-Eddington luminosity inside the column decelerates the flow to rest at the stellar surface, while the dynamical effect of gas pressure is ignored. In a companion paper, we have presented a detailed analysis of the hydrodynamic and thermodynamic structure of the accretion column obtained using a new self-consistent model that includes the effects of both gas and radiation pressures. In this paper, we explore the formation of the associated X-ray spectra using a rigorous photon transport equation that is consistent with the hydrodynamic and thermodynamic structure of the column. We use the new model to obtain phase-averaged spectra and partially occulted spectra for Her X-1, Cen X-3, and LMC X-4. We also use the new model to constrain the emission geometry, and compare the resulting parameters with those obtained using previously published models. Our model sheds new light on the structure of the column, the relationship between the ionized gas and the photons, the competition between diffusive and advective transport, and the magnitude of the energy-averaged cyclotron scattering cross-section.

Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

2010-02-01

We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being lesssim0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed.

Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli, E-mail: doron.kushnir@weizmann.ac.il, E-mail: eli.waxman@weizmann.ac.il [Physics Faculty, Weizmann Institute of Science, PO Box 26, Rehovot (Israel)

2010-02-01

We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being ∼<0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed.

Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

2010-01-01

We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being ∼<0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed

Contrasting Behaviour from Two Be/X-ray Binary Pulsars: Insights into Differing Neutron Star Accretion Modes

Science.gov (United States)

Townsend, L. J.; Drave, S. P.; Hill, A. B.; Coe, M. J.; Corbet, R. H. D.; Bird, A. J.

2013-01-01

In this paper we present the identification of two periodic X-ray signals coming from the direction of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). On detection with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE), the 175.4 s and 85.4 s pulsations were considered to originate from new Be/X-ray binary (BeXRB) pulsars with unknown locations. Using rapid follow-up INTEGRAL and XMM-Newton observations, we show the first pulsar (designated SXP175) to be coincident with a candidate high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) in the northern bar region of the SMC undergoing a small Type II outburst. The orbital period (87d) and spectral class (B0-B0.5IIIe) of this system are determined and presented here for the first time. The second pulsar is shown not to be new at all, but is consistent with being SXP91.1 - a pulsar discovered at the very beginning of the 13 year long RXTE key monitoring programme of the SMC. Whilst it is theoretically possible for accreting neutron stars to change spin period so dramatically over such a short time, the X-ray and optical data available for this source suggest this spin-up is continuous during long phases of X-ray quiescence, where accretion driven spin-up of the neutron star should be minimal.

Accretion flow diagnostics with X-ray spectral timing: the hard state of SWIFT J1753.5-0127

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cassatella, P.; Uttley, P.; Maccarone, T.

2012-01-01

Recent XMM-Newton studies of X-ray variability in the hard states of black hole X-ray binaries (BHXRBs) indicate that the variability is generated in the ‘standard’ optically thick accretion disc that is responsible for the multi-colour blackbody emission. The variability originates in the disc as

Searching for X-ray Pulsations from Neutron Stars Using NICER

Science.gov (United States)

Ray, Paul S.; Arzoumanian, Zaven; Gendreau, Keith C.; Bogdanov, Slavko; Bult, Peter; Chakrabarty, Deepto; Chakrabarty, Deepto; Guillot, Sebastien; Harding, Alice; Ho, Wynn C. G.; Lamb, Frederick; Mahmoodifar, Simin; Miller, Cole; Strohmayer, Tod; Wilson-Hodge, Colleen; Wolff, Michael T.; NICER Science Team Working Group on Pulsation Searches and Multiwavelength Coordination

2018-01-01

The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) presents an exciting new capability for discovering new modulation properties of X-ray emitting neutron stars, including large area, low background, extremely precise absolute time stamps, superb low-energy response and flexible scheduling. The Pulsation Searches and Multiwavelength Coordination working group has designed a 2.5 Ms observing program to search for pulsations and characterize the modulation properties of about 30 known or suspected neutron star sources across a number of source categories. A key early goal will be to search for pulsations from millisecond pulsars that might exhibit thermal pulsations from the surface suitable for pulse profile modeling to constrain the neutron star equation of state. In addition, we will search for pulsations from transitional millisecond pulsars, isolated neutron stars, LMXBs, accretion-powered millisecond pulsars, central compact objects and other sources. We present our science plan and initial results from the first months of the NICER mission.

Role of local absorption on the X-ray emission from MHD accretion shocks in classical T Tauri stars

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bonito

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Accretion processes onto classical T Tauri stars (CTTSs are believed to generate shocks at the stellar surface due to the impact of supersonic downflowing plasma. Although current models of accretion streams provide a plausible global picture of this process, several aspects are still unclear. For example, the observed X-ray luminosity in accretion shocks is, in general, well below the predicted value. A possible explanation discussed in the literature is in terms of significant absorption of the emission due to the thick surrounding medium. Here we consider a 2D MHD model describing an accretion stream propagating through the atmosphere of a CTTS and impacting onto its chromosphere. The model includes all the relevant physics, namely the gravity, the thermal conduction, and the radiative cooling, and a realistic description of the unperturbed stellar atmosphere (from the chromosphere to the corona. From the model results, we synthesize the X-ray emission emerging from the hot slab produced by the accretion shock, exploring different configurations and strengths of the stellar magnetic field. The synthesis includes the local absorption by the thick surrounding medium and the Doppler shift of lines due to the component of plasma velocity along the line-of-sight. We explore the effects of absorption on the emerging X-ray spectrum, considering different inclinations of the accretion stream with respect to the observer. Finally we compare our results with the observations.

Symbiotic Stars in X-rays

Science.gov (United States)

Luna, G. J. M.; Sokoloski, J. L.; Mukai, K.; Nelson, T.

2014-01-01

Until recently, symbiotic binary systems in which a white dwarf accretes from a red giant were thought to be mainly a soft X-ray population. Here we describe the detection with the X-ray Telescope (XRT) on the Swift satellite of 9 white dwarf symbiotics that were not previously known to be X-ray sources and one that was previously detected as a supersoft X-ray source. The 9 new X-ray detections were the result of a survey of 41 symbiotic stars, and they increase the number of symbiotic stars known to be X-ray sources by approximately 30%. Swift/XRT detected all of the new X-ray sources at energies greater than 2 keV. Their X-ray spectra are consistent with thermal emission and fall naturally into three distinct groups. The first group contains those sources with a single, highly absorbed hard component, which we identify as probably coming from an accretion-disk boundary layer. The second group is composed of those sources with a single, soft X-ray spectral component, which likely arises in a region where low-velocity shocks produce X-ray emission, i.e. a colliding-wind region. The third group consists of those sources with both hard and soft X-ray spectral components. We also find that unlike in the optical, where rapid, stochastic brightness variations from the accretion disk typically are not seen, detectable UV flickering is a common property of symbiotic stars. Supporting our physical interpretation of the two X-ray spectral components, simultaneous Swift UV photometry shows that symbiotic stars with harder X-ray emission tend to have stronger UV flickering, which is usually associated with accretion through a disk. To place these new observations in the context of previous work on X-ray emission from symbiotic stars, we modified and extended the alpha/beta/gamma classification scheme for symbiotic-star X-ray spectra that was introduced by Muerset et al. based upon observations with the ROSAT satellite, to include a new sigma classification for sources with

The accretion-heated crust of the transiently accreting 11-Hz X-ray pulsar in the globular cluster Terzan 5

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Degenaar, N.; Wijnands, R.

2011-01-01

We report on a Chandra Director’s Discretionary Time observation of the globular cluster Terzan 5, carried out ∼7 weeks after the cessation of the 2010 outburst of the newly discovered transiently accreting 11-Hz X-ray pulsar. We detect a thermal spectrum that can be fitted with a neutron star

Different X-ray spectral evolution for black hole X-ray binaries in dual tracks of radio-X-ray correlation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Xiao-Feng; Wu, Qingwen; Dong, Ai-Jun

2014-01-01

Recently, an 'outlier' track of radio-X-ray correlation was found, which is much steeper than the former universal correlation, where dual tracks were speculated to be triggered by different accretion processes. In this work, we test this issue by exploring hard X-ray spectral evolution in four black-hole X-ray binaries with multiple, quasi-simultaneous radio and X-ray observations. First, we find that hard X-ray photon indices, Γ, are negatively and positively correlated with X-ray fluxes when the X-ray flux, F 3-9 keV , is below and above a critical flux, F X, crit , which are consistent with predictions of the advection-dominated accretion flow and the disk-corona model, respectively. Second, and most importantly, we find that the radio-X-ray correlations are also clearly different when the X-ray fluxes are higher and lower than the critical flux as defined by X-ray spectral evolution. The data points with F 3-9 keV ≳ F X, crit have a steeper radio-X-ray correlation (F X ∝F R b and b ∼ 1.1-1.4), which roughly forms the ''outlier'' track. However, the data points with anti-correlation of Γ – F 3-9 keV either stay in the universal track with b ∼ 0.61 or stay in the transition track (from the universal to 'outlier' tracks or vice versa). Therefore, our results support that the universal and ''outlier'' tracks of radio-X-ray correlations are regulated by radiatively inefficient and radiatively efficient accretion model, respectively.

Quasi-periodic oscillations and noise in low-mass X-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van der Klis, M.

1989-01-01

The phenomenology of quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) and noise in low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) is discussed. Signal analysis aspects of QPO and noise are addressed along with the relationship between LMXBs and millisecond radio pulsars. The history and prehistory of QPOs and noise in LMXBs are examined. Universal noise components and normal and flaring branch QPOs in Z sources are described and the phenomenology of Z sources is discussed. Bright LMXBs known as atoll sources are considered, as are nonpersistently bright LMXBs accreting pulsars and black hole candidates. 162 refs

DISCOVERY OF AN ULTRACOMPACT GAMMA-RAY MILLISECOND PULSAR BINARY CANDIDATE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kong, Albert K. H.; Jin, Ruolan; Yen, T.-C.; Tam, P. H. T.; Lin, L. C. C. [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan (China); Hu, C.-P. [Graduate Institute of Astronomy, National Central University, Jhongli 32001, Taiwan (China); Hui, C. Y.; Park, S. M. [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Takata, J.; Cheng, K. S. [Department of Physics, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road (Hong Kong); Kim, C. L., E-mail: akong@phys.nthu.edu.tw [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-20

We report multi-wavelength observations of the unidentified Fermi object 2FGL J1653.6-0159. With the help of high-resolution X-ray observations, we have identified an X-ray and optical counterpart to 2FGL J1653.6-0159. The source exhibits a periodic modulation of 75 minutes in the optical and possibly also in the X-ray. We suggest that 2FGL J1653.6-0159 is a compact binary system with an orbital period of 75 minutes. Combining the gamma-ray and X-ray properties, 2FGL J1653.6-0159 is potentially a black-widow-/redback-type gamma-ray millisecond pulsar (MSP). The optical and X-ray light curve profiles show that the companion is mildly heated by the high-energy emission and that the X-rays are from intrabinary shock. Although no radio pulsation has yet been detected, we estimated that the spin period of the MSP is ∼ 2 ms based on a theoretical model. If pulsation can be confirmed in the future, 2FGL J1653.6-0159 will become the first ultracompact rotation-powered MSP.

MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ACCRETION DISK WINDS AS X-RAY ABSORBERS IN ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukumura, Keigo; Kazanas, Demosthenes; Behar, Ehud; Contopoulos, Ioannis

2010-01-01

We present the two-dimensional ionization structure of self-similar magnetohydrodynamic winds off accretion disks around and irradiated by a central X-ray point source. On the basis of earlier observational clues and theoretical arguments, we focus our attention on a subset of these winds, namely those with radial density dependence n(r) ∝ 1/r (r is the spherical radial coordinate). We employ the photoionization code XSTAR to compute the ionic abundances of a large number of ions of different elements and then compile their line-of-sight (LOS) absorption columns. We focus our attention on the distribution of the column density of the various ions as a function of the ionization parameter ξ (or equivalently r) and the angle θ. Particular attention is paid to the absorption measure distribution (AMD), namely their hydrogen-equivalent column per logarithmic ξ interval, dN H /dlog ξ, which provides a measure of the winds' radial density profiles. For the chosen density profile n(r) ∝ 1/r, the AMD is found to be independent of ξ, in good agreement with its behavior inferred from the X-ray spectra of several active galactic nuclei (AGNs). For the specific wind structure and X-ray spectrum, we also compute detailed absorption line profiles for a number of ions to obtain their LOS velocities, v ∼ 100-300 km s -1 (at log ξ ∼ 2-3) for Fe XVII and v ∼ 1000-4000 km s -1 (at log ξ ∼ 4-5) for Fe XXV, in good agreement with the observation. Our models describe the X-ray absorption properties of these winds with only two parameters, namely the mass-accretion rate m-dot and the LOS angle θ. The probability of obscuration of the X-ray ionizing source in these winds decreases with increasing m-dot and increases steeply with the LOS inclination angle θ. As such, we concur with previous authors that these wind configurations, viewed globally, incorporate all the requisite properties of the parsec scale 'torii' invoked in AGN unification schemes. We indicate that a

Testing the deep-crustal heating model using quiescent neutron-star very-faint X-ray transients and the possibility of partially accreted crusts in accreting neutron stars

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wijnands, R.; Degenaar, N.; Page, D.

2013-01-01

It is assumed that accreting neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries are heated due to the compression of the existing crust by the freshly accreted matter which gives rise to a variety of nuclear reactions in the crust. It has been shown that most of the energy is released deep in the crust by

NuSTAR Observations of the State Transition of Millisecond Pulsar Binary PSR J1023+0038

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tendulkar, Shriharsh P.; Yang, Chengwei; An, Hongjun

2014-01-01

We report NuSTAR observations of the millisecond pulsar - low mass X-ray binary (LMXB) transition system PSR J1023+0038 from June and October 2013, before and after the formation of an accretion disk around the neutron star. Between June 10-12, a few days to two weeks before the radio disappearance...... and current multi-wavelength observations and show the hard X-ray power law extending to 79 keV without a spectral break. Sharp edged, flat bottomed `dips' are observed with widths between 30-1000 s and ingress and egress time-scales of 30-60 s. No change in hardness ratio was observed during the dips...

The rotation of accretion-disks and the power spectra of X-rays 'flickering'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Xiaohe; Bao Gang

1990-07-01

The X-ray producing, inner region of the accretion disk in Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) is likely to be non-stationary and non-axisymmetric. This non-stationarity and non-axisymmetry in disk surface brightness may be modeled by considering the pre-sense of many 'hot spots' on a steady, axisymmetric disk. As long as a 'spot' can survive for a few orbital periods, its orbital frequency can be introduced into the light curve either by relativistic orbital motion or by eclipsing of the spot by the disk. These rotational effects vary with the local properties of the spot population. Depending on the radial variation of spot brightness, lifetime and number density, the observed variability power spectrum may differ from that due to the intrinsic variability of spots alone, within the orbital frequency range in which these spots occur. In this paper, we explore the relation between properties assumed for the spot population and the resulting predictions for the observed variability. The implications of our results for the 'flickering' of X-ray sources powered by accretion disks (both AGN and galactic sources) are also discussed. (author). 24 refs, 6 figs

NICER Discovers the Ultracompact Orbit of the Accreting Millisecond Pulsar IGR J17062–6143

Science.gov (United States)

Strohmayer, T. E.; Arzoumanian, Z.; Bogdanov, S.; Bult, P. M.; Chakrabarty, D.; Enoto, T.; Gendreau, K. C.; Guillot, S.; Harding, A. K.; Ho, W. C. G.; Homan, J.; Jaisawal, G. K.; Keek, L.; Kerr, M.; Mahmoodifar, S.; Markwardt, C. B.; Ransom, S. M.; Ray, P. S.; Remillard, R.; Wolff, M. T.

2018-05-01

We present results of recent Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) observations of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar (AMXP) IGR J17062‑6143 that show that it resides in a circular, ultracompact binary with a 38-minute orbital period. NICER observed the source for ≈26 ks over a 5.3-day span in 2017 August, and again for 14 and 11 ks in 2017 October and November, respectively. A power spectral analysis of the August exposure confirms the previous detection of pulsations at 163.656 Hz in Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) data, and reveals phase modulation due to orbital motion of the neutron star. A coherent search for the orbital solution using the Z 2 method finds a best-fitting circular orbit with a period of 2278.21 s (37.97 minutes), a projected semimajor axis of 0.00390 lt-s, and a barycentric pulsar frequency of 163.6561105 Hz. This is currently the shortest known orbital period for an AMXP. The mass function is 9.12 × 10‑8 M ⊙, presently the smallest known for a stellar binary. The minimum donor mass ranges from ≈0.005 to 0.007 M ⊙ for a neutron star mass from 1.2 to 2 M ⊙. Assuming mass transfer is driven by gravitational radiation, we find donor mass and binary inclination bounds of 0.0175–0.0155 M ⊙ and 19° < i < 27.°5, where the lower and upper bounds correspond to 1.4 and 2 M ⊙ neutron stars, respectively. Folding the data accounting for the orbital modulation reveals a sinusoidal profile with fractional amplitude 2.04 ± 0.11% (0.3–3.2 keV).

X-ray Pulsars Across the Parameter Space of Luminosity, Accretion Mode, and Spin

Science.gov (United States)

Laycock, Silas

We propose to expand the scope of our successful project providing a multi-satellite library of X-ray Pulsar observations to the community. The library provides high-level products, activity monitoring, pulse-profiles, phased event files, spectra, and a unique pulse-profile modeling interface. The library's scientific footprint will expand in 4 key directions: (1) Update, by processing all new XMM-Newton and Chandra observations (2015-2017) of X-ray Binary Pulsars in the Magellanic Clouds. (2) Expand, by including all archival Suzaku, Swift and NuStar observations, and including Galactic pulsars. (3) Improve, by offering innovative data products that provide deeper insight. (4) Advance, by implementing a new generation of physically motivated emission and pulse-profile models. The library currently includes some 2000 individual RXTE-PCA, 200 Chandra ACIS-I, and 120 XMM-PN observations of the SMC spanning 15 years, creating an unrivaled record of pulsar temporal behavior. In Phase-2, additional observations of SMC pulsars will be added: 221 Chandra (ACIS-S and ACIS-I), 22 XMM-PN, 142 XMM-MOS, 92 Suzaku, 25 NuSTAR, and >10,000 Swift; leveraging our pipeline and analysis techniques already developed. With the addition of 7 Galactic pulsars each having many hundred multisatellite observations, these datasets cover the entire range of variability timescales and accretion regimes. We will model the pulse-profiles using state of the art techniques to parameterize their morphology and obtain the distribution of offsets between magnetic and spin axes, and create samples of profiles under specific accretion modes (whether pencil-beam or fan-beam dominated). These products are needed for the next generation of advances in neutron star theory and modeling. The long-duration of the dataset and “whole-galaxy" nature of the SMC sample make possible a new statistical approach to uncover the duty-cycle distribution and hence population demographics of transient High Mass X-ray

Super-Eddington accretion on to the neutron star NGC 7793 P13: Broad-band X-ray spectroscopy and ultraluminous X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Walton, D. J.; Fürst, F.; Harrison, F. A.; Stern, D.; Bachetti, M.; Barret, D.; Brightman, M.; Fabian, A. C.; Middleton, M. J.; Ptak, A.; Tao, L.

2018-02-01

We present a detailed, broad-band X-ray spectral analysis of the ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) pulsar NGC 7793 P13, a known super-Eddington source, utilizing data from the XMM-Newton, NuSTAR and Chandra observatories. The broad-band XMM-Newton+NuSTAR spectrum of P13 is qualitatively similar to the rest of the ULX sample with broad-band coverage, suggesting that additional ULXs in the known population may host neutron star accretors. Through time-averaged, phase-resolved and multi-epoch studies, we find that two non-pulsed thermal blackbody components with temperatures ∼0.5 and 1.5 keV are required to fit the data below 10 keV, in addition to a third continuum component which extends to higher energies and is associated with the pulsed emission from the accretion column. The characteristic radii of the thermal components appear to be comparable, and are too large to be associated with the neutron star itself, so the need for two components likely indicates the accretion flow outside the magnetosphere is complex. We suggest a scenario in which the thick inner disc expected for super-Eddington accretion begins to form, but is terminated by the neutron star's magnetic field soon after its onset, implying a limit of B ≲ 6 × 1012 G for the dipolar component of the central neutron star's magnetic field. Evidence of similar termination of the disc in other sources may offer a further means of identifying additional neutron star ULXs. Finally, we examine the spectrum exhibited by P13 during one of its unusual 'off' states. These data require both a hard power-law component, suggesting residual accretion on to the neutron star, and emission from a thermal plasma, which we argue is likely associated with the P13 system.

Stellar X-Ray Polarimetry

Science.gov (United States)

Swank, J.

2011-01-01

Most of the stellar end-state black holes, pulsars, and white dwarfs that are X-ray sources should have polarized X-ray fluxes. The degree will depend on the relative contributions of the unresolved structures. Fluxes from accretion disks and accretion disk corona may be polarized by scattering. Beams and jets may have contributions of polarized emission in strong magnetic fields. The Gravity and Extreme Magnetism Small Explorer (GEMS) will study the effects on polarization of strong gravity of black holes and strong magnetism of neutron stars. Some part of the flux from compact stars accreting from companion stars has been reflected from the companion, its wind, or accretion streams. Polarization of this component is a potential tool for studying the structure of the gas in these binary systems. Polarization due to scattering can also be present in X-ray emission from white dwarf binaries and binary normal stars such as RS CVn stars and colliding wind sources like Eta Car. Normal late type stars may have polarized flux from coronal flares. But X-ray polarization sensitivity is not at the level needed for single early type stars.

Exploring Black Hole Accretion in Active Galactic Nuclei with Simbol-X

Science.gov (United States)

Goosmann, R. W.; Dovčiak, M.; Mouchet, M.; Czerny, B.; Karas, V.; Gonçalves, A.

2009-05-01

A major goal of the Simbol-X mission is to improve our knowledge about black hole accretion. By opening up the X-ray window above 10 keV with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution we obtain new constraints on the X-ray spectral and variability properties of active galactic nuclei. To interpret the future data, detailed X-ray modeling of the dynamics and radiation processes in the black hole vicinity is required. Relativistic effects must be taken into account, which then allow to constrain the fundamental black hole parameters and the emission pattern of the accretion disk from the spectra that will be obtained with Simbol-X.

NuSTAR Discovery of a Cyclotron Line in the Accreting X-Ray Pulsar IGR J16393-4643

Science.gov (United States)

Bodaghee, Arash; Tomsick, John A.; Fornasini, Francesca M.; Krivonos, Roman; Stern, Daniel; Mori, Kaya; Rahoui, Farid; Boggs, Steven E.; Christensen, Finn E.; Craig, William W.;

Magnetism, X-rays and accretion rates in WD 1145+017 and other polluted white dwarf systems

Science.gov (United States)

Farihi, J.; Fossati, L.; Wheatley, P. J.; Metzger, B. D.; Mauerhan, J.; Bachman, S.; Gänsicke, B. T.; Redfield, S.; Cauley, P. W.; Kochukhov, O.; Achilleos, N.; Stone, N.

2018-02-01

This paper reports circular spectropolarimetry and X-ray observations of several polluted white dwarfs including WD 1145+017, with the aim to constrain the behaviour of disc material and instantaneous accretion rates in these evolved planetary systems. Two stars with previously observed Zeeman splitting, WD 0322-019 and WD 2105-820, are detected above 5σ and 〈Bz〉 > 1 kG, while WD 1145+017, WD 1929+011, and WD 2326+049 yield (null) detections below this minimum level of confidence. For these latter three stars, high-resolution spectra and atmospheric modelling are used to obtain limits on magnetic field strengths via the absence of Zeeman splitting, finding B* Earth composition material falling on to the magnetic polar regions of white dwarfs, where X-rays and cyclotron radiation may contribute to accretion luminosity. This analysis is applied to X-ray data for WD 1145+017, WD 1729+371, and WD 2326+049, and the upper bound count rates are modelled with spectra for a range of plasma kT = 1-10 keV in both the magnetic and non-magnetic accretion regimes. The results for all three stars are consistent with a typical dusty white dwarf in a steady state at 108-109 g s-1. In particular, the non-magnetic limits for WD 1145+017 are found to be well below previous estimates of up to 1012 g s-1, and likely below 1010 g s-1, thus suggesting the star-disc system may be average in its evolutionary state, and only special in viewing geometry.

The First Continuous Optical Monitoring of the Transitional Millisecond Pulsar PSR J1023+0038 with Kepler

Science.gov (United States)

Papitto, A.; Rea, N.; Coti Zelati, F.; de Martino, D.; Scaringi, S.; Campana, S.; de Ońa Wilhelmi, E.; Knigge, C.; Serenelli, A.; Stella, L.; Torres, D. F.; D’Avanzo, P.; Israel, G. L.

2018-05-01

We report on the first continuous, 80-day optical monitoring of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038 carried out in mid 2017 with Kepler in the K2 configuration, when an X-ray subluminous accretion disk was present in the binary. Flares lasting from minutes to 14 hr were observed for 15.6% of the time, which is a larger fraction than previously reported on the basis of X-ray and past optical observations, and more frequently when the companion was at superior conjunction of the orbit. A sinusoidal modulation at the binary orbital period was also present with an amplitude of ≃16%, which varied by a few percent over timescales of days, and with a maximum that took place 890 ± 85 s earlier than the superior conjunction of the donor. We interpret this phenomena in terms of reprocessing of the X-ray emission by an asymmetrically heated companion star surface and/or a non-axisymmetric outflow possibly launched close to the inner Lagrangian point. Furthermore, the non-flaring average emission varied by up to ≈40% over a timescale of days in the absence of correspondingly large variations of the irradiating X-ray flux. The latter suggests that the observed changes in the average optical luminosity might be due to variations of the geometry, size, and/or mass accretion rate in the outer regions of the accretion disk.

General Relativistic Radiation MHD Simulations of Supercritical Accretion onto a Magnetized Neutron Star: Modeling of Ultraluminous X-Ray Pulsars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takahashi, Hiroyuki R. [Center for Computational Astrophysics, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588 (Japan); Ohsuga, Ken, E-mail: takahashi@cfca.jp, E-mail: ken.ohsuga@nao.ac.jp [Division of Theoretical Astronomy, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588 (Japan)

2017-08-10

By performing 2.5-dimensional general relativistic radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we demonstrate supercritical accretion onto a non-rotating, magnetized neutron star, where the magnetic field strength of dipole fields is 10{sup 10} G on the star surface. We found the supercritical accretion flow consists of two parts: the accretion columns and the truncated accretion disk. The supercritical accretion disk, which appears far from the neutron star, is truncated at around ≃3 R {sub *} ( R {sub *} = 10{sup 6} cm is the neutron star radius), where the magnetic pressure via the dipole magnetic fields balances with the radiation pressure of the disks. The angular momentum of the disk around the truncation radius is effectively transported inward through magnetic torque by dipole fields, inducing the spin up of a neutron star. The evaluated spin-up rate, ∼−10{sup −11} s s{sup −1}, is consistent with the recent observations of the ultraluminous X-ray pulsars. Within the truncation radius, the gas falls onto a neutron star along the dipole fields, which results in a formation of accretion columns onto the northern and southern hemispheres. The net accretion rate and the luminosity of the column are ≃66 L {sub Edd}/ c {sup 2} and ≲10 L {sub Edd}, where L {sub Edd} is the Eddington luminosity and c is the light speed. Our simulations support a hypothesis whereby the ultraluminous X-ray pulsars are powered by the supercritical accretion onto the magnetized neutron stars.

NUSTAR and Suzaku x-ray spectroscopy of NGC 4151: Evidence for reflection from the inner accretion disk

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Keck, M. L.; Brenneman, L. W.; Ballantyne, D. R.; Bauer, F.; Boggs, S. E.; Christensen, F. E.; Craig, W. W.; Dauser, T.; Elvis, M.; Fabian, A. C.; Fuerst, F.; García, J.; Grefenstette, B. W.; Hailey, C. J.; Harrison, F. A.; Madejski, G.; Marinucci, A.; Matt, G.; Reynolds, C. S.; Stern, D.; Walton, D. J.; Zoghbi, A.

2015-06-15

We present X-ray timing and spectral analyses of simultaneous 150 ks Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and Suzaku X-ray observations of the Seyfert 1.5 galaxy NGC 4151. We disentangle the continuum emission, absorption, and reflection properties of the active galactic nucleus (AGN) by applying inner accretion disk reflection and absorption-dominated models. With a time-averaged spectral analysis, we find strong evidence for relativistic reflection from the inner accretion disk. We find that relativistic emission arises from a highly ionized inner accretion disk with a steep emissivity profile, which suggests an intense, compact illuminating source. We find a preliminary, near-maximal black hole spin $a\\gt 0.9$ accounting for statistical and systematic modeling errors. We find a relatively moderate reflection fraction with respect to predictions for the lamp post geometry, in which the illuminating corona is modeled as a point source. Through a time-resolved spectral analysis, we find that modest coronal and inner disk reflection (IDR) flux variation drives the spectral variability during the observations. We discuss various physical scenarios for the IDR model and we find that a compact corona is consistent with the observed features.

Orbital Dynamics of Candidate Transitional Millisecond Pulsar 3FGL J1544.6-1125: An unusually face-on system

Science.gov (United States)

Britt, Christopher T.; Strader, Jay; Chomiuk, Laura; Halpern, Jules P.; Tremou, Evangelina; Peacock, Mark; Salinas, Ricardo

2018-01-01

We present the orbital solution for the donor star of the candidate transitional millisecond pulsar 3FGL J1544.6-1125, currently observed as an accreting low-mass X-ray binary. The orbital period is 0.2415361(36) days, entirely consistent with the spectral classification of the donor star as a mid to late K dwarf. The semi-amplitude of the radial velocity curve is exceptionally low at K2=39.3+/-1.5 km s-1, implying a remarkably face-on inclination in the range 5-8o, depending on the neutron star and donor masses. After determining the veiling of the secondary, we derive a distance to the binary of 3.8+/-0.7 kpc, yielding a 0.3-10 keV X-ray luminosity of 6.1+/-1.9 x1033 erg s-1, similar to confirmed transitional millisecond pulsars. As face-on binaries rarely occur by chance, we discuss the possibility that Fermi-selected samples of transitional milli-second pulsars in the sub-luminous disk state are affected by beaming. By phasing emission line strength on the spectroscopic ephemeris, we find coherent variations, and argue that some optical light originates from emission from an asymmetric shock originating near the inner disk.

X-ray-ing the Low Luminosity Supermassive Black Hole Accretion: the Crucial Role of Public Serendipitous Catalogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Constantin, Anca; Green, Paul; Haggard, Daryl

2018-01-01

For most of the nearby active galaxies, a mix of processes including emission from star-forming regions, other ionization sources (shocks, turbulence, etc.), nuclear obscuration, as well as host galaxy starlight obfuscate the true nature of their dominant ionization mechanism. X-ray emission is one of the most reliable primary signatures of accretion activity, and with the advent of the public catalogs, it became one of the most effective diagnostics as well. Working with large and significantly less biased samples that only serendipitous X-ray catalogs are able to provide, we were able to: 1) provide the most accurate estimates of the AGN fraction as a function of a diverse set of parameters; 2) confirm with X-rays a sequence from star-forming to active to passive galaxies that matches trends in both optical host galaxy characteristics and in the large scale environment; 3) discover intriguing similarities between accretion onto supermassive and stellar size black holes, with direct consequences for the physical significance of the Gamma-L/Ledd relation for AGN of both type I and II in the local universe. This presentation will summarize these exciting results, and will also report on novel extended efforts to decipher the link between the water megamaser emission and galactic nuclear activity, which are made possible only by the availability of the large sample statistics of carefully curated X-ray measurements uniquely offered by the combined Chandra and XMM catalogs.

Puzzling accretion onto a black hole in the ultraluminous X-ray source M 101 ULX-1.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Ji-Feng; Bregman, Joel N; Bai, Yu; Justham, Stephen; Crowther, Paul

2013-11-28

There are two proposed explanations for ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) with luminosities in excess of 10(39) erg s(-1). They could be intermediate-mass black holes (more than 100-1,000 solar masses, M sun symbol) radiating at sub-maximal (sub-Eddington) rates, as in Galactic black-hole X-ray binaries but with larger, cooler accretion disks. Alternatively, they could be stellar-mass black holes radiating at Eddington or super-Eddington rates. On its discovery, M 101 ULX-1 had a luminosity of 3 × 10(39) erg s(-1) and a supersoft thermal disk spectrum with an exceptionally low temperature--uncomplicated by photons energized by a corona of hot electrons--more consistent with the expected appearance of an accreting intermediate-mass black hole. Here we report optical spectroscopic monitoring of M 101 ULX-1. We confirm the previous suggestion that the system contains a Wolf-Rayet star, and reveal that the orbital period is 8.2 days. The black hole has a minimum mass of 5 M sun symbol, and more probably a mass of 20 M sun symbol-30 M sun symbol, but we argue that it is very unlikely to be an intermediate-mass black hole. Therefore, its exceptionally soft spectra at high Eddington ratios violate the expectations for accretion onto stellar-mass black holes. Accretion must occur from captured stellar wind, which has hitherto been thought to be so inefficient that it could not power an ultraluminous source.

Measuring the black hole mass in ultraluminous X-ray sources with the X-ray scaling method

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, I.; Gliozzi, M.; Satyapal, S.; Titarchuk, L.

2018-01-01

In our recent work, we demonstrated that a novel X-ray scaling method, originally introduced for Galactic black holes (BH), could be reliably extended to estimate the mass of supermassive black holes accreting at moderate to high level. Here, we apply this X-ray scaling method to ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) to constrain their MBH. Using 49 ULXs with multiple XMM-Newton observations, we infer that ULXs host both stellar mass BHs and intermediate mass BHs. The majority of the sources of our sample seem to be consistent with the hypothesis of highly accreting massive stellar BHs with MBH ∼ 100 M⊙. Our results are in general agreement with the MBH values obtained with alternative methods, including model-independent variability methods. This suggests that the X-ray scaling method is an actual scale-independent method that can be applied to all BH systems accreting at moderate-high rate.

PATCHY ACCRETION DISKS IN ULTRA-LUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miller, J. M. [Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 500 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1042 (United States); Bachetti, M.; Barret, D.; Webb, N. A. [Universite de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP, F- 31100 Toulouse (France); Harrison, F. A.; Walton, D. J.; Rana, V. [Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Fabian, A. C., E-mail: jonmm@umich.edu [Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA (United Kingdom)

2014-04-10

The X-ray spectra of the most extreme ultra-luminous X-ray sources—those with L ≥ 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1}—remain something of a mystery. Spectral roll-over in the 5-10 keV band was originally detected in the deepest XMM-Newton observations of the brightest sources; this is confirmed in subsequent NuSTAR spectra. This emission can be modeled via Comptonization, but with low electron temperatures (kT{sub e} ≅ 2 keV) and high optical depths (τ ≅ 10) that pose numerous difficulties. Moreover, evidence of cooler thermal emission that can be fit with thin disk models persists, even in fits to joint XMM-Newton and NuSTAR observations. Using NGC 1313 X-1 as a test case, we show that a patchy disk with a multiple temperature profile may provide an excellent description of such spectra. In principle, a number of patches within a cool disk might emit over a range of temperatures, but the data only require a two-temperature profile plus standard Comptonization, or three distinct blackbody components. A mechanism such as the photon bubble instability may naturally give rise to a patchy disk profile, and could give rise to super-Eddington luminosities. It is possible, then, that a patchy disk (rather than a disk with a standard single-temperature profile) might be a hallmark of accretion disks close to or above the Eddington limit. We discuss further tests of this picture and potential implications for sources such as narrow-line Seyfert-1 galaxies and other low-mass active galactic nuclei.

Modeling X-ray Absorbers in AGNs with MHD-Driven Accretion-Disk Winds

Science.gov (United States)

Fukumura, Keigo; Kazanas, D.; Shrader, C. R.; Tombesi, F.; Contopoulos, J.; Behar, E.

2013-04-01

We have proposed a systematic view of the observed X-ray absorbers, namely warm absorbers (WAs) in soft X-ray and highly-ionized ultra-fast outflows (UFOs), in the context of magnetically-driven accretion-disk wind models. While potentially complicated by variability and thermal instability in these energetic outflows, in this simplistic model we have calculated 2D kinematic field as well as density and ionization structure of the wind with density profile of 1/r corresponding to a constant column distribution per decade of ionization parameter. In particular we show semi-analytically that the inner layer of the disk-wind manifests itself as the strongly-ionized fast outflows while the outer layer is identified as the moderately-ionized absorbers. The computed characteristics of these two apparently distinct absorbers are consistent with X-ray data (i.e. a factor of ~100 difference in column and ionization parameters as well as low wind velocity vs. near-relativistic flow). With the predicted contour curves for these wind parameters one can constrain allowed regions for the presence of WAs and UFOs.The model further implies that the UFO's gas pressure is comparable to that of the observed radio jet in 3C111 suggesting that the magnetized disk-wind with density profile of 1/r is a viable agent to help sustain such a self-collimated jet at small radii.

THE NuSTAR X-RAY SPECTRUM OF HERCULES X-1: A RADIATION-DOMINATED RADIATIVE SHOCK

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wolff, Michael T.; Wood, Kent S. [Space Science Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375-5352 (United States); Becker, Peter A. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444 (United States); Gottlieb, Amy M.; Marcu-Cheatham, Diana M.; Pottschmidt, Katja [Department of Physics and Center for Space Science and Technology, University of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250 (United States); Fürst, Felix [Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Hemphill, Paul B. [Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, CA 92093-0424 (United States); Schwarm, Fritz-Walter; Wilms, Jörn [Dr. Karl-Remeis-Sternwarte and ECAP, Sternwartstr, 7, D-96049 Bamberg (Germany)

2016-11-10

We report on new spectral modeling of the accreting X-ray pulsar Hercules X-1. Our radiation-dominated radiative shock model is an implementation of the analytic work of Becker and Wolff on Comptonized accretion flows onto magnetic neutron stars. We obtain a good fit to the spin-phase-averaged 4–78 keV X-ray spectrum observed by the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array during a main-on phase of the Her X-1 35 day accretion disk precession period. This model allows us to estimate the accretion rate, the Comptonizing temperature of the radiating plasma, the radius of the magnetic polar cap, and the average scattering opacity parameters in the accretion column. This is in contrast to previous phenomenological models that characterized the shape of the X-ray spectrum, but could not determine the physical parameters of the accretion flow. We describe the spectral fitting details and discuss the interpretation of the accretion flow physical parameters.

Low mass X-ray binaries in the Inner Galaxy: implications for millisecond pulsars and the GeV excess

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haggard, Daryl; Heinke, Craig; Hooper, Dan; Linden, Tim

2017-05-01

If millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are responsible for the excess gamma-ray emission observed from the region surrounding the Galactic Center, the same region should also contain a large population of low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs). In this study, we compile and utilize a sizable catalog of LMXBs observed in the the Milky Way's globular cluster system and in the Inner Galaxy, as well as the gamma-ray emission observed from globular clusters, to estimate the flux of gamma rays predicted from MSPs in the Inner Galaxy. From this comparison, we conclude that only up to $\\sim$4-23% of the observed gamma-ray excess is likely to originate from MSPs. This result is consistent with, and more robust than, previous estimates which utilized smaller samples of both globular clusters and LMXBs. If MSPs had been responsible for the entirety of the observed excess, INTEGRAL should have detected $\\sim$$10^3$ LMXBs from within a $10^{\\circ}$ radius around the Galactic Center, whereas only 42 LMXBs (and 46 additional LMXB candidates) have been observed.

Wind accretion in the massive X-ray binary 4U 2206+54: abnormally slow wind and a moderately eccentric orbit

Science.gov (United States)

Ribó, M.; Negueruela, I.; Blay, P.; Torrejón, J. M.; Reig, P.

2006-04-01

Massive X-ray binaries are usually classified by the properties of the donor star in classical, supergiant and Be X-ray binaries, the main difference being the mass transfer mechanism between the two components. The massive X-ray binary 4U 2206+54 does not fit in any of these groups, and deserves a detailed study to understand how the transfer of matter and the accretion on to the compact object take place. To this end we study an IUE spectrum of the donor and obtain a wind terminal velocity (v_∞) of ~350 km s-1, which is abnormally slow for its spectral type. We also analyse here more than 9 years of available RXTE/ASM data. We study the long-term X-ray variability of the source and find it to be similar to that observed in the wind-fed supergiant system Vela X-1, reinforcing the idea that 4U 2206+54 is also a wind-fed system. We find a quasi-period decreasing from ~270 to ~130 d, noticed in previous works but never studied in detail. We discuss possible scenarios for its origin and conclude that long-term quasi-periodic variations in the mass-loss rate of the primary are probably driving such variability in the measured X-ray flux. We obtain an improved orbital period of P_orb=9.5591±0.0007 d with maximum X-ray flux at MJD 51856.6±0.1. Our study of the orbital X-ray variability in the context of wind accretion suggests a moderate eccentricity around 0.15 for this binary system. Moreover, the low value of v_∞ solves the long-standing problem of the relatively high X-ray luminosity for the unevolved nature of the donor, BD +53°2790, which is probably an O9.5 V star. We note that changes in v_∞ and/or the mass-loss rate of the primary alone cannot explain the different patterns displayed by the orbital X-ray variability. We finally emphasize that 4U 2206+54, together with LS 5039, could be part of a new population of wind-fed HMXBs with main sequence donors, the natural progenitors of supergiant X-ray binaries.

Discovery of a Second Millesecond Accreting Pulsar: XTE J1751-305

Science.gov (United States)

Markwardt, C. B.; Swank, J. H.; Strohmayer, T. E.; intZand, J. J. M.; Marshall, F. E.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

We report the discovery by the RXTE PCA of a second transient accreting millisecond pulsar, XTE J1751-305, during regular monitoring observations of the galactic bulge region. The pulsar has a spin frequency of 435 Hz, making it one of the fastest pulsars. The pulsations contain the signature of orbital Doppler modulation, which implies an orbital period of 42 minutes, the shortest orbital period of any known radio or X-ray millisecond pulsar. The mass function, f(sub x) = (1.278 +/- 0.003) x 10 (exp -6) solar mass, yields a minimum mass for the companion of between 0.013 and 0.0017 solar mass depending on the mass of the neutron star. No eclipses were detected. A previous X-ray outburst in June, 1998, was discovered in archival All-Sky Monitor data. Assuming mass transfer in this binary system is driven by gravitational radiation, we constrain the orbital inclination to be in the range 30 deg-85 deg and the companion mass to be 0.013-0.035 solar mass. The companion is most likely a heated helium dwarf. We also present results from the Chandra HRC-S observations which provide the best known position of XTE J1751-305.

Broadband X-ray spectra of the ultraluminous X-ray source Holmberg IX X-1 observed with NuSTAR, XMM-Newton, and Suzaku

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walton, D. J.; Harrison, F. A.; Grefenstette, B. W.; Fuerst, F.; Madsen, K. K.; Rana, V.; Stern, D. [Space Radiation Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Miller, J. M. [Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 500 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1042 (United States); Bachetti, M.; Barret, D.; Webb, N. [Universite de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP, Toulouse (France); Boggs, S. E.; Craig, W. W. [Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Christensen, F. E. [DTU Space, National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Elektrovej 327, DK-2800 Lyngby (Denmark); Fabian, A. C.; Parker, M. L. [Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA (United Kingdom); Hailey, C. J. [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States); Ptak, A.; Zhang, W. W., E-mail: dwalton@srl.caltech.edu [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

2014-09-20

We present results from the coordinated broadband X-ray observations of the extreme ultraluminous X-ray source Holmberg IX X-1 performed by NuSTAR, XMM-Newton, and Suzaku in late 2012. These observations provide the first high-quality spectra of Holmberg IX X-1 above 10 keV to date, extending the X-ray coverage of this remarkable source up to ∼30 keV. Broadband observations were undertaken at two epochs, between which Holmberg IX X-1 exhibited both flux and strong spectral variability, increasing in luminosity from L {sub X} = (1.90 ± 0.03) × 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1} to L {sub X} = (3.35 ± 0.03) × 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1}. Neither epoch exhibits a spectrum consistent with emission from the standard low/hard accretion state seen in Galactic black hole binaries, which would have been expected if Holmberg IX X-1 harbors a truly massive black hole accreting at substantially sub-Eddington accretion rates. The NuSTAR data confirm that the curvature observed previously in the 3-10 keV bandpass does represent a true spectral cutoff. During each epoch, the spectrum appears to be dominated by two optically thick thermal components, likely associated with an accretion disk. The spectrum also shows some evidence for a nonthermal tail at the highest energies, which may further support this scenario. The available data allow for either of the two thermal components to dominate the spectral evolution, although both scenarios require highly nonstandard behavior for thermal accretion disk emission.

Short-term variability of Cyg X-1 and the accretion disk temperature fluctuation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doi, K.

1980-01-01

Recent theoretical models which have been proposed to explain the observed time-averaged spectrum of Cyg X-1 assume that the hard x-rays are emitted by inverse-Compton mechanism from an optically thin, hot accretion disk around a black hole. Results are reported here of balloon observations (20-68 keV) and compared with previous rocket observations (1.5-25 keV). Using the results an analysis is made of the variability of the source intensity in the hard x-ray range which suggests that the variation is essentially spectral indicating that it originated from temperature fluctuation in an accretive disk. Such a model, which explains the stochastic nature of the variability, its characteristic time scale and spectral features at the same time in the context of the conventional accretion disk model for Cyg X-1, is examined. (U.K.)

Two methods for studying the X-ray variability

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yan, Shu-Ping; Ji, Li; Méndez, Mariano; Wang, Na; Liu, Siming; Li, Xiang-Dong

2016-01-01

The X-ray aperiodic variability and quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) are the important tools to study the structure of the accretion flow of X-ray binaries. However, the origin of the complex X-ray variability from X-ray binaries remains yet unsolved. We proposed two methods for studying the X-ray

X-ray spectra of PG quasars. II - the X-ray-ultraviolet excess of PG 1211 + 143

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bechtold, J.; Czerny, B.; Elvis, M.; Fabbiano, G.; Green, R.F.; Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA; Kitt Peak National Observatory, Tucson, AZ)

1987-01-01

Observations of the quasar PG 1211 + 143 are presented and its continuum is modelled in terms of an accretion disk and an underlying power law. The X-ray spectrum in the Einstein imaging proportional counter band is well described by a power law with the very steep spectral index 2.2 + or - 0.4. The overall continuum spectral energy distribution can be described as a power law with alpha roughly 1.2 from the infrared to about 1 keV, with the optical, ultraviolet, and soft X-rays forming a large excess above this power law. If the soft X-ray excess is attributed to emission from a physically thin, optically thick accretion disk, then the implied accretion rate is super-Eddington, from which it is concluded that the application of this simple model is not valid. The observed broad-line ratios in PG 1211 + 143 imply broad-line cloud densities that are somewhat higher than those usually derived for quasars. 82 references

Gravitational radiation and gamma-ray bursts from accreting neutron stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mosquera Cuesta, H.J.; Araujo, J.C.N. de; Aguiar, O.D.; Horvath, J.E.

2000-01-01

It is well known that hydrodynamic instabilities can be induced in rapidly rotating low magnetic field neutron stars, which accrete mass from a companion in both high and low mass X-ray binaries. (author)

A NuSTAR Observation of the Gamma-Ray Emitting Millisecond Pulsar PSR J1723–2837

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kong, A. K. H. [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan (China); Hui, C. Y. [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Takata, J. [Institute of Particle Physics and Astronomy, Huazhong University of Science and Technology (China); Li, K. L. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Tam, P. H. T., E-mail: akong@phys.nthu.edu.tw, E-mail: cyhui@cnu.ac.kr [School of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai 519082 (China)

2017-04-20

We report on the first NuSTAR observation of the gamma-ray emitting millisecond pulsar binary PSR J1723–2837. X-ray radiation up to 79 keV is clearly detected, and the simultaneous NuSTAR and Swift spectrum is well described by an absorbed power law with a photon index of ∼1.3. We also find X-ray modulations in the 3–10, 10–20, 20–79, and 3–79 keV bands at the 14.8 hr binary orbital period. All of these are entirely consistent with previous X-ray observations below 10 keV. This new hard X-ray observation of PSR J1723–2837 provides strong evidence that the X-rays are from the intrabinary shock via an interaction between the pulsar wind and the outflow from the companion star. We discuss how the NuSTAR observation constrains the physical parameters of the intrabinary shock model.

X-ray observations of symbiotic stars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allen, D A [Anglo-Australian Observatory, Epping (Australia)

1981-11-01

Observations of 19 symbiotic stars made with the image proportional counter of the Einstein Observatory are reported. Three were detected as soft X-ray sources. All three have shown slow-nova eruptions in the past 40 years. The data are interpreted as support for a model for slow novae involving thermonuclear events on white dwarfs which accrete from M giant companions. Symbiotic stars in their steady state, not being detected X-ray sources, are presumed to be powered by the accretion process alone.

Wind accretion: Theory and observations

Science.gov (United States)

Shakura, N. I.; Postnov, K. A.; Kochetkova, A. Yu.; Hjalmarsdotter, L.; Sidoli, L.; Paizis, A.

2015-07-01

A review of wind accretion in high-mass X-ray binaries is presented. We focus on different regimes of quasi-spherical accretion onto the neutron star (NS): the supersonic (Bondi) accretion, which takes place when the captured matter cools down rapidly and falls supersonically towards the NS magnetosphere, and subsonic (settling) accretion which occurs when plasma remains hot until it meets the magnetospheric boundary. These two regimes of accretion are separated by an X-ray luminosity of about 4 × 1036 erg s-1. In the subsonic case, which sets in at lower luminosities, a hot quasi-spherical shell must form around the magnetosphere, and the actual accretion rate onto NS is determined by the ability of the plasma to enter the magnetosphere due to Rayleigh-Taylor instability. In turn, two regimes of subsonic accretion are possible, depending on plasma cooling mechanism (Compton or radiative) near the magnetopshere. The transition from the high-luminosity with Compton cooling to the lowluminosity (Lx ≲ 3 × 1035 erg s-1) with radiative cooling can be responsible for the onset of the off states repeatedly observed in several low-luminosity slowly accreting pulsars, such as Vela X-1, GX 301-2, and 4U 1907+09. The triggering of the transitionmay be due to a switch in the X-ray beam pattern in response to a change in the optical depth in the accretion column with changing luminosity. We also show that in the settling accretion theory, bright X-ray flares (~1038-1040 erg) observed in supergiant fast X-ray transients (SFXT) can be produced by sporadic capture of magnetized stellar wind plasma. At sufficiently low accretion rates, magnetic reconnection can enhance the magnetospheric plasma entry rate, resulting in copious production of X-ray photons, strong Compton cooling and ultimately in unstable accretion of the entire shell. A bright flare develops on the free-fall time scale in the shell, and the typical energy released in an SFXT bright flare corresponds to the mass

A 5.75-millisecond pulsar in the globular cluster 47 Tucanae

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manchester, R.N.; Lyne, A.G.; Johnston, S.; D'Amico, N.; Lim, J.; Kniffen, D.A.

1990-01-01

Millisecond pulsars are generally believed to be old pulsars that have been spun up ('recycled') as a result of accretion of matter from a companion in a low-mass X-ray binary system. As there is a high incidence of such systems in globular clusters, these are good places to search for millisecond pulsars; so far, ten globular-cluster pulsars have been detected unambiguously. Using the Parkes radiotelescope in Australia, we have found a pulsar with a period of 5.75 ms and a dispersion measure of 25 cm -3 pc in the direction of 47 Tucanae. Despite its probable origin as a member of a binary system, timing measurements show that the pulsar is now single. The observed dispersion measure is consistent with the pulsar lying outside the galactic electron layer and within 47 Tucanae; but it is very different from the value of 67 cm -3 pc for the pulsars that were reported recently as being in this globular cluster, and we suggest that the latter pulsars probably do not in fact lie within 47 Tucanae. (author)

Millisecond radio pulsars in globular clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Verbunt, Frank; Lewin, Walter H. G.; Van Paradijs, Jan

1989-01-01

It is shown that the number of millisecond radio pulsars, in globular clusters, should be larger than 100, applying the standard scenario that all the pulsars descend from low-mass X-ray binaries. Moreover, most of the pulsars are located in a small number of clusters. The prediction that Teran 5 and Liller 1 contain at least about a dozen millisecond radio pulsars each is made. The observations of millisecond radio pulsars in globular clusters to date, in particular the discovery of two millisecond radio pulsars in 47 Tuc, are in agreement with the standard scenario, in which the neutron star is spun up during the mass transfer phase.

Pulsed Gamma-Rays From the Millisecond Pulsar J0030+0451 with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdo, Aous A.; Ackermann, M.; Atwood, W.B.; Axelsson, M.; Baldini, L.; Ballet, J.; Barbiellini, Guido; Bastieri, Denis; Battelino, M.; Baughman, B.M.; Bechtol, K.; Bellazzini, R.; Berenji, B.; Bloom, Elliott D.; Bonamente, E.; Borgland, A.W.; Bregeon, J.; Brez, A.; Brigida, M.; Bruel, P.; Burnett, Thompson H.

2009-01-01

We report the discovery of gamma-ray pulsations from the nearby isolated millisecond pulsar PSR J0030+0451 with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (formerly GLAST). This discovery makes PSR J0030+0451 the second millisecond pulsar to be detected in gamma-rays after PSR J0218+4232, observed by the EGRET instrument on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. The spin-down power (dot E) = 3.5 x 10 33 ergs s -1 is an order of magnitude lower than the empirical lower bound of previously known gamma-ray pulsars. The emission profile is characterized by two narrow peaks, respectively 0.07 ± 0.01 and 0.08 ± 0.02 wide, separated by 0.44 ± 0.02 in phase. The first gamma-ray peak falls 0.15 ± 0.01 after the main radio peak. The pulse shape is similar to that of the 'normal' gamma-ray pulsars. An exponentially cut-off power-law fit of the emission spectrum leads to an integral photon flux above 100 MeV of (6.76 ± 1.05 ± 1.35) x 10 -8 cm -2 s -1 with cut-off energy (1.7 ± 0.4 ± 0.5) GeV. Based on its parallax distance of (300 ± 90) pc, we obtain a gamma-ray efficiency L γ /(dot E) ≅ 15% for the conversion of spin-down energy rate into gamma-ray radiation, assuming isotropic emission.

Pulsed Gamma-Rays From the Millisecond Pulsar J0030+0451 with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abdo, Aous A.; /Naval Research Lab, Wash., D.C.; Ackermann, M.; /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept.; Atwood, W.B.; /UC, Santa Cruz; Axelsson, M. /Stockholm U., OKC /Stockholm U.; Baldini, L.; /INFN, Pisa; Ballet, J.; /DAPNIA, Saclay; Barbiellini, Guido; /INFN, Trieste /Trieste U.; Bastieri, Denis; /INFN, Padua /Padua U.; Battelino, M.; /Stockholm U., OKC /Royal Inst. Tech., Stockholm; Baughman, B.M.; /Ohio State U.; Bechtol, K.; /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept.; Bellazzini, R.; /INFN, Pisa; Berenji, B.; /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept.; Bloom, Elliott D.; /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept.; Bonamente, E.; /INFN, Perugia /Perugia U.; Borgland, A.W.; /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept.; Bregeon, J.; /INFN, Pisa; Brez, A.; /INFN, Pisa; Brigida, M.; /Bari U. /INFN, Bari; Bruel, P.; /Ecole Polytechnique; Burnett, Thompson H.; /Washington U., Seattle /Bari U. /INFN, Bari /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /IASF, Milan /IASF, Milan /DAPNIA, Saclay /INFN, Perugia /Perugia U. /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /George Mason U. /Naval Research Lab, Wash., D.C. /NASA, Goddard /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /INFN, Perugia /Perugia U. /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /LPCE, Orleans /Montpellier U. /Sonoma State U. /Stockholm U., OKC /Royal Inst. Tech., Stockholm /Stockholm U. /ASDC, Frascati /Naval Research Lab, Wash., D.C. /INFN, Trieste /Bari U. /INFN, Bari /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /UC, Santa Cruz /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /CENBG, Gradignan /CENBG, Gradignan /Montpellier U. /Bari U. /INFN, Bari /Stanford U., HEPL /KIPAC, Menlo Park /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /INFN, Trieste /Hiroshima U.; /more authors..

2011-11-17

We report the discovery of gamma-ray pulsations from the nearby isolated millisecond pulsar PSR J0030+0451 with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (formerly GLAST). This discovery makes PSR J0030+0451 the second millisecond pulsar to be detected in gamma-rays after PSR J0218+4232, observed by the EGRET instrument on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. The spin-down power {dot E} = 3.5 x 10{sup 33} ergs s{sup -1} is an order of magnitude lower than the empirical lower bound of previously known gamma-ray pulsars. The emission profile is characterized by two narrow peaks, respectively 0.07 {+-} 0.01 and 0.08 {+-} 0.02 wide, separated by 0.44 {+-} 0.02 in phase. The first gamma-ray peak falls 0.15 {+-} 0.01 after the main radio peak. The pulse shape is similar to that of the 'normal' gamma-ray pulsars. An exponentially cut-off power-law fit of the emission spectrum leads to an integral photon flux above 100 MeV of (6.76 {+-} 1.05 {+-} 1.35) x 10{sup -8} cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} with cut-off energy (1.7 {+-} 0.4 {+-} 0.5) GeV. Based on its parallax distance of (300 {+-} 90) pc, we obtain a gamma-ray efficiency L{sub {gamma}}/{dot E} {approx_equal} 15% for the conversion of spin-down energy rate into gamma-ray radiation, assuming isotropic emission.

High energy transients: The millisecond domain

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, A. R.

2018-02-01

The search for high energy transients in the millisecond domain has come to the focus in recent times due to the detection of gravitational wave events and the identification of fast radio bursts as cosmological sources. Here we highlight the sensitivity limitations in the currently operating hard X-ray telescopes and give some details of the search for millisecond events in the AstroSat CZT Imager data.

Effects of Fallback Accretion on Protomagnetar Outflows in Gamma-Ray Bursts and Superluminous Supernovae

Science.gov (United States)

Metzger, Brian D.; Beniamini, Paz; Giannios, Dimitrios

2018-04-01

Rapidly spinning, strongly magnetized protoneutron stars (“millisecond protomagnetars”) are candidate central engines of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), superluminous supernovae (SLSNe), and binary neutron star mergers. Magnetar birth may be accompanied by the fallback of stellar debris, lasting for seconds or longer following the explosion. Accretion alters the magnetar evolution by (1) providing an additional source of rotational energy (or a potential sink, if the propeller mechanism operates), (2) enhancing the spin-down luminosity above the dipole rate by compressing the magnetosphere and expanding the polar cap region of open magnetic field lines, and (3) supplying an additional accretion-powered neutrino luminosity that sustains the wind baryon loading, even after the magnetar’s internal neutrino luminosity has subsided. The more complex evolution of the jet power and magnetization of an accreting magnetar more readily accounts for the high 56Ni yields of GRB SNe and the irregular time evolution of some GRB light curves (e.g., bursts with precursors followed by a long quiescent interval before the main emission episode). Additional baryon loading from accretion-powered neutrino irradiation of the polar cap lengthens the time frame over which the jet magnetization is in the requisite range σ ≲ 103 for efficient gamma-ray emission, thereby accommodating GRBs with ultralong durations. Though accretion does not significantly raise the maximum energy budget from the limit of ≲ few × 1052 erg for an isolated magnetar, it greatly expands the range of magnetic field strengths and birth spin periods capable of powering GRB jets, reducing the differences between the magnetar properties normally invoked to explain GRBs versus SLSNe.

X-ray observations of symbiotic stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allen, D.A.

1981-01-01

Observations of 19 symbiotic stars made with the image proportional counter of the Einstein Observatory are reported. Three were detected as soft X-ray sources. All three have shown slow-nova eruptions in the past 40 years. The data are interpreted as support for a model for slow novae involving thermonuclear events on white dwarfs which accrete from M giant companions. Symbiotic stars in their steady state, not being detected X-ray sources, are presumed to be powered by the accretion process alone. (author)

A FOURIER-TRANSFORMED BREMSSTRAHLUNG FLASH MODEL FOR THE PRODUCTION OF X-RAY TIME LAGS IN ACCRETING BLACK HOLE SOURCES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kroon, John J.; Becker, Peter A.

2014-01-01

Accreting black hole sources show a wide variety of rapid time variability, including the manifestation of time lags during X-ray transients, in which a delay (phase shift) is observed between the Fourier components of the hard and soft spectra. Despite a large body of observational evidence for time lags, no fundamental physical explanation for the origin of this phenomenon has been presented. We develop a new theoretical model for the production of X-ray time lags based on an exact analytical solution for the Fourier transform describing the diffusion and Comptonization of seed photons propagating through a spherical corona. The resulting Green's function can be convolved with any source distribution to compute the associated Fourier transform and time lags, hence allowing us to explore a wide variety of injection scenarios. We show that thermal Comptonization is able to self-consistently explain both the X-ray time lags and the steady-state (quiescent) X-ray spectrum observed in the low-hard state of Cyg X-1. The reprocessing of bremsstrahlung seed photons produces X-ray time lags that diminish with increasing Fourier frequency, in agreement with the observations for a wide range of sources

A numerical study of the nonlinear Rayleigh-Taylor instability, with application of accreting X-ray sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Y.M.; Nepveu, M.

1983-01-01

With a view toward applications to accreting X-ray sources, the Rayleigh-Taylor instability is followed numerically, using a 2-D magnetohydrodynamic code. The presence of a uniform magnetic field in the underlying medium is allowed for. The infalling plasma is found to develop elongated, trailing loops; at least when the initial perturbation is highly symmetric, a narrow neck also forms through the action of the surrounding ram pressure. It is suggested that the swirling motion present in the nonlinear phase could produce some effective large-scale mixing between accreting plasma and the magnetospheric field of a neutron star. Another potentially significant tendency is for the curvature of the infalling plasma pocket to sharpen as the instability develops: magnetic tension may therefore become increasingly effective as a stabilizing influence. (orig.)

Accretion Disk Spectra of the Ultra-Luminous X-Ray Sources in Nearby Spiral Galaxies and Galactic Superluminal Jet Sources

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mizuno, T

2003-12-11

Ultra-luminous Compact X-ray Sources (ULXs) in nearby spiral galaxies and Galactic superluminal jet sources share the common spectral characteristic that they have unusually high disk temperatures which cannot be explained in the framework of the standard optically thick accretion disk in the Schwarzschild metric. On the other hand, the standard accretion disk around the Kerr black hole might explain the observed high disk temperature, as the inner radius of the Kerr disk gets smaller and the disk temperature can be consequently higher. However, we point out that the observable Kerr disk spectra becomes significantly harder than Schwarzschild disk spectra only when the disk is highly inclined. This is because the emission from the innermost part of the accretion disk is Doppler-boosted for an edge-on Kerr disk, while hardly seen for a face-on disk. The Galactic superluminal jet sources are known to be highly inclined systems, thus their energy spectra may be explained with the standard Kerr disk with known black hole masses. For ULXs, on the other hand, the standard Kerr disk model seems implausible, since it is highly unlikely that their accretion disks are preferentially inclined, and, if edge-on Kerr disk model is applied, the black hole mass becomes unreasonably large (> 300 M{sub solar}). Instead, the slim disk (advection dominated optically thick disk) model is likely to explain the observed super-Eddington luminosities, hard energy spectra, and spectral variations of ULXs. We suggest that ULXs are accreting black holes with a few tens of solar mass, which is not unexpected from the standard stellar evolution scenario, and that their X-ray emission is from the slim disk shining at super-Eddington luminosities.

IGR J14257-6117, a magnetic accreting white dwarf with a very strong strong X-ray orbital modulation

Science.gov (United States)

Bernardini, F.; de Martino, D.; Mukai, K.; Falanga, M.

2018-04-01

IGR J14257-6117 is an unclassified source in the hard X-ray catalogues. Optical follow-ups suggest it could be a Cataclysmic Variable of the magnetic type. We present the first high S/N X-ray observation performed by XMM-Newton at 0.3-10 keV, complemented with 10-80 keV coverage by Swift/BAT, aimed at revealing the source nature. We detected for the first time a fast periodic variability at 509.5 s and a longer periodic variability at 4.05 h, ascribed to the white dwarf (WD) spin and binary orbital periods, respectively. These unambiguously identify IGR J14257-6117 as a magnetic CV of the Intermediate Polar (IP) type. The energy resolved light curves at both periods reveal amplitudes decreasing with increasing energy, with the orbital modulation reaching ˜100% in the softest band. The energy spectrum shows optically thin thermal emission with an excess at the iron complex, absorbed by two dense media (NH ˜ 1022 - 23 cm-2), partially covering the X-ray source. These are likely localised in the magnetically confined accretion flow above the WD surface and at the disc rim, producing the energy dependent spin and orbital variabilities, respectively. IGR J14257-6117, joins the group of strongest orbitally modulated IPs now counting four systems. Drawing similarities with low-mass X-ray binaries displaying orbital dips, these IPs should be seen at large orbital inclinations allowing azimuthally extended absorbing material fixed in the binary frame to intercept the line of sight. For IGR J14257-6117, we estimate (50o ≲ i ≲ 70o). Whether also the mass accretion rate plays a role in the large orbital modulations in IPs cannot be established with the present data.

X-rays as a probe of the Universe

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Table of contents. X-rays as a probe of the Universe · Probing the Universe ….. Flux = sT4 umax = 1011 T (in Kelvin) · History of x-ray astronomy · X-ray Production · X-ray spectra · Celestial sphere as seen by UHURU (1970) · Slide 8 · X-rays from accreting binary systems · Slide 10 · Neutron stars: Black Hole: · Primary X-ray ...

X-ray reflection in oxygen-rich accretion discs of ultracompact X-ray binaries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madej, O. K.; Garcia, Jeronimo; Jonker, P. G.

2014-01-01

We present spectroscopic X-ray data of two candidate ultracompact X-ray binaries (UCXBs): 4U 0614+091 and 4U 1543-624. We confirm the presence of a broad O viii Ly alpha reflection line (at a parts per thousand 18 angstrom) using XMM-Newton and Chandra observations obtained in 2012 and 2013. The ...

The Ultracompact Nature of the Black Hole Candidate X-Ray Binary 47 Tuc X9

Science.gov (United States)

Bahramian, Arash; Heinke, Craig O.; Tudor, Vlad; Miller-Jones, James C. A.; Bogdanov, Slavko; Maccarone, Thomas J.; Knigge, Christian; Sivakoff, Gregory R.; Chomiuk, Laura; Strader, J.;

Signature of a Newborn Black Hole from the Collapse of a Supra-massive Millisecond Magnetar

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wei; Xie, Wei; Lei, Wei-Hua; Zou, Yuan-Chuan; Lü, Hou-Jun; Liang, En-Wei; Gao, He; Wang, Ding-Xiong

2017-11-01

An X-ray plateau followed by a steep decay (“internal plateau”) has been observed in both long and short gamma-ray burst (GRBs), implying that a millisecond magnetar operates in some GRBs. The sharp decay at the end of the plateau, marking the abrupt cessation of the magnetar’s central engine, has been considered the collapse of a supra-massive magnetar into a black hole (BH) when it spins down. If this “internal plateau” is indeed evidence of a magnetar central engine, the natural expectation in some candidates would be a signature from the newborn BH. In this work, we find that GRB 070110 is a particular case which shows a small X-ray bump following its “internal plateau.” We interpret the plateau as a spin-down supra-massive magnetar and the X-ray bump as fallback BH accretion. This indicates that a newborn BH is likely active in some GRBs. Therefore, GRB 070110-like events may provide further support to the magnetar central engine model and enable us to investigate the properties of the magnetar as well as the newborn BH.

NuSTAR OBSERVATIONS AND BROADBAND SPECTRAL ENERGY DISTRIBUTION MODELING OF THE MILLISECOND PULSAR BINARY PSR J1023+0038

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, K. L.; Kong, A. K. H.; Tam, P. H. T.; Jin, Ruolan [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan (China); Takata, J.; Cheng, K. S. [Department of Physics, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road (Hong Kong); Hui, C. Y., E-mail: lilirayhk@gmail.com, E-mail: akong@phys.nthu.edu.tw, E-mail: takata@hku.hk [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-20

We report the first hard X-ray (3-79 keV) observations of the millisecond pulsar (MSP) binary PSR J1023+0038 using NuSTAR. This system has been shown transiting between a low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) state and a rotation-powered MSP state. The NuSTAR observations were taken in both LMXB state and rotation-powered state. The source is clearly seen in both states up to ∼79 keV. During the LMXB state, the 3-79 keV flux is about a factor of 10 higher than in the rotation-powered state. The hard X-rays show clear orbital modulation during the X-ray faint rotation-powered state but the X-ray orbital period is not detected in the X-ray bright LMXB state. In addition, the X-ray spectrum changes from a flat power-law spectrum during the rotation-powered state to a steeper power-law spectrum in the LMXB state. We suggest that the hard X-rays are due to the intrabinary shock from the interaction between the pulsar wind and the injected material from the low-mass companion star. During the rotation-powered MSP state, the X-ray orbital modulation is due to Doppler boosting of the shocked pulsar wind. At the LMXB state, the evaporating matter of the accretion disk due to the gamma-ray irradiation from the pulsar stops almost all the pulsar wind, resulting in the disappearance of the X-ray orbital modulation.

Comptonization of low-frequency radiation in accretion disks Angular distribution and polarization of hard X-ray radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suniaev, R.A.; Titarchuk, L.G.

1984-01-01

Analytical consideration is given to the comptonization of photons and its effects on the radiation emitted from accretion disks of compact X-ray sources, such as black holes and neutron stars. Attention is given to the photon distribution during escape from the disk, the angular distribution of hard radiation from the disk, the polarization of hard radiation and the electron temperature distribution over the optical depth. It is shown that the hard radiation spectrum is independent of the low-frequency photon source distribution. The angular distribution and polarization of the outgoing X-rays are a function of the optical depth. A Thomson approximation is used to estimate the angular distribution of the hard radiation and the polarization over the disk. The polarization results are compared with OSO-8 satellite data for Cyg X-1 and show good agreement at several energy levels. 17 references

A MODEL FOR THE CORRELATION OF HARD X-RAY INDEX WITH EDDINGTON RATIO IN BLACK HOLE X-RAY BINARIES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qiao, Erlin; Liu, B. F.

2013-01-01

Observations show that there is a positive correlation between the Eddington ratio λ and hard X-ray index Γ for λ ∼> 0.01, and there is an anti-correlation between λ and Γ for λ ∼ bol /L Edd ). In this work, we theoretically investigate the correlation between Γ and λ within the framework of a disk-corona model. We improve the model by taking into account all cooling processes, including synchrotron and self-Compton radiations in the corona, Comptonization of the soft photons from the underlying accretion disk, and the bremsstrahlung radiations. Presuming that the coronal flow above the disk can reach up to the 0.1 Eddington rate at the outer region, we calculate the structure of the two-phase accretion flows and the emergent spectra for accretion rates from 0.003 to 0.1. We find that at accretion rates larger than bsim0.01 Eddington rate, a fraction of coronal gas condenses into the disk and an inner disk can be sustained by condensation. In this case, the X-ray emission is dominated by the scattering of the soft photon from the underlying disk in the corona. The emission from the inner disk and corona can produce the positive correlation between λ and Γ. While at accretion rates lower than bsim0.01 Eddington accretion rate, the inner disk vanishes completely by evaporation, and the accretion is dominated by advection-dominated accretion flows (ADAFs), in which the X-ray emission is produced by the Comptonization of the synchrotron and bremsstrahlung photons of ADAF itself. The emission from ADAFs can produce the anti-correlation between λ and Γ. We show that our model can roughly explain the observed evolution of Γ 3-25keV with L 0.5-25keV /L Edd for the black hole X-ray transient H1743–322 in the decay of 2003 from the thermal-dominated state to low/hard state.

Millisecond Magnetars as the Central Engine of Gamma-ray Bursts

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, L. J.

2017-05-01

The durations of GRBs (gamma-ray bursts) have a bimodal distribution with short-duration GRBs (SGRBs) lasting for less than ˜ 2 s and long-duration GRBs (LGRBs) greater than ˜ 2 s. A large number of observations indicate that LGRBs originate from the collapses of massive stars and are therefore associated with supernovae (SNe). SGRBs, on the other hand, are believed to be the results of binary compact object mergers. Now the study of GRBs has progressed to the stage of identifing the nature of central engines, i.e., black holes or millisecond magnetars. We elaborate the progress in Chapter 1. Numerical simulations support the idea of black holes as the central engine of GRBs since the simulations find the formation of jets by black holes. Some observational features, however, cannot be easily integrated into the black hole model, for example, the X-ray plateau lasting for 100-104 s, the extended emission of SGRBs, X-ray flares, etc. The most concise interpretation for these features is that they are powered by rapidly rotating magnetars. If the central engine is a magnetar, it will dissipate its rotational energy by injecting Poynting flux to the ejecta. Such energy injection will enable an observer outside the jet angle of the SGRB to detect the electromagnetic signals. In Chapter 2, we assume that the Poynting flux from the magnetar will quickly transform into the wind dominated by the ultrarelativistic electron-positron, and then a reverse shock will develop when the wind encounters the ejecta. We find that the recently discovered optical transient PTF11agg can be interpreted as synchrotron emission of reverse shock powered by a millisecond magnetar. In Chapter 3, we consider the absorption of reverse shock emission by the ejecta which is ignored when we study PTF11agg. We also adopt a more realistic dynamics of the blast wave than that adopted in Chapter 2. The ejecta is believed to be pure r-process material which is difficult to study in laboratory. We

NuSTAR DETECTION OF HARD X-RAY PHASE LAGS FROM THE ACCRETING PULSAR GS 0834–430

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyasaka, Hiromasa; Harrison, Fiona A.; Fürst, Felix; Bellm, Eric C.; Grefenstette, Brian W.; Madsen, Kristin K.; Walton, Dominic J. [Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Bachetti, Matteo; Barret, Didier [Université de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP, F-31400 Toulouse (France); Boggs, Steven E.; Craig, William W.; Tomsick, John A. [Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Chakrabarty, Deepto [Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Chenevez, Jerome; Christensen, Finn E. [DTU Space, National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Elektrovej 327, DK-2800 Lyngby (Denmark); Hailey, Charles J. [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States); Natalucci, Lorenzo [Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali, INAF, Via Fosso del Cavaliere 100, Roma I-00133 (Italy); Pottschmidt, Katja [CRESST, UMBC, and NASA GSFC, Code 661, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Stern, Daniel [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Wilms, Jörn, E-mail: miyasaka@srl.caltech.edu [Dr. Karl-Remeis-Sternwarte and ECAP, Sternwartstr. 7, D-96049 Bamberg (Germany); and others

2013-09-20

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array hard X-ray telescope observed the transient Be/X-ray binary GS 0834–430 during its 2012 outburst—the first active state of this system observed in the past 19 yr. We performed timing and spectral analysis and measured the X-ray spectrum between 3-79 keV with high statistical significance. We find the phase-averaged spectrum to be consistent with that observed in many other magnetized, accreting pulsars. We fail to detect cyclotron resonance scattering features that would allow us to constrain the pulsar's magnetic field in either phase-averaged or phase-resolved spectra. Timing analysis shows a clearly detected pulse period of ∼12.29 s in all energy bands. The pulse profiles show a strong, energy-dependent hard phase lag of up to 0.3 cycles in phase, or about 4 s. Such dramatic energy-dependent lags in the pulse profile have never before been reported in high-mass X-ray binary pulsars. Previously reported lags have been significantly smaller in phase and restricted to low energies (E < 10 keV). We investigate the possible mechanisms that might produce this energy-dependent pulse phase shift. We find the most likely explanation for this effect is a complex beam geometry.

Accretion Properties of a Sample of Hard X-Ray (<60 keV) Selected Seyfert 1 Galaxies

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, J.; Mao, Y. F.; Wei, J. Y.

2009-02-01

We examine the accretion properties in a sample of 42 hard (3-60 keV) X-ray selected nearby broad-line active galactic nuclei (AGNs). The energy range in the sample is harder than that usually used in similar previous studies. These AGNs are mainly complied from the RXTE All Sky Survey, and complemented by the released INTEGRAL AGN catalog. The black hole masses, bolometric luminosities of AGN, and Eddington ratios are derived from their optical spectra in terms of the broad Hβ emission line. The tight correlation between the hard X-ray (3-20 keV) and bolometric/line luminosity is well identified in our sample. Also identified is a strong inverse Baldwin relationship of the Hβ emission line. In addition, all of these hard X-ray AGNs are biased toward luminous objects with a high Eddington ratio (mostly between 0.01 and 0.1) and a low column density (Simbol-X, and NeXT. Finally, the correlation between RFe (= optical Fe II/Hβ) and disk temperature as assessed by T vprop (L/L Edd)M -1 BH leads us to suggest that the strength of the Fe II emission is mainly determined by the shape of the ionizing spectrum.

The Very Local Universe in X-Rays

Science.gov (United States)

Ptak, A.

2011-01-01

There are many open questions in X-ray observations of the Galactic neighborhood and nearby galaxies, such as the properties of the hot ISM and accreting sources, the X-ray/star-formation rate correlation and how the X-ray luminosity function of starburst galaxies. We discuss how these would be addressed by very wide-area (> 100 sq. deg.) X-ray surveys and upcoming X-ray missions. In particular planned NuStar observations of the Galaxy and nearby galaxies will be highlighted.

Millisecond Pulsars at Gamma-Ray Energies: Fermi Detections and Implications

Science.gov (United States)

Harding, Alice K.

2011-01-01

The Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope has revolutionized the study of pulsar physics with the discovery of new populations of radio quiet and millisecond gamma-ray pulsars. The Fermi Large Area Telescope has so far discovered approx.20 new gamma-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs) by both folding at periods of known radio MSPs or by detecting them as gamma-ray sources that are followed up by radio pulsar searches. The second method has resulted in a phenomenally successful synergy, with -30 new radio MSPs (to date) having been discovered at Fermi unidentified source locations and the gamma-ray pulsations having then been detected in a number of these using the radio timing solutions. Many of the newly discovered MSPs may be suitable for addition to the collection of very stable MSPs used for gravitational wave detection. Detection of such a large number of MSPs was surprising, given that most have relatively low spin-down luminosity and surface field strength. I will discuss their properties and the implications for pulsar particle acceleration and emission, as well as their potential contribution to gamma-ray backgrounds and Galactic cosmic rays.

X-rays from neutron stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boerner, G.

1979-08-01

The basic theoretical in the models of regularly pulsating X-ray sources are discussed, and put in relation to the observations. The topics covered include physics of the magnetosphere of an accreting neutron star, hydrodynamics of the accretion column, physical processes close to the surface of the neutron star such as proton-electron collisions, photon-electron interactions. (orig.)

SYMBIOTIC STARS IN X-RAYS. III. SUZAKU OBSERVATIONS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nuñez, N. E. [Instituto de Ciencias Astronómicas de la Tierra y del Espacio (ICATE-UNSJ, CONICET), Av. España (S) 1512, J5402DSP, San Juan (Argentina); Nelson, T. [Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455 (United States); Mukai, K. [CRESST and X-ray Astrophysics Laboratory, (NASA/GSFC), Greenbelt, MD 20 771, USA. (United States); Sokoloski, J. L. [Columbia Astrophysics Lab, 550 W120th St., 1027 Pupin Hall, MC 5247 Columbia University, 10027, New York (United States); Luna, G. J. M., E-mail: nnunez@icate-conicet.gov.ar [Instituto de Astronomía y Física del Espacio (IAFE, CONICET-UBA), Av. Inte. Güiraldes 2620, C1428ZAA, Buenos Aires (Argentina)

2016-06-10

We describe the X-ray emission as observed by Suzaku from five symbiotic stars that we selected for deep Suzaku observations after their initial detection with ROSAT, ASCA , and Swift . We find that the X-ray spectra of all five sources can be adequately fit with absorbed optically thin thermal plasma models, with either single- or multi-temperature plasmas. These models are compatible with the X-ray emission originating in the boundary layer between an accretion disk and a white dwarf. The high plasma temperatures of kT > 3 keV for all five targets were greater than expected for colliding winds. Based on these high temperatures as well as previous measurements of UV variability and UV luminosity and the large amplitude of X-ray flickering in 4 Dra, we conclude that all five sources are accretion-powered through predominantly optically thick boundary layers. Our X-ray data allow us to observe a small optically thin portion of the emission from these boundary layers. Given the time between previous observations and these observations, we find that the intrinsic X-ray flux and the intervening absorbing column can vary by factors of three or more on a timescale of years. However, the location of the absorber and the relationship between changes in accretion rate and absorption are still elusive.

SYMBIOTIC STARS IN X-RAYS. III. SUZAKU OBSERVATIONS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nuñez, N. E.; Nelson, T.; Mukai, K.; Sokoloski, J. L.; Luna, G. J. M.

2016-01-01

We describe the X-ray emission as observed by Suzaku from five symbiotic stars that we selected for deep Suzaku observations after their initial detection with ROSAT, ASCA , and Swift . We find that the X-ray spectra of all five sources can be adequately fit with absorbed optically thin thermal plasma models, with either single- or multi-temperature plasmas. These models are compatible with the X-ray emission originating in the boundary layer between an accretion disk and a white dwarf. The high plasma temperatures of kT > 3 keV for all five targets were greater than expected for colliding winds. Based on these high temperatures as well as previous measurements of UV variability and UV luminosity and the large amplitude of X-ray flickering in 4 Dra, we conclude that all five sources are accretion-powered through predominantly optically thick boundary layers. Our X-ray data allow us to observe a small optically thin portion of the emission from these boundary layers. Given the time between previous observations and these observations, we find that the intrinsic X-ray flux and the intervening absorbing column can vary by factors of three or more on a timescale of years. However, the location of the absorber and the relationship between changes in accretion rate and absorption are still elusive.

Formation and Evolution of X-ray Binaries

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Y.

2017-07-01

X-ray binaries are a class of binary systems, in which the accretor is a compact star (i.e., black hole, neutron star, or white dwarf). They are one of the most important objects in the universe, which can be used to study not only binary evolution but also accretion disks and compact stars. Statistical investigations of these binaries help to understand the formation and evolution of galaxies, and sometimes provide useful constraints on the cosmological models. The goal of this thesis is to investigate the formation and evolution processes of X-ray binaries including Be/X-ray binaries, low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs), and cataclysmic variables. In Chapter 1 we give a brief review on the basic knowledge of the binary evolution. In Chapter 2 we discuss the formation of Be stars through binary interaction. In this chapter we investigate the formation of Be stars resulting from mass transfer in binaries in the Galaxy. Using binary evolution and population synthesis calculations, we find that in Be/neutron star binaries the Be stars have a lower limit of mass ˜ 8 M⊙ if they are formed by a stable (i.e., without the occurrence of common envelope evolution) and nonconservative mass transfer. We demonstrate that the isolated Be stars may originate from both mergers of two main-sequence stars and disrupted Be binaries during the supernova explosions of the primary stars, but mergers seem to play a much more important role. Finally the fraction of Be stars produced by binary interactions in all B type stars can be as high as ˜ 13%-30% , implying that most of Be stars may result from binary interaction. In Chapter 3 we show the evolution of intermediate- and low-mass X-ray binaries (I/LMXBs) and the formation of millisecond pulsars. Comparing the calculated results with the observations of binary radio pulsars, we report the following results: (1) The allowed parameter space for forming binary pulsars in the initial orbital period

X-ray/UV variability and the origin of soft X-ray excess emission from II Zw 177

Science.gov (United States)

Pal, Main

We study a detailed broad-band X-ray/UV emission from the narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxy II Zw 177 based on two XMM-Newton and single Swift/XRT observations. Both XMM-Newton observations show the soft X-ray excess emission below 2 keV when the best-fit 2 - 10 keV power law is extrapolated down to 0.3 keV. We find the blurred reflection from an ionized accretion disc and Comptonized disc emission both describe the observed soft excess well. We find a remarkable trend of decreasing UV flux with increasing soft X-ray excess and power law emission. We suggest that this could be due to that the external edge of corona hide a fraction of accretion disk. Co-Author: Prof. Gulab C. Dewangan (IUCAA), Prof. Ranjeev Misra (IUCAA), Pramod Kumar (Nanded university)

Prospects for neutron star equation of state constraints using ''recycled'' millisecond pulsars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bogdanov, Slavko [Columbia University, Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, New York, NY (United States)

2016-02-15

''Recycled'' millisecond pulsars are a variety of rapidly spinning neutron stars that typically show thermal X-ray radiation due to the heated surface of their magnetic polar caps. Detailed numerical modeling of the rotation-induced thermal X-ray pulsations observed from recycled millisecond pulsars, including all relevant relativistic and stellar atmospheric effects, has been identified as a promising approach towards an astrophysical determination of the true neutron star mass-radius relation, and by extension the state of cold matter at densities exceeding those of atomic nuclei. Herein, I review the basic model and methodology commonly used to extract information regarding neutron star structure from the pulsed X-ray radiation observed from millisecond pulsars. I also summarize the results of past X-ray observations of these objects and the prospects for precision neutron star mass-radius measurements with the upcoming Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) X-ray timing mission. (orig.)

Optical and Infrared Lightcurve Modeling of the Gamma-ray Millisecond Pulsar 2FGL J2339.6-0532

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tzu-Ching Yen

2013-09-01

Full Text Available We report the detection of a quasi-sinusoidally modulated optical flux with a period of 4.6343 hour in the optical and infrared band of the Fermi source 2FGL J2339.7-0531. Comparing the multi-wavelength observations, we suggest that 2FGL J2339.7- 0531 is a γ-ray emitting millisecond pulsar (MSP in a binary system with an optically visible late-type companion accreted by the pulsar, where the MSP is responsible for the γ-ray emission while the optical and infrared emission originate from the heated side of the companion. Based on the optical properties, the companion star is believed to be heated by the pulsar and reaches peak magnitude when the heated side faces the observer. We conclude that 2FGL J2339.7-0531 is a member of a subclass of γ-ray emitting pulsars -the ‘black widows’- recently revealed to be evaporating their companions in the late-stage of recycling as a prominent group of these newly revealed Fermi sources.

Accretion disk emission from a BL Lacertae object

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wandel, A.; Urry, C.M.

1991-01-01

It is suggested here that the UV and X-ray emission of BL Lac objects may originate in an accretion disk. Using detailed calculations of accretion disk spectra, the best-measured ultraviolet and soft X-ray spectra of the BL Lac object PKS 2155-304 are fitted, and the mass and accretion rate required is determined. The ultraviolet through soft X-ray continuum is well fitted by the spectrum of an accretion disk, but near-Eddington accretion rates are required to produce the soft X-ray excess. A hot disk or corona could Comptonize soft photons from the cool disk and produce the observed power-law spectrum in the 1-10 keV range. The dynamic time scale in the disk regions that contribute most of the observed ultraviolet and soft X-ray photons are consistent with the respective time scales for intensity variations observed in these two wave bands; the mass derived from fitting the continuum spectrum is consistent with the limit derived from the fastest hard X-ray variability. 37 refs

Studying Microquasars with X-Ray Polarimetry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giorgio Matt

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Microquasars are Galactic black hole systems in which matter is transferred from a donor star and accretes onto a black hole of, typically, 10–20 solar masses. The presence of an accretion disk and a relativistic jet made them a scaled down analogue of quasars—thence their name. Microquasars feature prominently in the scientific goals of X-ray polarimeters, because a number of open questions, which are discussed in this paper, can potentially be answered: the geometry of the hot corona believed to be responsible for the hard X-ray emission; the role of the jet; the spin of the black hole.

LINE FORMATION IN SPECTRA OF X-RAY NOVAE

OpenAIRE

Suleimanov, V. F.; Shimansky, V. V.

2017-01-01

Results of X-ray Novae (XN) optical spectra computation are presented. The continuum and Balmer line are calculated. The model of XN as a self-irradiated accretion disk is used. Local (for given radius) disk atmospheres as model stellar atmospheres, heated due to external X-ray radiation are treated. Changes of spectra shape and equivalent widths of the Balmer lines depending from the luminosity and some others accretion disk parameters are investigated. The comparison of GRO JO422+32 observe...

X-ray bursters and the X-ray sources of the galactic bulge

Science.gov (United States)

Lewin, W. H. G.; Joss, P. C.

An attempt is made to distill from observational and theoretical information on the galactic bulge X-ray sources in general, and on the X-ray burst sources in particular, those aspects which seem to have the greatest relevance to the understanding of these sources. Galactic bulge sources appear to be collapsed objects of roughly solar mass, in most cases neutron stars, which are accreting matter from low-mass stellar companions. Type I bursts seem to result from thermonuclear flashes in the surface layers of some of these neutron stars, while the type II bursts from the Rapid Burster are almost certainly due to an instability in the accretion flow onto a neutron star. It is concluded that the studies cited offer a new and powerful observational handle on the fundamental properties of neutron stars and of the interacting binary systems in which they are often contained.

INTEGRAL monitoring of unusually long X-ray bursts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

of the accreted material, these bursts may be explained by either the unstable burning of a large pile of mixed hydrogen and helium, or the ignition of a thick pure helium layer. Long duration bursts are particularly expected at very low accretion rates and make possible to study the transition from a hydrogen......Thermonuclear bursts on the surface of accreting neutron stars in low mass X-ray binaries have been studied for many years and have in a few cases confirmed theoretical models of nuclear ignition and burning mechanisms. The large majority of X-ray bursts last less than 100s. A good number......-rich bursting regime to a pure helium regime. Moreover, a handful of long bursts have shown, before the extended decay phase, an initial spike similar to a normal short X-ray burst. Such twofold bursts might be a sort of link between short and super-bursts, where the premature ignition of a carbon layer could...

Galaxies in the X-ray Band

Science.gov (United States)

Hornschemeier, Ann

2008-01-01

This talk will provide a brief review of progress on X-ray emission from normal (non-AGN) galaxy populations, including important constraints on the evolution of accreting binary populations over important cosmological timescales. We will also look to the future, anticipating constraints from near-term imaging hard X-ray missions such as NuSTAR, Simbol-X and NeXT and then the longer-term prospects for studying galaxies with the Generation-X mission.

Optical and X-ray luminosities of expanding nebulae around ultraluminous X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Siwek, Magdalena; Sądowski, Aleksander; Narayan, Ramesh; Roberts, Timothy P.; Soria, Roberto

2017-09-01

We have performed a set of simulations of expanding, spherically symmetric nebulae inflated by winds from accreting black holes in ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). We implemented a realistic cooling function to account for free-free and bound-free cooling. For all model parameters we considered, the forward shock in the interstellar medium becomes radiative at a radius ˜100 pc. The emission is primarily in optical and UV, and the radiative luminosity is about 50 per cent of the total kinetic luminosity of the wind. In contrast, the reverse shock in the wind is adiabatic so long as the terminal outflow velocity of the wind vw ≳ 0.003c. The shocked wind in these models radiates in X-rays, but with a luminosity of only ˜1035 erg s-1. For wind velocities vw ≲ 0.001c, the shocked wind becomes radiative, but it is no longer hot enough to produce X-rays. Instead it emits in optical and UV, and the radiative luminosity is comparable to 100 per cent of the wind kinetic luminosity. We suggest that measuring the optical luminosities and putting limits on the X-ray and radio emission from shock-ionized ULX bubbles may help in estimating the mass outflow rate of the central accretion disc and the velocity of the outflow.

X-ray and Optical Explorations of Spiders

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, M.; Al Noori, H.; Torres, R.; Russell, D.; Mclaughlin, M.; Gentile, P.

2017-10-01

Black widows and redbacks are binary systems consisting of a millisecond pulsar in a close binary with a companion which is having matter driven off of its surface by the pulsar wind. X-rays due to an intrabinary shock have been observed from many of these systems, as well as orbital variations in the optical emission from the companion due to heating and tidal distortion. We have been systematically studying these systems in radio, optical and X-rays. Here we will present an overview of X-ray and optical studies of these systems, including new XMM-Newton data obtained from several of these systems, along with new optical photometry.

Introductory Overview of Intermediate-luminosity X-ray Objects

Science.gov (United States)

Colbert, E. J. M.

2001-05-01

Intermediate-luminosity X-ray Objects (IXOs) are defined as compact objects having X-ray luminosities between those of X-ray binaries and low-luminosity AGNs (i.e., 1039.0 erg s-1 < ~ LX [IXOs] < ~ 1041.0 erg s-1). It is not currently known if these objects are intermediate-mass (M ~ 102-104 Msun) black holes accreting near the Eddington limit, near-solar-mass black holes in a super-Eddington state, or are, in some cases, just supermassive black holes accreting at very low rates. However, the first idea has been popularized by recent press coverage. IXOs are quite common (present in about half of spiral galaxies) and are typically found displaced from the optical nucleus, reducing the likelihood that they are low-luminosity AGN. Nearly all of our knowledge of these objects comes from X-ray observations, as observations of optical, NIR and radio counterparts are not widely known. In this session, we will address (1) the phenomenology of the objects, (2) possible geometry and accretion mechanisms for these objects (i.e., are they more similar to black hole X-ray binaries or AGNs), (3) the central black hole masses, and (4) the formation mechanism for these black holes, if they are of intermediate mass. In this talk, I will focus primarily on giving background information of these fascinating objects.

SWIFT OBSERVATIONS OF HARD X-RAY EMITTING WHITE DWARFS IN SYMBIOTIC STARS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennea, J. A.; Burrows, D. N.; Mukai, K.; Markwardt, C. B.; Sokoloski, J. L.; Luna, G. J. M.; Tueller, J.

2009-01-01

The X-ray emission from most accreting white dwarfs (WDs) in symbiotic binary stars is quite soft. Several symbiotic WDs, however, produce strong X-ray emission at energies greater than ∼20 keV. The Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) instrument has detected hard X-ray emission from four such accreting WDs in symbiotic stars: RT Cru, T CrB, CD -57 3057, and CH Cyg. In one case (RT Cru), Swift detected X-rays out to greater than 50 keV at >5σ confidence level. Combining data from the X-Ray Telescope (XRT) and BAT detectors, we find that the 0.3-150 keV spectra of RT Cru, T CrB, and CD -57 3057 are well described by emission from a single-temperature, optically thin thermal plasma, plus an unresolved 6.4-6.9 keV Fe line complex. The X-ray spectrum of CH Cyg contains an additional bright soft component. For all four systems, the spectra suffer high levels of absorption from material that both fully and partially covers the source of hard X-rays. The XRT data did not show any of the rapid, periodic variations that one would expect if the X-ray emission were due to accretion onto a rotating, highly magnetized WD. The X-rays were thus more likely from the accretion-disk boundary layer around a massive, non-magnetic WD in each binary. The X-ray emission from RT Cru varied on timescales of a few days. This variability is consistent with being due to changes in the absorber that partially covers the source, suggesting localized absorption from a clumpy medium moving into the line of sight. The X-ray emission from CD -57 3057 and T CrB also varied during the nine months of Swift observations, in a manner that was also consistent with variable absorption.

Accreting Black Holes

OpenAIRE

Begelman, Mitchell C.

2014-01-01

I outline the theory of accretion onto black holes, and its application to observed phenomena such as X-ray binaries, active galactic nuclei, tidal disruption events, and gamma-ray bursts. The dynamics as well as radiative signatures of black hole accretion depend on interactions between the relatively simple black-hole spacetime and complex radiation, plasma and magnetohydrodynamical processes in the surrounding gas. I will show how transient accretion processes could provide clues to these ...

Period variations in pulsating X-ray sources. I. Accretion flow parameters and neutron star structure from timing observations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lamb, F.K.; Pines, D.; Shaham, J.

1978-01-01

We show that valuable information about both accretion flows and neutron star structure can be obtained from X-ray timing observations of period variations in pulsating sources. Such variations can result from variations in the accretion flow, or from internal torque variations, associated with oscillations of the fluid core or the unpinning of vortices in the inner crust. We develop a statistical description of torque variations in terms of noise processes, indicate how the applicability of such a description may be tested observationally, and show how it may be used to determine from observation both the properties of accretion flows and the internal structure of neutron stars, including the relative inertial moments of the crust and superfluid neutron core, the crust-core coupling time, and the frequencies of any low-frequency internal collective modes. Particular attention is paid to the physical origin of spin-down episodes; it is shown that usyc episodes may result either from external torque reversals or from internal torque variations.With the aid of the statistical description, the response of the star to torque fluctuations is calculated for three stellar models: (i) a completely rigid star; (ii) a two-component star; and (iii) a two-component star with a finite-frequency internal mode, such as the Tkachenko mode of a rotating neutron superfluid. Our calculations show that fluctuating torques could account for the period the period variations and spin-down episodes observed in Her X-1 and Cen X-3, including the large spin-down event observed in the latter source during 1972 September-October. The torque noise strengths inferred from current timing observations using the simple two-component models are shown to be consistent with those to be expected from fluctuations in accretion flows onto magnetic neutron stars

Exploring anti-correlated radio/X-ray modes in transitional millisecond pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Jaodand, Amruta

2017-09-01

Recently, using coordinated VLA+Chandra observations, Bogdanov et al.(2017) have uncovered a stunning anti-correlation in the LMXB state of the tMSP PSR J1023+0038. They see that radio luminosity consistently peaks during the X-ray `low' luminosity modes. Also, we have found a promising candidate tMSP, 3FGL J1544-1125(J1544) (Bogdanov and Halpern 2015; currently only tMSP candidate apart from J1023 in a persistent LMXB state). Using VLA and simultaneous Swift observations we see that it lies on the proposed tMSP track in radio vs. X-ray luminosity (L_ R/L_X) diagram. This finding strengthens its classification as a tMSP and provides an excellent opportunity to a)determine universality of radio/X-ray brightness anti-correlatio and b)understand jet/outflow formation in tMSPs.

Ultra-luminous X-ray sources and intermediate-mass black holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cseh, David

2012-01-01

More than ten years ago, the discovery of Ultra-luminous X-ray sources (ULXs) has opened up an entirely new field in astrophysics. Many ideas were developed to explain the nature of these sources, like their emission mechanism, mass, and origin, without any strong conclusions. Their discovery boosted the fields of X-ray binaries, accretion physics, stellar evolution, cosmology, black hole formation and growth, due to the concept of intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs). Since their discovery is related to the domain of X-ray astrophysics, there have been very few studies made in other wavelengths. This thesis focuses on the multiwavelength nature of Ultra-luminous X-ray sources and intermediate-mass black holes from various aspects, which help to overcome some difficulties we face today. First, I investigated the accretion signatures of a putative intermediate-mass black hole in a particular globular cluster. To this purpose, I characterized the nature of the innermost X-ray sources in the cluster. Then I calculated an upper limit on the mass of the black hole by studying possible accretion efficiencies and rates based on the dedicated X-ray and radio observations. The accreting properties of the source was described with standard spherical accretion and in the context of inefficient accretion. Secondly, I attempted to dynamically measure the mass of the black hole in a particular ULX via optical spectroscopy. I discovered that a certain emission line has a broad component that markedly shifts in wavelength. I investigated the possibility whether this line originates in the accretion disk, and thus might trace the orbital motion of the binary system. I also characterized the parameters of the binary system, such as the mass function, possible orbital separation, the size of the line-emitting region, and an upper limit on the mass of the black hole. Then I studied the environment of a number of ULXs that are associated with large-scale optical and radio nebulae. I

X-Ray Bursts from NGC 6652

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan, Edward

The possibly transient X-ray Source in the globular cluster NGC 6652 has been seen by BeppoSax and the ASM on RXTE to undergo X-ray bursts, possibly Type I. Very little is known about this X-ray source, and confirmation of its bursts type-I nature would identify it as a neutron star binary. Type I bursts in 6 other sources have been shown to exhibit intervals of millisecond ocsillation that most likely indicate the neutron star spin period. Radius-expansion bursts can reveal information about the mass and size of the neutron star. We propose to use the ASM to trigger an observation of this source to maximize the probability of catching a burst in the PCA.

X-Ray and Optical Observations of the Unique Binary System HD 49798/RX J0648.0-4418

Science.gov (United States)

Mereghetti, S.; La Palombara, N.; Tiengo, A.; Pizzolato, F.; Esposito, P.; Woudt, P. A.; Israel, G. L.; Stella, L.

2011-08-01

We report the results of XMM-Newton observations of HD 49798/RX J0648.0-4418, the only known X-ray binary consisting of a hot sub-dwarf and a white dwarf. The white dwarf rotates very rapidly (P = 13.2 s) and has a dynamically measured mass of 1.28 ± 0.05 M sun. Its X-ray emission consists of a strongly pulsed, soft component, well fit by a blackbody with kT BB ~ 40 eV, accounting for most of the luminosity, and a fainter hard power-law component (photon index ~1.6). A luminosity of ~1032 erg s-1 is produced by accretion onto the white dwarf of the helium-rich matter from the wind of the companion, which is one of the few hot sub-dwarfs showing evidence of mass loss. A search for optical pulsations at the South African Astronomical Observatory 1.9 m telescope gave negative results. X-rays were also detected during the white dwarf eclipse. This emission, with luminosity 2 × 1030 erg s-1, can be attributed to HD 49798 and represents the first detection of a hot sub-dwarf star in the X-ray band. HD 49798/RX J0648.0-4418 is a post-common-envelope binary which most likely originated from a pair of stars with masses ~8-10 M sun. After the current He-burning phase, HD 49798 will expand and reach the Roche lobe, causing a higher accretion rate onto the white dwarf which can reach the Chandrasekhar limit. Considering the fast spin of the white dwarf, this could lead to the formation of a millisecond pulsar. Alternatively, this system could be a Type Ia supernova progenitor with the appealing characteristic of a short time delay, being the descendent of relatively massive stars.

A STRANGE STAR SCENARIO FOR THE FORMATION OF ECCENTRIC MILLISECOND PULSAR/HELIUM WHITE DWARF BINARIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jiang, Long; Li, Xiang-Dong [Department of Astronomy, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210046 (China); Dey, Jishnu; Dey, Mira, E-mail: lixd@nju.edu.cn [Department of Physics, Presidency University, 86/1, College Street, Kolkata 700 073 (India)

2015-07-01

According to the recycling scenario, millisecond pulsars (MSPs) have evolved from low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs). Their orbits are expected to be circular due to tidal interactions during binary evolution, as observed in most binary MSPs. There are some peculiar systems that do not fit this picture. Three recent examples are the PSRs J2234+06, J1946+3417, and J1950+2414, all of which are MSPs in eccentric orbits but with mass functions compatible with expected He white dwarf (WD) companions. It has been suggested these MSPs may have formed from delayed accretion-induced collapse of massive WDs, or the eccentricity may be induced by dynamical interaction between the binary and a circumbinary disk. Assuming that the core density of accreting neutron stars (NSs) in LMXBs may reach the density of quark deconfinement, which can lead to phase transition from NSs to strange quark stars, we show that the resultant MSPs are likely to have an eccentric orbit, due to the sudden loss of the gravitational mass of the NS during the transition. The eccentricities can be reproduced with a reasonable estimate of the mass loss. This scenario might also account for the formation of the youngest known X-ray binary Cir X–1, which also possesses a low-field compact star in an eccentric orbit.

X-ray surveys - Weighting the dark matter haloes of X-ray AGN: towards a physical description of the accretion history of the Universe

Science.gov (United States)

Georgakakis, Antonis; Mountrichas, G.; Fanidakis, N.; Finoguenov, A.; Aegis Collaboration

2012-09-01

The masses of the dark matter haloes in which AGN live is powerful diagnostic of the conditions under which supermassive black holes form and evolve across cosmic time. A new clustering estimation method will be presented which requires spectroscopy only for the AGN and uses photometric redshift probability density functions for galaxies to determine the projected real-space AGN/galaxy cross-correlation function. Our method is superior to traditional AGN clustering estimators (e.g. auto-correlation function) because (i) random errors are significantly suppressed when counting AGN/galaxy pairs, (ii) the impact of sample variance is minimized, and (iii) the requirements for spectroscopy are minimal; only spectroscopic redshift measurements for the AGN are needed. This method is applied to the combined AEGIS, COSMOS and ECDFS fields to infer the bias and dark matter halo mass of moderate luminosity (Lx~10^43 erg/s/cm^2) X-ray AGN at z~1 (total of 400). Predictions from the GALFORM semi-analytic model will be compared to the observations to show that a combination of hot and cold-gas accretion (the latter triggered by disk instabilities in spirals rather than mergers) reproduce well the clustering properties of X-ray AGN over a range of redshifts and luminosities.

Radiation-driven winds in x-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Friend, D.B.; Castor, J.I.

1982-01-01

We discuss the properties of a radiation-driven stellar wind in an X-ray binary system. The Castor, Abbott, Klein line-driven wind model is used, but the effects of the compact companion (gravity and continuum radiation pressure) and the centrifugal force due to orbital motion are included. These forces destroy the spherical symmetry of the wind and can make the mass loss and accretion strong functions of the size of the primary relative to its critical potential lobe. We in most systems the wind alone could power the X-ray emission. It also appears that, in the evolution of these systems, there would be a continuous transition from wind accretion to critical potential lobe overflow. The model is also used to make a prediction about the nature of a suspected binary system which is not known to be an X-ray emitter

NuSTAR detection of 4s Hard X-ray Lags from the Accreting Pulsar GS 0834-430

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bachetti Matteo

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The NuSTAR hard X-ray telescope observed the transient Be/X-ray binary GS 0834–430 during its 2012 outburst. The source is detected between 3 – 79 keV with high statistical significance, and we were able to perform very accurate spectral and timing analysis. The phase-averaged spectrum is consistent with that observed in many other magnetized accreting pulsars. We fail to detect cyclotron resonance scattering features in either phase-averaged nor phase-resolved spectra that would allow us to constrain the pulsar’s magnetic field. We detect a pulse period of ~ 12:29 s in all energy bands. The pulse profile can be modeled with a double Gaussian and shows a strong and smooth hard lag of up to 0.3 cycles in phase, or about 4s between the pulse at ~ 3 and ≳ 30 keV. This is the first report of such a strong lag in high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB pulsars. Previously reported lags have been significantly smaller in phase and restricted to low-energies (E<10 keV. We investigate the possible mechanisms that might produce such lags. We find the most likely explanation for this effect to be a complex beam geometry.

Discovery of a strong soft X-ray excess in Mkn 335 -evidence for an accretion disc

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pounds, K.A.; Stanger, V.J.; Turner, T.J.; King, A.R.; Czerny, B.

1987-01-01

EXOSAT observations of Mkn 335 reveal a hard power-law spectrum above approx. 1 keV, typical for Seyfert 1 galaxies, but with unusually strong variability on time-scales of approx. 1-2 hr. In addition an intense soft X-ray component is found to dominate the overall spectrum of Mkn 335 below approx. 0.6 keV. Both soft and hard components increased in strength by a factor approx. 6 between 1983 November and 1984 December. These observations are discussed in terms of models in which an accretion disc feeds a central massive black hole. It is found that radiation pressure only allows a thermal origin for the soft X-radiation if the black hole mass is 7 solar masses, as suggested also by the observed variability time-scale. (author)

Detectability of rotation-powered pulsars in future hard X-ray surveys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Wei

2009-01-01

Recent INTEGRAL/IBIS hard X-ray surveys have detected about 10 young pulsars. We show hard X-ray properties of these 10 young pulsars, which have a luminosity of 10 33 -10 37 erg s -1 and a photon index of 1.6-2.1 in the energy range of 20-100 keV. The correlation between X-ray luminosity and spin-down power of L X ∝ L sd 1.31 suggests that the hard X-ray emission in rotation-powered pulsars is dominated by the pulsar wind nebula (PWN) component. Assuming spectral properties are similar in 20-100 keV and 2-10 keV for both the pulsar and PWN components, the hard X-ray luminosity and flux of 39 known young X-ray pulsars and 8 millisecond pulsars are obtained, and a correlation of L X ∝ L sd 1.5 is derived. About 20 known young X-ray pulsars and 1 millisecond pulsars could be detected with future INTEGRAL and HXMT surveys. We also carry out Monte Carlo simulations of hard X-ray pulsars in the Galaxy and the Gould Belt, assuming values for the pulsar birth rate, initial position, proper motion velocity, period, and magnetic field distribution and evolution based on observational statistics and the L X - L sd relations: L X ∝ L sd 1.31 and L X ∝ L sd 1.5 . More than 40 young pulsars (mostly in the Galactic plane) could be detected after ten years of INTEGRAL surveys and the launch of HXMT. So, the young pulsars would be a significant part of the hard X-ray source population in the sky, and will contribute to unidentified hard X-ray sources in present and future hard X-ray surveys by INTEGRAL and HXMT.

Enhanced winds and tidal streams in massive X-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blondin, J.M.; Stevens, I.R.; Kallman, T.R.

1991-01-01

The tidal effects created by the presence of a compact companion are expected to induce a stream of enhanced wind from the early-type primary star in massive X-ray binary systems. In this paper, two-dimensional gasdynamical simulations of such streams are presented. It is found that the wind enhancement is a sensitive function of the binary separation, and develops into a tidal stream as the primary approaches its critical surface. For typical system parameters, the Coriolis force deflects the stream sufficiently that it does not impact directly on the compact companion but passes behind it. The density in the stream can reach values of 20-30 times the ambient wind density, leading to strong attenuation of the X-ray flux that passes through the tidal stream, providing a possible explanation of the enhanced absorption events seen at later phases in the X-ray observations of massive X-ray binary systems such as Vela X-1. In contrast to the time-variable accretion wake, the tidal stream is relatively stationary, producing absorption features that should remain fixed from orbit to orbit. For systems with a strong tidal stream, the large asymmetry in the accreting wind results in the accretion of angular momentum of constant sign, as opposed to systems without streams, where the sign of the accreted angular momentum can change. 39 refs

Testing the Paradigm that Ultraluminous X-Ray Sources as a Class Represent Accreting Intermediate-Mass Black Holes

Science.gov (United States)

Berghea, C. T.; Weaver, K. A.; Colbert, E. J. M.; Roberts, T. P.

2008-11-01

To test the idea that ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) in external galaxies represent a class of accreting intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs), we have undertaken a program to identify ULXs and a lower luminosity X-ray comparison sample with the highest quality data in the Chandra archive. We establish as a general property of ULXs that the most X-ray-luminous objects possess the flattest X-ray spectra (in the Chandra bandpass). No prior sample studies have established the general hardening of ULX spectra with luminosity. This hardening occurs at the highest luminosities (absorbed luminosity >=5 × 1039 erg s-1) and is in line with recent models arguing that ULXs are actually stellar mass black holes. From spectral modeling, we show that the evidence originally taken to mean that ULXs are IMBHs—i.e., the "simple IMBH model"—is nowhere near as compelling when a large sample of ULXs is looked at properly. During the last couple of years, XMM-Newton spectroscopy of ULXs has to a large extent begun to negate the simple IMBH model based on fewer objects. We confirm and expand these results, which validates the XMM-Newton work in a broader sense with independent X-ray data. We find that (1) cool-disk components are present with roughly equal probability and total flux fraction for any given ULX, regardless of luminosity, and (2) cool-disk components extend below the standard ULX luminosity cutoff of 1039 erg s-1, down to our sample limit of 1038.3 erg s-1. The fact that cool-disk components are not correlated with luminosity damages the argument that cool disks indicate IMBHs in ULXs, for which strong statistical support was never found.

Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer Observations of the First Transient Z Source XTE J1701-462: Shedding New Light on Mass Accretion in Luminous Neutron Star X-Ray Binaries

Science.gov (United States)

Homan, Jeroen; van der Klis, Michiel; Wijnands, Rudy; Belloni, Tomaso; Fender, Rob; Klein-Wolt, Marc; Casella, Piergiorgio; Méndez, Mariano; Gallo, Elena; Lewin, Walter H. G.; Gehrels, Neil

2007-02-01

We report on the first 10 weeks of RXTE observations of the X-ray transient XTE J1701-462 and conclude that it had all the characteristics of the neutron star Z sources, i.e., the brightest persistent neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries. These include the typical Z-shaped tracks traced out in X-ray color diagrams and the variability components detected in the power spectra, such as kHz QPOs and normal and horizontal branch oscillations. XTE J1701-462 is the first transient Z source and provides unique insights into mass accretion rate (m˙) and luminosity dependencies in neutron star X-ray binaries. As its overall luminosity decreased, we observed a switch between two types of Z source behavior, with the branches of the Z track changing their shape and/or orientation. We interpret this as an extreme case of the more moderate long-term changes seen in the persistent Z sources and suggest that they result from changes in m˙. We also suggest that the Cyg-like Z sources (Cyg X-2, GX 5-1, and GX 340+0) are substantially more luminous (>50%) than the Sco-like Z sources (Sco X-1, GX 17+2, and GX 349+2). Adopting a possible explanation for the behavior of kHz QPOs, which involves a prompt as well as a filtered response to changes in m˙, we further propose that changes in m˙ can explain both movement along the Z track and changes in the shape of the Z track. We discuss some consequences of this and consider the possibility that the branches of the Z will smoothly evolve into the branches observed in X-ray color diagrams of the less luminous atoll sources, although not in a way that was previously suggested.

Millisecond Pulsar Timing Precision with NICER

Science.gov (United States)

Deneva, Julia; Ray, Paul S.; Ransom, Scott; Wood, Kent S.; Kerr, Matthew T.; Lommen, Andrea; Arzoumanian, Zaven; Black, Kevin; Gendreau, Keith C.; Lewandowska, Natalia; Markwardt, Craig B.; Price, Samuel; Winternitz, Luke

2018-01-01

The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) is an array of 56 X-ray detectors mounted on the outside of the International Space Station. It allows high-precision timing of millisecond pulsars (MSPs) without the pulse broadening effects due to dispersion and scattering by the interstellar medium that plague radio timing. We present initial timing results from four months of NICER data on the MSPs B1937+21, B1821-24, and J0218+4232, and compare them to simulations and theoretical models for X-ray times-of-arrival, and radio observations.

On the theory of X-ray pulsar radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheleznyakov, V.V.

1981-01-01

The origin of hard X-ray spectrum (continuum and cyclotron lines) of pulsars in binary systems is discussed. A model of the polar region of a neutron star consisting of a hot spot in a dense plasma atmosphere with a quasi-homogeneous magnetic field and an extended accreting column in an inhomogeneous dipolar field is investigated. In the hot spot bremsstrahlung and Thomson scattering form continuum radiation, while bremsstrahlung and cyclotron scattering produce the absorption cyclotron lines. By the observed continuum intensity one can estimate the maximum distances to pulsars. Cyclotron scattering in gyro-resonant layers localized in the accreting column leads to a general attenuation of the radiation of a hot spot, but is unable to ensure the formation of cyclotron lines. For strong accretion the hot spot radiation becomes insignificant, the lines disappear and the pulsating component of an X-ray pulsar is produced by the accreting column bremsstrahlung transformed by Thomson scattering. (orig.)

Neutron Stars in X-ray Binaries and their Environments

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Biswajit Paul

2017-09-07

Sep 7, 2017 ... Various recent studies of reprocessing of X-rays in the accretion disk surface .... accretion rate is considered to be the only variable fac- tor that determines ... stellar wind, and any intervening interstellar mate- rial. Reprocessed ...

Spectral state transitions of the Ultraluminous X-ray Source IC 342 X-1

Science.gov (United States)

Marlowe, H.; Kaaret, P.; Lang, C.; Feng, H.; Grisé, F.; Miller, N.; Cseh, D.; Corbel, S.; Mushotzky, R. F.

2014-10-01

We observed the Ultraluminous X-ray Source (ULX) IC 342 X-1 simultaneously in X-ray and radio with Chandra and the JVLA to investigate previously reported unresolved radio emission coincident with the ULX. The Chandra data reveal a spectrum that is much softer than observed previously and is well modelled by a thermal accretion disc spectrum. No significant radio emission above the rms noise level was observed within the region of the ULX, consistent with the interpretation as a thermal state though other states cannot be entirely ruled out with the current data. We estimate the mass of the black hole using the modelled inner disc temperature to be 30 M_{⊙} ≲ M√{cosi}≲ 200 M_{⊙} based on a Shakura-Sunyaev disc model. Through a study of the hardness and high-energy curvature of available X-ray observations, we find that the accretion state of X-1 is not determined by luminosity alone.

Relativistic jets from accreting black holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coriat, Mickael

2010-01-01

Matter ejection processes, more commonly called jets, are among the most ubiquitous phenomena of the universe at ail scales of size and energy and are inseparable from accretion process. This intimate link, still poorly understood, is the main focus of this thesis. Through multi-wavelength observations of X-ray binary Systems hosting a black hole, I will try to bring new constraints on the physics of relativistic jets and the accretion - ejection coupling. We strive first to compare the simultaneous infrared, optical and X-ray emissions of the binary GX 339-4 over a period of five years. We study the nature of the central accretion flow, one of the least understood emission components of X-ray binaries, both in its geometry and in term of the physical processes that take place. This component is fundamental since it is could be the jets launching area or be highly connected to it. Then we focus on the infrared emission of the jets to investigate the physical conditions close to the jets base. We finally study the influence of irradiation of the outer accretion disc by the central X-ray source. Then, we present the results of a long-term radio and X-ray study of the micro-quasar H1743- 322. This System belongs to a population of accreting black holes that display, for a given X-ray luminosity, a radio emission fainter than expected. We make several assumptions about the physical origin of this phenomenon and show in particular that these sources could have a radiatively efficient central accretion flow. We finally explore the phases of return to the hard state of GX 339-4. We follow the re-emergence of the compact jets emission and try to bring new constraints on the physics of jet formation. (author) [fr

The Swift Supergiant Fast X-ray Transient Project

Science.gov (United States)

Romano, P.; Barthelmy, S.; Bozzo, E.; Burrows, D.; Ducci, L.; Esposito, P.; Evans, P.; Kennea, J.; Krimm, H.; Vercellone, S.

2017-10-01

We present the Swift Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients project, a systematic study of SFXTs and classical supergiant X-ray binaries (SGXBs) through efficient long-term monitoring of 17 sources including SFXTs and classical SGXBs across more than 4 orders of magnitude in X-ray luminosity on timescales from hundred seconds to years. We derived dynamic ranges, duty cycles, and luminosity distributions to highlight systematic differences that help discriminate between different theoretical models proposed to explain the differences between the wind accretion processes in SFXTs and classical SGXBs. Our follow-ups of the SFXT outbursts provide a steady advancement in the comprehension of the mechanisms triggering the high X-ray level emission of these sources. In particular, the observations of the outburst of the SFXT prototype IGR J17544-2619, when the source reached a peak X-ray luminosity of 3×10^{38} erg s^{-1}, challenged for the first time the maximum theoretical luminosity achievable by a wind-fed neutron star high mass X-ray binary. We propose that this giant outburst was due to the formation of a transient accretion disc around the compact object. We also created a catalogue of over 1000 BAT flares which we use to predict the observability and perspectives with future missions.

LIFTING THE VEIL ON OBSCURED ACCRETION: ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI NUMBER COUNTS AND SURVEY STRATEGIES FOR IMAGING HARD X-RAY MISSIONS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ballantyne, D. R.; Draper, A. R.; Madsen, K. K.; Rigby, J. R.; Treister, E.

2011-01-01

Finding and characterizing the population of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) that produces the X-ray background (XRB) is necessary to connect the history of accretion to observations of galaxy evolution at longer wavelengths. The year 2012 will see the deployment of the first hard X-ray imaging telescope which, through deep extragalactic surveys, will be able to measure the AGN population at the energies where the XRB peaks (∼20-30 keV). Here, we present predictions of AGN number counts in three hard X-ray bandpasses: 6-10 keV, 10-30 keV, and 30-60 keV. Separate predictions are presented for the number counts of Compton thick AGNs, the most heavily obscured active galaxies. The number counts are calculated for five different models of the XRB that differ in the assumed hard X-ray luminosity function, the evolution of the Compton thick AGNs, and the underlying AGN spectral model. The majority of the hard X-ray number counts will be Compton thin AGNs, but there is a greater than tenfold increase in the Compton thick number counts from the 6-10 keV to the 10-30 keV band. The Compton thick population shows enough variation that a hard X-ray number counts measurement will constrain the models. The computed number counts are used to consider various survey strategies for the NuSTAR mission, assuming a total exposure time of 6.2 Ms. We find that multiple surveys will allow a measurement of Compton thick evolution. The predictions presented here should be useful for all future imaging hard X-ray missions.

OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCE HOLMBERG IX X-1 AND ITS STELLAR ENVIRONMENT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grise, F.; Kaaret, P.; Pakull, M. W.; Motch, C.

2011-01-01

Holmberg IX X-1 is an archetypal ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX). Here we study the properties of the optical counterpart and of its stellar environment using optical data from SUBARU/Faint Object Camera and Spectrograph, GEMINI/GMOS-N and Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Advanced Camera for Surveys, as well as simultaneous Chandra X-ray data. The V ∼ 22.6 spectroscopically identified optical counterpart is part of a loose cluster with an age ∼ sun . The counterpart is more luminous than the other stars of the association, suggesting a non-negligible optical contribution from the accretion disk. An observed UV excess also points to non-stellar light similar to X-ray active low-mass X-ray binaries. A broad He II λ4686 emission line identified in the optical spectrum of the ULX further suggests optical light from X-ray reprocessing in the accretion disk. Using stellar evolutionary tracks, we have constrained the mass of the counterpart to be ∼> 10 M sun , even if the accretion disk contributes significantly to the optical luminosity. Comparison of the photometric properties of the counterpart with binary models show that the donor may be more massive, ∼> 25 M sun , with the ULX system likely undergoing case AB mass transfer. Finally, the counterpart exhibits photometric variability of 0.14 mag between two HST observations separated by 50 days which could be due to ellipsoidal variations and/or disk reprocessing of variable X-ray emission.

The response of the Fe K\\alpha line to changes in the X-ray illumination of accretion discs

OpenAIRE

Ballantyne, D. R.; Ross, R. R.

2002-01-01

X-ray reflection spectra from photoionized accretion discs in active galaxies are presented for a wide range of illumination conditions. The energy, equivalent width (EW) and flux of the Fe K line are shown to depend strongly on the ratio of illuminating flux to disc flux, Fx/Fdisc, the photon index of the irradiating power-law, \\Gamma, and the incidence angle of the radiation, i. When Fx/Fdisc \\leq 2 a neutral Fe K line is prominent for all but the largest values of \\Gamma. At higher illumin...

X-RAY SIGNATURES OF NON-EQUILIBRIUM IONIZATION EFFECTS IN GALAXY CLUSTER ACCRETION SHOCK REGIONS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, Ka-Wah; Sarazin, Craig L.; Ji Li

2011-01-01

The densities in the outer regions of clusters of galaxies are very low, and the collisional timescales are very long. As a result, heavy elements will be under-ionized after they have passed through the accretion shock. We have studied systematically the effects of non-equilibrium ionization for relaxed clusters in the ΛCDM cosmology using one-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations. We found that non-equilibrium ionization effects do not depend on cluster mass, but depend strongly on redshift which can be understood by self-similar scaling arguments. The effects are stronger for clusters at lower redshifts. We present X-ray signatures such as surface brightness profiles and emission lines in detail for a massive cluster at low redshift. In general, soft emission (0.3-1.0 keV) is enhanced significantly by under-ionization, and the enhancement can be nearly an order of magnitude near the shock radius. The most prominent non-equilibrium ionization signature we found is the O VII and O VIII line ratio. The ratios for non-equilibrium ionization and collisional ionization equilibrium models are different by more than an order of magnitude at radii beyond half of the shock radius. These non-equilibrium ionization signatures are equally strong for models with different non-adiabatic shock electron heating efficiencies. We have also calculated the detectability of the O VII and O VIII lines with the future International X-ray Observatory (IXO). Depending on the line ratio measured, we conclude that an exposure of ∼130-380 ks on a moderate-redshift, massive regular cluster with the X-ray Microcalorimeter Spectrometer (XMS) on the IXO will be sufficient to provide a strong test for the non-equilibrium ionization model.

Pulsed Gamma Rays from the Original Millisecond and Black Widow Pulsars: A Case for Caustic Radio Emission?

Science.gov (United States)

Guillemot, L.; Johnson, T. J.; Venter, C.; Kerr, M.; Pancrazi, B.; Livingstone, M.; Janssen, G. H.; Jaroenjittichai, P.; Kramer, M.; Cognard, I.;

Instrumentation for millisecond-resolution scattering studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephenson, G.B.; Ludwig, K.F. Jr.; Jordan-Sweet, J.L.; Brauer, S.; Mainville, J.; Yang, Y.S.; Sutton, M.

1989-01-01

Time-resolved x-ray scattering studies of phase transition kinetics have been carried out using the wide-bandpass monochromator and fast linear position-sensitive detector system at the IBM/MIT beamline X-20C at the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS). We report here on the instrumentation that has been developed for these studies, and in particular on the methods used to measure, change, and control sample temperature with millisecond resolution

Heating the Primordial Soup: X-raying the Circumstellar Disk of RY Lupi

Science.gov (United States)

Principe, David

2015-09-01

X-ray irradiation of circumstellar disks plays a vital role in their chemical evolution yet few high resolution X-ray observations exist characterizing both the disk-illuminating radiation field and the soft energy spectrum absorbed by the disk. We propose HETG spectroscopic observations of RY Lupi, a rare example of a nearly edge-on, actively accreting star-disk system within 150 pc. We aim to take advantage of its unique viewing geometry with the goals of (a) determining the intrinsic X-ray spectrum of the central pre-MS star so as to establish whether its X-ray emission can be attributed to accretion shocks or coronal emission, and (b) model the spectrum of X-rays absorbed by its gaseous disk. These results will serve as essential input to models of irradiated, planet-forming disks.

GBM Observations of Be X-Ray Binary Outbursts

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson-Hodge, Colleen A.; Finger, M. H.; Jenke, P. A.

2014-01-01

Since 2008 we have been monitoring accreting pulsars using the Gamma ray Burst Monitor (GBM) on Fermi. This monitoring program includes daily blind full sky searches for previously unknown or previously quiescent pulsars and source specific analysis to track the frequency evolution of all detected pulsars. To date we have detected outbursts from 23 transient accreting pulsars, including 21 confirmed or likely Be/X-ray binaries. I will describe our techniques and highlight results for selected pulsars.

Population synthesis of radio and gamma-ray millisecond pulsars using Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Gonthier, Peter L.; Koh, Yew-Meng; Kust Harding, Alice

2016-04-01

We present preliminary results of a new population synthesis of millisecond pulsars (MSP) from the Galactic disk using Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques to better understand the model parameter space. We include empirical radio and gamma-ray luminosity models that are dependent on the pulsar period and period derivative with freely varying exponents. The magnitudes of the model luminosities are adjusted to reproduce the number of MSPs detected by a group of thirteen radio surveys as well as the MSP birth rate in the Galaxy and the number of MSPs detected by Fermi. We explore various high-energy emission geometries like the slot gap, outer gap, two pole caustic and pair starved polar cap models. The parameters associated with the birth distributions for the mass accretion rate, magnetic field, and period distributions are well constrained. With the set of four free parameters, we employ Markov Chain Monte Carlo simulations to explore the model parameter space. We present preliminary comparisons of the simulated and detected distributions of radio and gamma-ray pulsar characteristics. We estimate the contribution of MSPs to the diffuse gamma-ray background with a special focus on the Galactic Center.We express our gratitude for the generous support of the National Science Foundation (RUI: AST-1009731), Fermi Guest Investigator Program and the NASA Astrophysics Theory and Fundamental Program (NNX09AQ71G).

Hunting for Intrinsically X-ray Weak Quasars: The Case of PHL 1811 Analogs

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, William

2009-09-01

A central dogma of X-ray astronomy is that luminous X-ray emission is a universal property of efficiently accreting supermassive black holes. One interesting challenge to this idea has come from the quasar PHL 1811 which appears to be intrinsically X-ray weak and also has distinctive emission-line properties. We propose to observe a sample of eight SDSS quasars, selected to have similar UV emission-line properties to that of PHL 1811, to test if they are also X-ray weak. Our analyses of the currently available X-ray data appear to support this hypothesis but do not provide a proper test. Our results will have implications for the nature of accretion-disk coronae, emission-line formation, and AGN selection.

On the Magnetic Field of the Ultraluminous X-Ray Pulsar M82 X-2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, Kun; Li, Xiang-Dong, E-mail: lixd@nju.edu.cn [Department of Astronomy, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023 (China)

2017-04-01

The discovery of the ultraluminous X-ray pulsar M82 X-2 has stimulated lively discussion on the nature of the accreting neutron star. In most of the previous studies the magnetic field of the neutron star was derived from the observed spin-up/down rates based on the standard thin, magnetized accretion disk model. However, under super-Eddington accretion the inner part of the accretion disk becomes geometrically thick. In this work we consider both radiation feedback from the neutron star and the sub-Keplerian rotation in a thick disk and calculate the magnetic moment–mass accretion rate relations for the measured rates of spin change. We find that the derived neutron star's dipole magnetic field depends on the maximum accretion rate adopted, but is likely ≲10{sup 13} G. The predicted accretion rate change can be used to test the proposed models by comparison with observations.

A PILOT DEEP SURVEY FOR X-RAY EMISSION FROM fuvAGB STARS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sahai, R. [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, MS 183-900, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Sanz-Forcada, J.; Sánchez Contreras, C. [Astrobiology Center (CSIC-INTA), ESAC campus, E-28691 Villanueva de la Canada, Madrid (Spain); Stute, M. [Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 10, D-72076, Tübingen (Germany)

2015-09-01

We report the results of a pilot survey for X-ray emission from a newly discovered class of AGB stars with far-ultraviolet excesses (fuvAGB stars) using XMM-Newton and Chandra. We detected X-ray emission in three of six fuvAGB stars observed—the X-ray fluxes are found to vary in a stochastic or quasi-periodic manner on roughly hour-long timescales, and simultaneous UV observations using the Optical Monitor on XMM for these sources show similar variations in the UV flux. These data, together with previous studies, show that X-ray emission is found only in fuvAGB stars. From modeling the spectra, we find that the observed X-ray luminosities are ∼(0.002–0.2) L{sub ⊙} and the X-ray-emitting plasma temperatures are ∼(35–160) × 10{sup 6} K. The high X-ray temperatures argue against the emission arising in stellar coronae, or directly in an accretion shock, unless it occurs on a WD companion. However, none of the detected objects is a known WD-symbiotic star, suggesting that if WD companions are present, they are relatively cool (<20,000 K). In addition, the high X-ray luminosities specifically argue against emission originating in the coronae of main-sequence companions. We discuss several models for the X-ray emission and its variability and find that the most likely scenario for the origin of the X-ray (and FUV) emission involves accretion activity around a companion star, with confinement by strong magnetic fields associated with the companion and/or an accretion disk around it.

The use of dual X-ray absorptiometry for the determination of skeletal calcium accretion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ilich, J.Z.; Skugor, M.; Matkovic, V.

1994-01-01

The neutron activation analysis is considered the 'gold standard' method for the measurement of total body calcium (TBCa). The disadvantage of this method is that there are only a few centers that can perform the measurements with good precision, accuracy and relatively low radiation exposure. The measurement of TBCa gives the information about Ca skeletal accretion which is important for the determination of Ca requirements. The purpose of our study was to measure TBCa in adolescent females during different time periods. The TBCa was measured by the use of dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), on Lunar DPX-L densitometer (LUNAR Corp., Madison WI). The in-vivo precision of the instrument for TBCa measurements was 0.93%. The study population included 364 healthy, Caucasian females. An average age at baseline was 10.8±0.8 years (mean±SD) and 11.9±0.8 years after 1 year. The subjects underwent pubertal stage (PS) changes of PS 2 to PS 3 in their sexual development. The TBCa was 506±91 g (mean±SD) at baseline and 614±122 g after 1 year, with 21.3% change. Assuming that Ca comprises ∼ 38%% of bone mineral, there was ∼ 108 g of Ca accumulated in 1 year or ∼ 296 mg Ca/day. In addition, we compared Ca accretion measured by DXA (over the 6 months period) and 2 weeks Ca balance study on a subsample of 26 girls. The accumulation of Ca by DXA method was 52g/6 months and the one estimated from balance study was 50g. We conclude that DXA is a suitable noninvasive method for the measurement of TBCa accretion during rapid growth and for clinical intervention trials in adults. (author)

SEXTANT X-Ray Pulsar Navigation Demonstration: Initial On-Orbit Results

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Jason W.; Winternitz, Luke B.; Hassouneh, Munther A.; Price, Samuel R.; Semper, Sean R.; Yu, Wayne H.; Ray, Paul S.; Wolf, Michael T.; Kerr, Matthew; Wood, Kent S.;

Model Atmospheres for X-ray Bursting Neutron Stars

OpenAIRE

Medin, Zach; von Steinkirch, Marina; Calder, Alan C.; Fontes, Christopher J.; Fryer, Chris L.; Hungerford, Aimee L.

2016-01-01

The hydrogen and helium accreted by X-ray bursting neutron stars is periodically consumed in runaway thermonuclear reactions that cause the entire surface to glow brightly in X-rays for a few seconds. With models of the emission, the mass and radius of the neutron star can be inferred from the observations. By simultaneously probing neutron star masses and radii, X-ray bursts are one of the strongest diagnostics of the nature of matter at extremely high densities. Accurate determinations of t...

LoCuSS: The infall of X-ray groups onto massive clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Haines, C. P.; Finoguenov, A.; Smith, G. P.; Babul, A.; Egami, E.; Mazzotta, P.; Okabe, N.; Pereira, M. J.; Bianconi, M.; McGee, S. L.; Ziparo, F.; Campusano, L. E.; Loyola, C.

2018-03-01

Galaxy clusters are expected to form hierarchically in a ΛCDM universe, growing primarily through mergers with lower mass clusters and the continual accretion of group-mass halos. Galaxy clusters assemble late, doubling their masses since z ˜ 0.5, and so the outer regions of clusters should be replete with accreting group-mass systems. We present an XMM-Newton survey to search for X-ray groups in the infall regions of 23 massive galaxy clusters ( ˜ 1015 M⊙) at z ˜ 0.2, identifying 39 X-ray groups that have been spectroscopically confirmed to lie at the cluster redshift. These groups have mass estimates in the range 2 × 1013 - 7 × 1014 M⊙, and group-to-cluster mass ratios as low as 0.02. The comoving number density of X-ray groups in the infall regions is ˜25 × higher than that seen for isolated X-ray groups from the XXL survey. The average mass per cluster contained within these X-ray groups is 2.2 × 1014 M⊙, or 19 ± 5% of the mass within the primary cluster itself. We estimate that ˜1015 M⊙ clusters increase their masses by 16 ± 4% between z = 0.223 and the present day due to the accretion of groups with M200 ≥ 1013.2 M⊙. This represents about half of the expected mass growth rate of clusters at these late epochs. The other half is likely to come from smooth accretion of matter not bound within halos. The mass function of the infalling X-ray groups appears significantly top heavy with respect to that of "field" X-ray systems, consistent with expectations from numerical simulations, and the basic consequences of collapsed massive dark matter halos being biased tracers of the underlying large-scale density distribution.

Einstein X-ray observations of M101

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trinchieri, G.; Fabbiano, G.; Romaine, S.

1990-01-01

The Einstein X-ray observations of the face-on spiral galaxy M101 are presented. The global X-ray luminosity L(x) of M101 is about 1.2 x 10 to the 40th ergs/s for D = 7.2 Mpc, consistent with the expected X-ray luminosity of normal spiral galaxies of its optical magnitude. The X-ray emission is mostly due to very luminous individual sources, with L(x) greater than 10 to the 38th ergs/s each, most likely very massive accreting binary systems. The data suggest a deficiency of sources in the luminosity range of L(x) from about 10 to the 37th to about 10 to the 38th ergs/s, which would indicate that the luminosity distribution of the X-ray sources in M101 might be different from that of M31 or M33. 35 refs

Einstein X-ray observations of M101

Science.gov (United States)

Trinchieri, G.; Fabbiano, G.; Romaine, S.

1990-01-01

The Einstein X-ray observations of the face-on spiral galaxy M101 are presented. The global X-ray luminosity L(x) of M101 is about 1.2 x 10 to the 40th ergs/s for D = 7.2 Mpc, consistent with the expected X-ray luminosity of normal spiral galaxies of its optical magnitude. The X-ray emission is mostly due to very luminous individual sources, with L(x) greater than 10 to the 38th ergs/s each, most likely very massive accreting binary systems. The data suggest a deficiency of sources in the luminosity range of L(x) from about 10 to the 37th to about 10 to the 38th ergs/s, which would indicate that the luminosity distribution of the X-ray sources in M101 might be different from that of M31 or M33.

Broad-Band Variability in Accreting Compact Objects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Scaringi

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Cataclysmic variable stars are in many ways similar to X-ray binaries. Both types of systems possess an accretion disk, which in most cases can reach the surface (or event horizon of the central compact object. The main difference is that the embedded gravitational potential well in X-ray binaries is much deeper than those found in cataclysmic variables. As a result, X-ray binaries emit most of their radiation at X-ray wavelengths, as opposed to cataclysmic variables which emit mostly at optical/ultraviolet wavelengths. Both types of systems display aperiodic broad-band variability which can be associated to the accretion disk. Here, the properties of the observed X-ray variability in XRBs are compared to those observed at optical wavelengths in CVs. In most cases the variability properties of both types of systems are qualitatively similar once the relevant timescales associated with the inner accretion disk regions have been taken into account. The similarities include the observed power spectral density shapes, the rms-flux relation as well as Fourier-dependant time lags. Here a brief overview on these similarities is given, placing them in the context of the fluctuating accretion disk model which seeks to reproduce the observed variability.

Early Results from NICER Observations of Accreting Neutron Stars

Science.gov (United States)

Chakrabarty, Deepto; Ozel, Feryal; Arzoumanian, Zaven; Gendreau, Keith C.; Bult, Peter; Cackett, Ed; Chenevez, Jerome; Fabian, Andy; Guillot, Sebastien; Guver, Tolga; Homan, Jeroen; Keek, Laurens; Lamb, Frederick; Ludlam, Renee; Mahmoodifar, Simin; Markwardt, Craig B.; Miller, Jon M.; Psaltis, Dimitrios; Strohmayer, Tod E.; Wilson-Hodge, Colleen A.; Wolff, Michael T.

2018-01-01

The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) offers significant new capabilities for the study of accreting neuton stars relative to previous X-ray missions including large effective area, low background, and greatly improved low-energy response. The NICER Burst and Accretion Working Group has designed a 2 Ms observation program to study a number of phenomena in accreting neutron stars including type-I X-ray bursts, superbursts, accretion-powered pulsations, quasi-periodic oscillations, and accretion disk reflection spectra. We present some early results from the first six months of the NICER mission.

X-ray phase imaging-From static observation to dynamic observation-

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Momose, A.; Yashiro, W.; Olbinado, M. P.; Harasse, S.

2012-01-01

We are attempting to expand the technology of X-ray grating phase imaging/tomography to enable dynamic observation. X-ray phase imaging has been performed mainly for static cases, and this challenge is significant since properties of materials (and hopefully their functions) would be understood by observing their dynamics in addition to their structure, which is an inherent advantage of X-ray imaging. Our recent activities in combination with white synchrotron radiation for this purpose are described. Taking advantage of the fact that an X-ray grating interferometer functions with X-rays of a broad energy bandwidth (and therefore high flux), movies of differential phase images and visibility images are obtained with a time resolution of a millisecond. The time resolution of X-ray phase tomography can therefore be a second. This study is performed as a part of a project to explore X-ray grating interferometry, and our other current activities are also briefly outlined.

Identifying Bright X-Ray Beasts

Science.gov (United States)

Kohler, Susanna

2017-10-01

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are astronomical sources of X-rays that, while dimmer than active galactic nuclei, are nonetheless brighter than any known stellar process. What are these beasts and why do they shine so brightly?Exceeding the LimitFirst discovered in the 1980s, ULXs are rare sources that have nonetheless been found in all types of galaxies. Though the bright X-ray radiation seems likely to be coming from compact objects accreting gas, theres a problem with this theory: ULXs outshine the Eddington luminosity for stellar-mass compact objects. This means that a stellar-mass object couldnt emit this much radiation isotropically without blowing itself apart.There are two alternative explanations commonly proposed for ULXs:Rather than being accreting stellar-mass compact objects, they are accreting intermediate-mass black holes. A hypothetical black hole of 100 solar masses or more would have a much higher Eddington luminosity than a stellar-mass black hole, making the luminosities that we observe from ULXs feasible.An example of one of the common routes the authors find for a binary system to become a ULX. In this case, the binary begins as two main sequence stars. As one star evolves off the main sequence, the binary undergoes a common envelope phase and a stage of mass transfer. The star ends its life as a supernova, and the resulting neutron star then accretes matter from the main sequence star as a ULX. [Wiktorowicz et al. 2017]They are ordinary X-ray binaries (a stellar-mass compact object accreting matter from a companion star), but they are undergoing a short phase of extreme accretion. During this time, their emission is beamed into jets, making them appear brighter than the Eddington luminosity.Clues from a New DiscoveryA few years ago, a new discovery shed some light on ULXs: M82 X-2, a pulsing ULX. Two more pulsing ULXs have been discovered since then, demonstrating that at least some ULXs contain pulsars i.e., neutron stars as the

NuSTAR detection of 4s Hard X-ray Lags from the Accreting Pulsar GS 0834-430

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bachetti, Matteo; Miyasaka, Hiromasa; Harrison, Fiona

2014-01-01

is consistent with that observed in many other magnetized accreting pulsars. We fail to detect cyclotron resonance scattering features in either phase-averaged nor phase-resolved spectra that would allow us to constrain the pulsar’s magnetic field. We detect a pulse period of ∼ 12.29 s in all energy bands....... The pulse profile can be modeled with a double Gaussian and shows a strong and smooth hard lag of up to 0.3 cycles in phase, or about 4s between the pulse at ∼ 3 and >∼ 30 keV. This is the first report of such a strong lag in high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) pulsars. Previously reported lags have been...

A Population of Gamma-Ray Millisecond Pulsars Seen with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dumora, D.; Grondin, M.H.; Guillemot, L.; Lemoine-Goumard, M.; Lovellette, M.N.; Parent, D.; Smith, D.A.; Abdo, A.A.; Chekhtman, A.; Dermer, C.D.; Grove, J.E.; Johnson, W.N.; Makeev, A.; Ray, P.S.; Strickman, M.S.; Wood, K.S.; Ackermann, M.; Ajello, M.; Bechtol, K.; Berenji, B.; Blandford, R.D.; Bloom, E.D.; Borgland, A.W.; Cameron, R.A.; Charles, E.; Chiang, J.; Claus, R.; Digel, S.W.; Silva, E.D.E.; Drell, P.S.; Dubois, R.; Edmonds, Y.; Focke, W.B.; Funk, S.; Glanzman, T.; Godfrey, G.; Hayashida, M.; Johannesson, G.; Kocian, M.L.; Lande, J.; Madejski, G.M.; Michelson, P.F.; Mitthumsiri, W.; Monzani, M.E.; Moskalenko, I.V.; Murgia, S.; Nolan, P.L.; Paneque, D.; Panetta, J.H.; Reimer, A.; Reimer, O.; Rochester, L.S.; Romani, R.W.; Tajima, H.; Tanaka, T.; Thayer, J.B.; Thayer, J.G.; Tramacere, A.; Uchiyama, Y.; Usher, T.L.; Van Etten, A.; Waite, A.P.; Wang, P.; Watters, K.; Atwood, W.B.; Dormody, M.; Johnson, R.P.; Porter, T.A.; Sadrozinski, H.F.W.; Schalk, T.L.; Thorsett, S.E.; Ziegler, M.; Axelsson, M.; Carlson, P.; Conrad, J.; Meurer, C.; Ryde, F.; Ylinen, T.; Axelsson, M.; Baldini, L.; Bellazzini, R.; Bregeon, J.; Brez, A.; Kuss, M.; Latronico, L.; Omodei, N.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Razzano, M.; Sgro, C.; Spandre, G.; Ballet, J.; Casandjian, J.M.; Grenier, I.A.; Starck, J.L.

2009-01-01

Pulsars are born with sub-second spin periods and slow by electromagnetic braking for several tens of millions of years, when detectable radiation ceases. A second life can occur for neutron stars in binary systems. They can acquire mass and angular momentum from their companions, to be spun up to millisecond periods and begin radiating again. We searched Fermi Large Area Telescope data for pulsations from all known millisecond pulsars (MSPs) outside of globular clusters, using rotation parameters from radio telescopes. Strong gamma-ray pulsations were detected for eight MSPs. The gamma-ray pulse profiles and spectral properties resemble those of young gamma-ray pulsars. The basic emission mechanism seems to be the same for MSPs and young pulsars, with the emission originating in regions far from the neutron star surface. (authors)

The disc-jet coupling in the neutron star X-ray binary 4U 1728-34

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tudose, Valeriu; Tzioumis, Anastasios; Belloni, Tomaso; Altamirano, Diego; Linares, Manuel; Mendez, Mariano; Hiemstra, Beike

2010-01-01

The present radio proposal is part of a multi-wavelength campaign focused on the study of the accretion/ejection process in the neutron star X-ray binary system 4U 1728-34. Our intention is to study the behaviour of the inner part of the accretion disc as inferred from the X-ray observations of the

Black hole and neutron star soft X-ray transients: a hard X-ray view of their outbursts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu, W.

2004-01-01

The RXTE public observations of the outbursts of black hole soft X-ray transients XTE J1550-564, XTE J1859+226, 4U 1630-47, XTE J1118+480, XTE J1650-500, and the neutron star soft X-ray transients 4U 1608-52, Aquila X-1, including a variable 'persistent' neutron star low mass X-ray binary 4U 1705-44, are summarized in this paper. The hard X-ray view of those outbursts, which is quite different from that of the soft X-ray band, suggests that there are several types of outbursts which result in different hard X-ray outburst profile - the outburst profiles are energy dependent. One type is the low/hard state outbursts, the other type is the outburst showing transitions from the low/hard state to the high/soft state, or to the intermediate or to the very high state. The later has an initial low/hard state, introducing the phenomena that the hard X-ray precedes the soft X-ray in the outburst rise. Such outbursts in XTE J1550-564, Aql X-1 and 4U 1705-44 support a two-accretion-flow model which involves one Keplerian disk flow and one sub-Keplerian flow for the initial outburst rise

Constraints on the inner accretion flow of 4U/MXB 1636-53 (V 801 Arae) from a comparison of X-ray burst and persistent emission

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Damen, E.; Wijers, R.A.M.J.; van Paradijs, J.; Penninx, W.; Oosterbroek, T.; Lewin, W.H.G.; Jansen, F.

1990-01-01

A detailed analysis is presented of the importance of Comptonization in burst and persistent spectra of the low-mass X-ray binary 4U/MXB 1636-53, and from this analysis it is inferred that the inner accretion flow is geometrically thin. It is found that burst spectra of 1636-53 are very nearly

X-ray spectra of PG quasars. I. The continuum from X-rays to infrared

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elvis, M.; Green, R.F.; Bechtold, J.; Schmidt, M.; Neugebauer, G.; Kitt Peak National Observatory, Tucson, AZ; Steward Observatory, Tucson, AZ; Palomar Observatory, Pasadena, CA)

1986-01-01

Einstein IPC X-ray spectra for a sample of eight optically selected quasars from the Palomar Bright Quasar survey are presented. The quasars have a mean power law energy slope which in five individual cases is inconsistent with the value found in hard X-ray selection criterion rather than luminosity, redshift, or U-B color. New IUE and optical continuum spectra and infrared photometry are presented for these quasars. The data are combined into log vf(v) and log v distributions which support the decomposition of the overall quasar spectrum into a power law plus a superposed optical-UV big bump which may be due to an accretion disk. At least six of the quasars have vf(v)s which are roughly constant between their infrared and X-ray power laws, suggesting a strong link between the two regions. 104 references

X-Ray Brightening and UV Fading of Tidal Disruption Event ASASSN-15oi

Science.gov (United States)

Gezari, S.; Cenko, S. B.; Arcavi, I.

2017-12-01

We present late-time observations by Swift and XMM-Newton of the tidal disruption event (TDE) ASASSN-15oi that reveal that the source brightened in the X-rays by a factor of ∼10 one year after its discovery, while it faded in the UV/optical by a factor of ∼100. The XMM-Newton observations measure a soft X-ray blackbody component with {{kT}}{bb}∼ 45 {eV}, corresponding to radiation from several gravitational radii of a central ∼ {10}6 {M}ȯ black hole. The last Swift epoch taken almost 600 days after discovery shows that the X-ray source has faded back to its levels during the UV/optical peak. The timescale of the X-ray brightening suggests that the X-ray emission could be coming from delayed accretion through a newly forming debris disk and that the prompt UV/optical emission is from the prior circularization of the disk through stream–stream collisions. The lack of spectral evolution during the X-ray brightening disfavors ionization breakout of a TDE “veiled” by obscuring material. This is the first time a TDE has been shown to have a delayed peak in soft X-rays relative to the UV/optical peak, which may be the first clear signature of the real-time assembly of a nascent accretion disk, and provides strong evidence for the origin of the UV/optical emission from circularization, as opposed to reprocessed emission of accretion radiation.

CVs and millisecond pulsar progenitors in globular clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Grindlay, J. E.; Cool, A. M.; Bailyn, C. D.

1991-01-01

The recent discovery of a large population of millisecond pulsars in globular clusters, together with earlier studies of both low luminosity X-ray sources and LMXBs in globulars, suggest there should be significant numbers of CVs in globulars. Although they have been searched for without success in selected cluster X-ray source fields, systematic surveys are lacking and would constrain binary production and both stellar and dynamical evolution in globular clusters. We describe the beginnings of such a search, using narrow band H-alpha imaging, and the sensitivities it might achieve.

A spherical model for the transient x-ray source A0620-00

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dilworth, C.; Maraschi, L.; Perola, G.C.

1977-01-01

The continuum spectrum of the transient X-ray source A0620-00, from infrared to X-ray frequencies, is interpreted as emission from a uniform spherical cloud of hot gas in which the free-free spectrum is modified by Thomson scattering. On this basis, the radius and the density of the cloud, and the distance of the source, are derived. The change of the spectrum with the time indicates a decrease of both radius and density with decreasing luminosity. Considering the production of X-rays to be due to impulsive accretion in a low-mass binary system, these results open the question as to whether the accreting object is a white dwarf rather than a neutron star. (author)

Complex UV/X-ray variability of 1H 0707-495

Science.gov (United States)

Pawar, P. K.; Dewangan, G. C.; Papadakis, I. E.; Patil, M. K.; Pal, Main; Kembhavi, A. K.

2017-12-01

We study the relationship between the UV and X-ray variability of the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy 1H 0707-495. Using a year-long Swift monitoring and four long XMM-Newton observations, we perform cross-correlation analyses of the UV and X-ray light curves, on both long and short time-scales. We also perform time-resolved X-ray spectroscopy on 1-2 ks scale, and study the relationship between the UV emission and the X-ray spectral components - soft X-ray excess and a power law. We find that the UV and X-ray variations anticorrelate on short, and possibly on long time-scales as well. Our results rule out reprocessing as the dominant mechanism for the UV variability, as well as the inward propagating fluctuations in the accretion rate. Absence of a positive correlation between the photon index and the UV flux suggests that the observed UV emission is unlikely to be the seed photons for the thermal Comptonization. We find a strong correlation between the continuum flux and the soft-excess temperature which implies that the soft excess is most likely the reprocessed X-ray emission in the inner accretion disc. Strong X-ray heating of the innermost regions in the disc, due to gravitational light bending, appears to be an important effect in 1H 0707-495, giving rise to a significant fraction of the soft excess as reprocessed thermal emission. We also find indications for a non-static, dynamic X-ray corona, where either the size or height (or both) vary with time.

New Worlds / New Horizons Science with an X-ray Astrophysics Probe

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Randall K.; Bookbinder, Jay A.; Hornschemeier, Ann E.; Bandler, Simon; Brandt, W. N.; Hughes, John P.; McCammon, Dan; Matsumoto, Hironori; Mushotzky, Richard; Osten, Rachel A.;

Uncovering extreme AGN variability in serendipitous X-ray source surveys

Science.gov (United States)

Moran, Edward C.; Garcia Soto, Aylin; LaMassa, Stephanie; Urry, Meg

2018-01-01

Constraints on the duty cycle and duration of accretion episodes in active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are vital for establishing how most AGNs are fueled, which is essential for a complete picture of black hole/galaxy co-evolution. Perhaps the best handle we have on these activity parameters is provided by AGNs that have displayed dramatic changes in their bolometric luminosities and, in some cases, spectroscopic classifications. Given that X-ray emission is directly linked to black-hole accretion, X-ray surveys should provide a straightforward means of identifying AGNs that have undergone dramatic changes in their accretion states. However, it appears that such events are very rare, so wide-area surveys separated in time by many years are needed to maximize discovery rates. We have cross-correlated the Einstein IPC Two-Sigma Catalog with the ROSAT All-Sky Survey Faint Source Catalog to identify a sample of soft X-ray sources that varied by factors ranging from 7 to more than 100 over a ten year timescale. When possible, we have constructed long-term X-ray light curves for the sources by combining the Einstein and RASS fluxes with those obtained from serendipitous pointed observations by ROSAT, Chandra,XMM, and Swift. Optical follow-up observations indicate that many of the extremely variable sources in our sample are indeed radio-quiet AGNs. Interestingly, the majority of objects that dimmed between ~1980 and ~1990 are still (or are again) broad-line AGNs rather than“changing-look” candidates that have more subtle AGN signatures in their spectra — despite the fact that none of the sources examined thus far has returned to its highest observed luminosity. Future X-ray observations will provide the opportunity to characterize the X-ray behavior of these anonymous, extreme AGNs over a four decade span.

X-Ray Polarimetry with GEMS

Science.gov (United States)

Strohmayer, Tod

2011-01-01

The polarization properties of cosmic X-ray sources are still largely unexplored. The Gravity and Extreme Magnetism SMEX (GEMS) will carry out the first sensitive X-ray polarization survey of a wide range of sources including; accreting compact objects (black holes and neutron stars), AGN, supernova remnants, magnetars and rotation-powered pulsars. GEMS employs grazing-incidence foil mirrors and novel time-projection chamber (TPC) polarimeters leveraging the photoelectric effect to achieve high polarization sensitivity in the 2 - 10 keV band. I will provide an update of the project status, illustrate the expected performance with several science examples, and provide a brief overview of the data analysis challenges

X-RAY AND GAMMA-RAY FLASHES FROM TYPE Ia SUPERNOVAE?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoeflich, Peter; Schaefer, Bradley E.

2009-01-01

We investigate two potential mechanisms that will produce X-ray and γ-ray flashes from Type Ia supernovae (SN-Ia). The first mechanism is the breakout of the thermonuclear burning front as it reaches the surface of the white dwarf (WD). The second mechanism is the interaction of the rapidly expanding envelope with material within an accretion disk in the progenitor system. Our study is based on the delayed detonation scenario because this can account for the majority of light curves, spectra, and statistical properties of 'Branch-normal' SN-Ia. Based on detailed radiation-hydro calculations which include nuclear networks, we find that both mechanisms produce brief flashes of high-energy radiation with peak luminosities of 10 48 -10 50 erg s -1 . The breakout from the WD surface produces flashes with a rapid exponential decay by 3-4 orders of magnitude on timescales of a few tenths of a second and with most of the radiation in the X-ray and soft γ-ray range. The shocks produced in gases in and around the binary will produce flashes with a characteristic duration of a few seconds with most of the radiation coming out as X-rays and γ-rays. In both mechanisms, we expect a fast rise and slow decline and, after the peak, an evolution from hard to softer radiation due to adiabatic expansion. In many cases, flashes from both mechanisms will be superposed. The X- and γ-ray visibility of an SN-Ia will depend strongly on self-absorption within the progenitor system, specifically on the properties of the accretion disk and its orientation toward the observer. Such X-ray and γ-ray flashes could be detected as triggered events by gamma-ray burst (GRB) detectors on satellites, with events in current GRB catalogs. We have searched through the GRB catalogs (for the BATSE, HETE, and Swift experiments) for GRBs that occur at the extrapolated time of explosion and in the correct direction for known Type Ia supernovae with radial velocity of less than 3000 km s -1 . For the Burst

Detection of soft X-rays from α Lyrae and eta Bootis with an imaging X-ray telescope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Topka, K.; Fabricant, D.; Harnden, F.R. Jr.; Gorenstein, P.; Rosner, R.

1979-01-01

Two nearby stars have been detected in the soft X-ray band with an imaging X-ray telescope flown aboard two sounding rockets. The exposure times were 4.8 and 4.5 s for the images of the AO V star α Lyrae (Vega) and the GO IV star eta Bootis, respectively. Laboratory measurements rule out the possibility that the observed signals were due to UV contamination. These X-ray observations imply luminosities of L/sub X/(0.2--0.8 keV) approx. =3 x 10 28 ergs s -1 for Vega and L/sub X/(0.15--1.5 keV) approx. =1 x 10 29 ergs s -1 for eta Boo. A coronal interpretation of the X-rays from Vega is in serious conflict with simple convective models for early-type main-sequence stars. Magnetic field activity may be responsible for heating the corona, as has been suggested for the Sun. In the case of eta Boo, a coronal interpretation is also favored; however, if the unseen companion of eta Boo is degenerate, the X-ray emission may instead originate in a stellar wind accreting upon a white dwarf or neutron star

A spin-down mechanism for accreting neutron stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Illarionov, A.F.; AN SSSR, Moscow. Fizicheskij Inst.); Kompaneets, D.A.

1990-01-01

We propose a new spin-down mechanism for accreting neutron stars that explains the existence of a number of long-period (p≅100-1000 s) X-ray pulsars in wide binaries with OB-stars. The spin-down is a result of efficient angular momentum transfer from the rotating magnetosphere of the accreting star to an outflowing stream of magnetized matter. The outflow is formed within a limited solid angle, and the outflow rate is less than the accretion rate. The outflow formation is connected with the anisotropy and intensity of the hard X-ray emission of the neutron star. X-rays from the pulsar heat through Compton scattering the accreting matter anisotropically. The heated matter has a lower density than the surrounding accreting matter and flows up by the action of the buoyancy force. We find the criterion for the outflow to form deep in the accretion flow (i.e., close to the neutron star magnetosphere). The neutron star loses angular momentum when the outflow forms so deep as to capture the magnetic field lines from the rotating magnetosphere. The balance between angular momentum gain by accreting gas and loss by outflowing matter takes place at a particular value of the period of the spinning neutron star. (orig.)

Cygnus X-3 and the problem of the missing Wolf-Rayet X-ray binaries

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lommen, D.; Yungelson, L.; van den Heuvel, E.; Nelemans, G.A.; Portegies Zwart, S.

2005-01-01

Cygnus X-3 is a strong X-ray source (L_X ≈ 10³⁸ erg s^-1) which is thought to consist of a compact object accreting matter from a helium star. We analytically find that the estimated ranges of mass-loss rate and orbital-period derivative for Cyg X-3 are consistent

STRONGER REFLECTION FROM BLACK HOLE ACCRETION DISKS IN SOFT X-RAY STATES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steiner, James F.; Remillard, Ronald A.; García, Javier A.; McClintock, Jeffrey E.

2016-01-01

We analyze 15,000 spectra of 29 stellar-mass black hole (BH) candidates collected over the 16 year mission lifetime of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer using a simple phenomenological model. As these BHs vary widely in luminosity and progress through a sequence of spectral states, which we broadly refer to as hard and soft, we focus on two spectral components: the Compton power law and the reflection spectrum it generates by illuminating the accretion disk. Our proxy for the strength of reflection is the equivalent width of the Fe–K line as measured with respect to the power law. A key distinction of our work is that for all states we estimate the continuum under the line by excluding the thermal disk component and using only the component that is responsible for fluorescing the Fe–K line, namely, the Compton power law. We find that reflection is several times more pronounced (∼3) in soft compared to hard spectral states. This is most readily caused by the dilution of the Fe line amplitude from Compton scattering in the corona, which has a higher optical depth in hard states. Alternatively, this could be explained by a more compact corona in soft (compared to hard) states, which would result in a higher reflection fraction.

STRONGER REFLECTION FROM BLACK HOLE ACCRETION DISKS IN SOFT X-RAY STATES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Steiner, James F.; Remillard, Ronald A. [MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, MIT, 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); García, Javier A.; McClintock, Jeffrey E., E-mail: jsteiner@mit.edu [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)

2016-10-01

We analyze 15,000 spectra of 29 stellar-mass black hole (BH) candidates collected over the 16 year mission lifetime of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer using a simple phenomenological model. As these BHs vary widely in luminosity and progress through a sequence of spectral states, which we broadly refer to as hard and soft, we focus on two spectral components: the Compton power law and the reflection spectrum it generates by illuminating the accretion disk. Our proxy for the strength of reflection is the equivalent width of the Fe–K line as measured with respect to the power law. A key distinction of our work is that for all states we estimate the continuum under the line by excluding the thermal disk component and using only the component that is responsible for fluorescing the Fe–K line, namely, the Compton power law. We find that reflection is several times more pronounced (∼3) in soft compared to hard spectral states. This is most readily caused by the dilution of the Fe line amplitude from Compton scattering in the corona, which has a higher optical depth in hard states. Alternatively, this could be explained by a more compact corona in soft (compared to hard) states, which would result in a higher reflection fraction.

SWIFT X-RAY TELESCOPE STUDY OF THE BLACK HOLE BINARY MAXI J1659–152: VARIABILITY FROM A TWO COMPONENT ACCRETION FLOW

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kalamkar, M.; Klis, M. van der; Heil, L. [Astronomical Institute, “Anton Pannekoek,” University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Homan, J., E-mail: maithili@oa-roma.inaf.it [MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States)

2015-08-01

We present an energy dependent X-ray variability study of the 2010 outburst of the black hole X-ray binary MAXI J1659–152 with the Swift X-ray Telescope (XRT). The broadband noise components and the quasi-periodic oscillations (QPO) observed in the power spectra show a strong and varied energy dependence. Combining Swift XRT data with data from the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, we report, for the first time, an rms spectrum (fractional rms amplitude as a function of energy) of these components in the 0.5–30 keV energy range. We find that the strength of the low-frequency component (<0.1 Hz) decreases with energy, contrary to the higher frequency components (>0.1 Hz) whose strengths increase with energy. In the context of the propagating fluctuations model for X-ray variability, we suggest that the low-frequency component originates in the accretion disk (which dominates emission below ∼2 keV) and the higher frequency components are formed in the hot flow (which dominates emission above ∼2 keV). As the properties of the QPO suggest that it may have a different driving mechanism, we investigate the Lense–Thirring precession of the hot flow as a candidate model. We also report on the QPO coherence evolution for the first time in the energy band below 2 keV. While there are strong indications that the QPO is less coherent at energies below 2 keV than above 2 keV, the coherence increases with intensity similar to what is observed at energies above 2 keV in other black hole X-ray binaries.

X-ray time and spectral variability as probes of ultraluminous x-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Pasham, Dheeraj Ranga Reddy

A long-standing debate in the field of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs: luminosities > 3x1039 ergs s-1) is whether these objects are powered by stellar-mass black holes (mass range of 3-25 solar masses) undergoing hyper-accretion/emission or if they host the long-sought after class of intermediate-mass black holes (mass range of a few 100-1000 solar masses) accreting material at sub-Eddington rates. We present X-ray time and energy spectral variability studies of ULXs in order to understand their physical environments and accurately weigh their compact objects. A sample of ULXs exhibit quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) with centroid frequencies in the range of 10-200 mHz. The nature of the power density spectra (PDS) of these sources is qualitatively similar to stellar-mass black holes when they exhibit the so-called type-C low-frequency QPOs (frequency range of 0.2-15 Hz). However, the crucial difference is that the characteristic frequencies within the PDS of ULXs, viz., the break frequencies and the centroid frequencies of the QPOs, are scaled down by a factor of approximately 10-100 compared to stellar-mass black holes. It has thus been argued that the ULX mHz QPOs are the type-C low-frequency QPO analogs of stellar-mass black holes and that the observed difference in the frequencies (a fewx0.01 Hz compared with a few Hz) is due to the presence of intermediate-mass black holes ( MULX = (QPOstellar-mass black hole }/QPOULX)xM stellar-mass black hole, where M and QPO are the mass and the QPO frequency, respectively) within these ULXs. We analyzed all the archival XMM-Newton X-ray data of ULXs NGC 5408 X-1 and M82 X-1 in order to test the hypothesis that the ULX mHz QPOs are the type-C analogs by searching for a correlation between the mHz QPO frequency and the energy spectral power-law index as type-C QPOs show such a dependence. From our multi-epoch timing and spectral analysis of ULXs NGC 5408 X-1 and M82 X-1, we found that the mHz QPOs of these sources vary

CubeX: The CubeSAT X-ray Telescope for Elemental Abundance Mapping of Airless Bodies and X-ray Pulsar Navigation

Science.gov (United States)

Nittler, L. R.; Hong, J.; Kenter, A.; Romaine, S.; Allen, B.; Kraft, R.; Masterson, R.; Elvis, M.; Gendreau, K.; Crawford, I.; Binzel, R.; Boynton, W. V.; Grindlay, J.; Ramsey, B.

2017-12-01

The surface elemental composition of a planetary body provides crucial information about its origin, geological evolution, and surface processing, all of which can in turn provide information about solar system evolution as a whole. Remote sensing X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy has been used successfully to probe the major-element compositions of airless bodies in the inner solar system, including the Moon, near-Earth asteroids, and Mercury. The CubeSAT X-ray Telescope (CubeX) is a concept for a 6U planetary X-ray telescope (36U with S/C), which utilizes Miniature Wolter-I X-ray optics (MiXO), monolithic CMOS and SDD X-ray sensors for the focal plane, and a Solar X-ray Monitor (heritage from the REXIS XRF instrument on NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission). CubeX will map the surface elemental composition of diverse airless bodies by spectral measurement of XRF excited by solar X-rays. The lightweight ( 1 kg) MiXO optics provide sub-arcminute resolution with low background, while the inherently rad-hard CMOS detectors provide improved spectral resolution ( 150 eV) at 0 °C. CubeX will also demonstrate X-ray pulsar timing based deep space navigation (XNAV). Successful XNAV will enable autonomous deep navigation with little to no support from the Deep Space Network, hence lowering the operation cost for many more planetary missions. Recently selected by NASA Planetary Science Deep Space SmallSat Studies, the first CubeX concept, designed to rideshare to the Moon as a secondary spacecraft on a primary mission, is under study in collaboration with the Mission Design Center at NASA Ames Research Center. From high altitude ( 6,000 km) frozen polar circular orbits, CubeX will study > 8 regions ( 110 km) of geological interest on the Moon over one year to produce a high resolution ( 2-3 km) elemental abundance map of each region. The novel focal plane design of CubeX also allows us to evaluate the performance of absolute navigation by sequential observations of several

Tracing the accretion history of supermassive black holes through X-ray variability: results from the ChandraDeep Field-South

Science.gov (United States)

Paolillo, M.; Papadakis, I.; Brandt, W. N.; Luo, B.; Xue, Y. Q.; Tozzi, P.; Shemmer, O.; Allevato, V.; Bauer, F. E.; Comastri, A.; Gilli, R.; Koekemoer, A. M.; Liu, T.; Vignali, C.; Vito, F.; Yang, G.; Wang, J. X.; Zheng, X. C.

2017-11-01

We study the X-ray variability properties of distant active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the ChandraDeep Field-South region over 17 yr, up to z ˜ 4, and compare them with those predicted by models based on local samples. We use the results of Monte Carlo simulations to account for the biases introduced by the discontinuous sampling and the low-count regime. We confirm that variability is a ubiquitous property of AGNs, with no clear dependence on the density of the environment. The variability properties of high-z AGNs, over different temporal time-scales, are most consistent with a power spectral density (PSD) described by a broken (or bending) power law, similar to nearby AGNs. We confirm the presence of an anticorrelation between luminosity and variability, resulting from the dependence of variability on black hole (BH) mass and accretion rate. We explore different models, finding that our acceptable solutions predict that BH mass influences the value of the PSD break frequency, while the Eddington ratio λEdd affects the PSD break frequency and, possibly, the PSD amplitude as well. We derive the evolution of the average λEdd as a function of redshift, finding results in agreement with measurements based on different estimators. The large statistical uncertainties make our results consistent with a constant Eddington ratio, although one of our models suggest a possible increase of λEdd with lookback time up to z ˜ 2-3. We conclude that variability is a viable mean to trace the accretion history of supermassive BHs, whose usefulness will increase with future, wide-field/large effective area X-ray missions.

Light-bending Scenario for Accreting Black Holes in X-ray Polarimetry

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Dovčiak, Michal; Muleri, F.; Goosmann, René; Karas, Vladimír; Matt, G.

2011-01-01

Roč. 731, č. 1 (2011), 75/1-75/15 ISSN 0004-637X R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LC06014; GA ČR GA205/07/0052 Grant - others:ESA(XE) ESA- PECS project No.98040 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10030501 Keywords : polarization * relativistic processes * X-rays: binaries * X-rays: galaxies Subject RIV: BN - Astronomy, Celestial Mechanics, Astrophysics Impact factor: 6.024, year: 2011

Disk Disruptions and X-ray Intensity Excursions in Cyg X-2, LMC X-3 and Cyg X-3

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, P. T.; Smale, A. P.

2001-05-01

The RXTE All Sky Monitor soft X-ray light curves of many X-ray binaries show long-term intensity variations (a.k.a "superorbital periodicities") that have been ascribed to precession of a warped, tilted accretion disk around the X-ray source. We have found that the excursion times between X-ray minima in Cyg X-2 can be characterized as a series of integer multiples of the 9.8 binary orbital period, (as opposed to the previously reported stable 77.7 day single periodicity, or a single modulation whose period changes slowly with time). While the data set is too short for a proper statistical analysis, it is clear that the length of any given intensity excursion cannot be used to predict the next (integer) excursion length in the series. In the black hole candidate system LMC X-3, the excursion times are shown to be related to each other by rational fractions. We find that the long term light curve of the unusual galactic X-ray jet source Cyg X-3 can also be described as a series of intensity excursions related to each other by integer multiples of a fundamental underlying clock. In the latter cases, the clock is apparently not related to the known binary periods. A unified physical model, involving both an inclined accretion disk and a fixed-probability disk disruption mechanism is presented, and compared with three-body scattering results. Each time the disk passes through the orbital plane it experiences a fixed probability P that it will disrupt. This model has testable predictions---the distribution of integers should resemble that of an atomic process with a characteristic half life. Further analysis can support or refute the model, and shed light on what system parameters effectively set the value of P.

Possible Accretion Disk Origin of the Emission Variability of a Blazar Jet

Science.gov (United States)

Chatterjee, Ritaban; Roychowdhury, Agniva; Chandra, Sunil; Sinha, Atreyee

2018-06-01

We analyze X-ray light curves of the blazar Mrk 421 obtained from the Soft X-ray Imaging Telescope (SXT) and the Large Area X-ray Proportional Counter (LAXPC) instrument on board the Indian space telescope AstroSat and archival observations from Swift. We show that the X-ray power spectral density (PSD) is a piece-wise power-law with a break; i.e., the index becomes more negative below a characteristic “break timescale.” Galactic black hole (BH) X-ray binaries and Seyfert galaxies exhibit a similar characteristic timescale in their X-ray variability that is proportional to their respective BH mass. X-rays in these objects are produced in the accretion disk or corona. Hence, such a timescale is believed to be linked to the properties of the accretion flow. Any relation observed between events in the accretion disk and those in the jet can be used to characterize the disk–jet connection. However, evidence of such a link has been scarce and indirect. Mrk 421 is a BL Lac object that has a prominent jet pointed toward us and a weak disk emission, and it is assumed that most of its X-rays are generated in the jet. Hence, the existence of the break in its X-ray PSD may indicate that changes in the accretion disk, which may be the source of the break timescale, are translating into the jet where the X-rays are produced.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCES IN NGC 4631

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soria, Roberto; Ghosh, Kajal K.

2009-01-01

We have re-examined the most luminous X-ray sources in the starburst galaxy NGC 4631, using XMM-Newton, Chandra, and ROSAT data. The most interesting source is a highly variable supersoft ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX). We suggest that its bolometric luminosity ∼ a few 10 39 erg s -1 in the high/supersoft state: this is an order of magnitude lower than estimated in previous studies, thus reducing the need for extreme or exotic scenarios. Moreover, we find that this source was in a noncanonical low/soft (kT ∼ 0.1-0.3 keV) state during the Chandra observation. By comparing the high and low state, we argue that the spectral properties may not be consistent with the expected behavior of an accreting intermediate-mass black hole. We suggest that recurrent super-Eddington outbursts with photospheric expansion from a massive white dwarf (M wd ∼> 1.3 M sun ), powered by nonsteady nuclear burning, may be a viable possibility, in alternative to the previously proposed scenario of a super-Eddington outflow from an accreting stellar-mass black hole. The long-term average accretion rate required for nuclear burning to power such white-dwarf outbursts in this source and perhaps in other supersoft ULXs is ∼(5-10) x 10 -6 M sun yr -1 : this is comparable to the thermal-timescale mass transfer rate invoked to explain the most luminous hard-spectrum ULXs (powered by black hole accretion). The other four most luminous X-ray sources in NGC 4631 (three of which can be classified as ULXs) appear to be typical accreting black holes, in four different spectral states: high/soft, convex-spectrum, power-law with soft excess, and simple power-law. None of them require masses ∼>50 M sun .

Einstein x-ray observations of cataclysmic variables

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mason, K.O.; Cordova, F.A.

1982-01-01

Observations with the imaging x-ray detectors on the Einstein Observatory have led to a large increase in the number of low luminosity x-ray sources known to be associated with cataclysmic variable stars (CVs). The high sensitivity of the Einstein instrumentation has permitted study of their short timescale variability and spectra. The data are adding significantly to our knowledge of the accretion process in cataclysmic variables and forcing some revision in our ideas concerning the origin of the optical variability in these stars

Ultraluminous supersoft X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jifeng; Bai, Yu; Wang, Song; Justham, Stephen; Lu, You-Jun; Gu, Wei-Min; Liu, Qing-Zhong; di Stefano, Rosanne; Guo, Jin-Cheng; Cabrera-Lavers, Antonio; Álvarez, Pedro; Cao, Yi; Kulkarni, Shri

2017-06-01

While ultraluminous supersoft X-ray sources (ULSs) bear features for intermediate mass black holes or very massive white dwarfs possibly close to Chandrasekhar mass limit, our recent discovery of processing relativistic baryonic jets from a prototype ULS in M81 demonstrate that they are not IMBHs or WDs, but black holes accreting at super-Eddington rates. This discovery strengthens the recent ideas that ULXs are stellar black holes with supercritical accretion, and provides a vivid manifestation of what happens when a black hole devours too much, that is, it will generate thick disk winds and fire out sub-relativistic baryonic jets along the funnel as predicted by recent numerical simulations.

Long X-ray burst monitoring with INTEGRAL

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

X-ray bursts are thermonuclear explosions on the surface of accreting neutron stars in low mass X-ray binary systems. In the frame of the INTEGRAL observational Key Programme over the Galactic Center a good number of the known X-ray bursters are frequently being monitored. An international...... collaboration lead by the JEM-X team at the Danish National Space Center has proposed to exploit the improved sensitivity of the INTEGRAL instruments to investigate the observational properties and physics up to high energies of exceptional burst events lasting between a few tens of minutes and several hours....... Of special interest are low luminosity bursting sources that exhibit X-ray bursts of very different durations allowing to study the transition from a hydrogen-rich bursting regime to a pure helium regime and from helium burning to carbon burning. I will present results obtained from INTEGRAL archive data...

X-ray pulsars in nearby irregular galaxies

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jun

2018-01-01

The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and Irregular Galaxy IC 10 are valuable laboratories to study the physical, temporal and statistical properties of the X-ray pulsar population with multi-satellite observations, in order to probe fundamental physics. The known distance of these galaxies can help us easily categorize the luminosity of the pulsars and their age difference can be helpful for for studying the origin and evolution of compact objects. Therefore, a complete archive of 116 XMM-Newton PN, 151 Chandra (Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer) ACIS, and 952 RXTE PCA observations for the pulsars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) were collected and analyzed, along with 42 XMM-Newton and 30 Chandra observations for the Large Magellanic Cloud, spanning 1997-2014. From a sample of 67 SMC pulsars we generate a suite of products for each pulsar detection: spin period, flux, event list, high time-resolution light-curve, pulse-profile, periodogram, and X-ray spectrum. Combining all three satellites, I generated complete histories of the spin periods, pulse amplitudes, pulsed fractions and X-ray luminosities. Many of the pulsars show variations in pulse period due to the combination of orbital motion and accretion torques. Long-term spin-up/down trends are seen in 28/25 pulsars respectively, pointing to sustained transfer of mass and angular momentum to the neutron star on decadal timescales. The distributions of pulse detection and flux as functions of spin period provide interesting findings: mapping boundaries of accretion-driven X-ray luminosity, and showing that fast pulsars (P<10 s) are rarely detected, which yet are more prone to giant outbursts. In parallel we compare the observed pulse profiles to our general relativity (GR) model of X-ray emission in order to constrain the physical parameters of the pulsars.In addition, we conduct a search for optical counterparts to X-ray sources in the local dwarf galaxy IC 10 to form a comparison

PULSED GAMMA RAYS FROM THE MILLISECOND PULSAR J0030+0451 WITH THE FERMI LARGE AREA TELESCOPE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdo, A. A.; Ackermann, M.; Bechtol, K.; Berenji, B.; Bloom, E. D.; Borgland, A. W.; Atwood, W. B.; Axelsson, M.; Battelino, M.; Baldini, L.; Bellazzini, R.; Bregeon, J.; Brez, A.; Ballet, J.; Barbiellini, G.; Bastieri, D.; Baughman, B. M.; Bonamente, E.; Brigida, M.; Bruel, P.

2009-01-01

We report the discovery of gamma-ray pulsations from the nearby isolated millisecond pulsar (MSP) PSR J0030+0451 with the Large Area Telescope on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (formerly GLAST). This discovery makes PSR J0030+0451 the second MSP to be detected in gamma rays after PSR J0218+4232, observed by the EGRET instrument on the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory. The spin-down power E-dot=3.5x10 33 erg s -1 is an order of magnitude lower than the empirical lower bound of previously known gamma-ray pulsars. The emission profile is characterized by two narrow peaks, 0.07 ± 0.01 and 0.08 ± 0.02 wide, respectively, separated by 0.44 ± 0.02 in phase. The first gamma-ray peak falls 0.15 ± 0.01 after the main radio peak. The pulse shape is similar to that of the 'normal' gamma-ray pulsars. An exponentially cutoff power-law fit of the emission spectrum leads to an integral photon flux above 100 MeV of (6.76 ± 1.05 ± 1.35) x 10 -8 cm -2 s -1 with cutoff energy (1.7 ± 0.4 ± 0.5) GeV. Based on its parallax distance of (300 ± 90) pc, we obtain a gamma-ray efficiency L γ /E-dot≅15 percent for the conversion of spin-down energy rate into gamma-ray radiation, assuming isotropic emission.

Radio emission from the X-ray pulsar Her X-1: a jet launched by a strong magnetic field neutron star?

Science.gov (United States)

van den Eijnden, J.; Degenaar, N.; Russell, T. D.; Miller-Jones, J. C. A.; Wijnands, R.; Miller, J. M.; King, A. L.; Rupen, M. P.

2018-01-01

Her X-1 is an accreting neutron star (NS) in an intermediate-mass X-ray binary. Like low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs), it accretes via Roche lobe overflow, but similar to many high-mass X-ray binaries containing a NS; Her X-1 has a strong magnetic field and slow spin. Here, we present the discovery of radio emission from Her X-1 with the Very Large Array. During the radio observation, the central X-ray source was partially obscured by a warped disc. We measure a radio flux density of 38.7 ± 4.8 μJy at 9 GHz but cannot constrain the spectral shape. We discuss possible origins of the radio emission, and conclude that coherent emission, a stellar wind, shocks and a propeller outflow are all unlikely explanations. A jet, as seen in LMXBs, is consistent with the observed radio properties. We consider the implications of the presence of a jet in Her X-1 on jet formation mechanisms and on the launching of jets by NSs with strong magnetic fields.

IMPLICATIONS OF X-RAY LINE VARIATIONS FOR 4U1822-371

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ji, L.; Schulz, N. S.; Nowak, M. A.; Canizares, C. R.

2011-01-01

4U 1822-371 is one of the prototype accretion disk coronal sources with an orbital period of about 5.6 hr. The binary is viewed almost edge-on at a high inclination angle of 83 deg., which makes it a unique candidate to study binary orbital and accretion disk dynamics in high powered X-ray sources. We observed the X-ray source in 4U 1822-371 with the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer for almost nine binary orbits. X-ray eclipse times provide an update of the orbital ephemeris. We find that our result follows the quadratic function implied by previous observations; however, it suggests a flatter trend. From the orbital line dynamics, we confirm the previous suggestion that recombination emission is located at the impact bulge of the accretion stream. Our observations show that the recombining plasma is confined to this region, and prove that it has to be a very thin layer on top of the accretion disk. Fe XXVI emission is detected at all phases and likely originates from the hot central corona which has optical depth <<1. The implied ionization parameters from both regions strongly suggest that the illuminating source is obscured with respect to the observer and is orders of magnitude brighter than what is actually observed. This is independently confirmed by the best fit of a flat power law with a high-energy cutoff and partial covering absorption with a covering fraction of about 50%. We discuss the implications of our findings with respect to the photoionized line emission and the spectral continuum on basic properties of the X-ray source.

Three Millisecond Pulsars in Fermi LAT Unassociated Bright Sources

Science.gov (United States)

Ransom, S. M.; Ray, P. S.; Camilo, F.; Roberts, M. S. E.; Celik, O.; Wolff, M. T.; Cheung, C. C.; Kerr, M.; Pennucci, T.; DeCesar, M. E.;

Blazars in Hard X-rays

Science.gov (United States)

Ghisellini, Gabriele

2009-05-01

Although blazars are thought to emit most of their luminosity in the γ-ray band, there are subclasses of them very prominent in hard X-rays. These are the best candidates to be studied by Simbol-X. They are at the extremes of the blazar sequence, having very small or very high jet powers. The former are the class of TeV emitting BL Lacs, whose synchrotron emission often peaks at tens of keV or more. The latter are the blazars with the most powerful jets, have high black hole masses accreting at high (i.e. close to Eddington) rates. These sources are predicted to have their high energy peak even below the MeV band, and therefore are very promising candidates to be studied with Simbol-X.

Searching for Primordial Black Holes in the Radio and X-Ray Sky.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaggero, Daniele; Bertone, Gianfranco; Calore, Francesca; Connors, Riley M T; Lovell, Mark; Markoff, Sera; Storm, Emma

2017-06-16

We model the accretion of gas onto a population of massive primordial black holes in the Milky Way and compare the predicted radio and x-ray emission with observational data. We show that, under conservative assumptions on the accretion process, the possibility that O(10)M_{⊙} primordial black holes can account for all of the dark matter in the Milky Way is excluded at 5σ by a comparison with a Very Large Array radio catalog at 1.4 GHz and at ≃40σ by a comparison with a Chandra x-ray catalog (0.5-8 keV). We argue that this method can be used to identify such a population of primordial black holes with more sensitive future radio and x-ray surveys.

Can isolated single black holes produce X-ray novae?

Science.gov (United States)

Matsumoto, Tatsuya; Teraki, Yuto; Ioka, Kunihito

2018-03-01

Almost all black holes (BHs) and BH candidates in our Galaxy have been discovered as soft X-ray transients, so-called X-ray novae. X-ray novae are usually considered to arise from binary systems. Here, we propose that X-ray novae are also caused by isolated single BHs. We calculate the distribution of the accretion rate from interstellar matter to isolated BHs, and find that BHs in molecular clouds satisfy the condition of the hydrogen-ionization disc instability, which results in X-ray novae. The estimated event rate is consistent with the observed one. We also check an X-ray novae catalogue (Corral-Santana et al.) and find that 16/59 ˜ 0.27 of the observed X-ray novae are potentially powered by isolated BHs. The possible candidates include IGR J17454-2919, XTE J1908-094, and SAX J1711.6-3808. Near-infrared photometric and spectroscopic follow-ups can exclude companion stars for a BH census in our Galaxy.

Observational diagnostics of accretion on young stars and brown dwarfs

Science.gov (United States)

Stelzer, Beate; Argiroffi, Costanza

I present a summary of recent observational constraints on the accretion properties of young stars and brown dwarfs with focus on the high-energy emission. In their T Tauri phase young stars assemble a few percent of their mass by accretion from a disk. Various observational signatures of disks around pre-main sequence stars and the ensuing accretion process are found in the IR and optical regime: e.g. excess emission above the stellar photosphere, strong and broad emission lines, optical veiling. At high energies evidence for accretion is less obvious, and the X-ray emission from stars has historically been ascribed to magnetically confined coronal plasmas. While being true for the bulk of the emission, new insight obtained from XMM-Newton and Chandra observations has unveiled contributions from accretion and outflow processes to the X-ray emission from young stars. Their smaller siblings, the brown dwarfs, have been shown to undergo a T Tauri phase on the basis of optical/IR observations of disks and measurements of accretion rates. Most re-cently, first evidence was found for X-rays produced by accretion in a young brown dwarf, complementing the suspected analogy between stars and substellar objects.

Optical spectroscopy of the Be/X-ray binary V850 Centauri/GX 304-1 during faint X-ray periodical activity

Science.gov (United States)

Malacaria, C.; Kollatschny, W.; Whelan, E.; Santangelo, A.; Klochkov, D.; McBride, V.; Ducci, L.

2017-07-01

Context. Be/X-ray binaries (BeXRBs) are the most populous class of high-mass X-ray binaries. Their X-ray duty cycle is tightly related to the optical companion wind activity, which in turn can be studied through dedicated optical spectroscopic observations. Aims: We study optical spectral features of the Be circumstellar disk to test their long-term variability and their relation with the X-ray activity. Special attention has been given to the Hα emission line, one of the best tracers of the disk conditions. Methods: We obtained optical broadband medium resolution spectra from a dedicated campaign with the Anglo-Australian Telescope and the Southern African Large Telescope in 2014-2015. Data span over one entire binary orbit, and cover both X-ray quiescent and moderately active periods. We used Balmer emission lines to follow the evolution of the circumstellar disk. Results: We observe prominent spectral features, like double-peaked Hα and Hβ emission lines. The HαV/R ratio significantly changes over a timescale of about one year. Our observations are consistent with a system observed at a large inclination angle (I ≳ 60°). The derived circumstellar disk size shows that the disk evolves from a configuration that prevents accretion onto the neutron star, to one that allows only moderate accretion. This is in agreement with the contemporary observed X-ray activity. Our results are interpreted within the context of inefficient tidal truncation of the circumstellar disk, as expected for this source's binary configuration. We derived the Hβ-emitting region size, which is equal to about half of the corresponding Hα-emitting disk, and constrain the luminosity class of V850 Cen as III-V, consistent with the previously proposed class.

Massive stars and X-ray pulsars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henrichs, H.

1982-01-01

This thesis is a collection of 7 separate articles entitled: long term changes in ultraviolet lines in γ CAS, UV observations of γ CAS: intermittent mass-loss enhancement, episodic mass loss in γ CAS and in other early-type stars, spin-up and spin-down of accreting neutron stars, an excentric close binary model for the X Persei system, has a 97 minute periodicity in 4U 1700-37/HD 153919 really been discovered, and, mass loss and stellar wind in massive X-ray binaries. (Articles 1, 2, 5, 6 and 7 have been previously published). The first three articles are concerned with the irregular mass loss in massive stars. The fourth critically reviews thoughts since 1972 on the origin of the changes in periodicity shown by X-ray pulsars. The last articles indicate the relation between massive stars and X-ray pulsars. (C.F.)

MODEL ATMOSPHERES FOR X-RAY BURSTING NEUTRON STARS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Medin, Zach; Fontes, Christopher J.; Fryer, Chris L.; Hungerford, Aimee L.; Steinkirch, Marina von; Calder, Alan C.

2016-01-01

The hydrogen and helium accreted by X-ray bursting neutron stars is periodically consumed in runaway thermonuclear reactions that cause the entire surface to glow brightly in X-rays for a few seconds. With models of the emission, the mass and radius of the neutron star can be inferred from the observations. By simultaneously probing neutron star masses and radii, X-ray bursts (XRBs) are one of the strongest diagnostics of the nature of matter at extremely high densities. Accurate determinations of these parameters are difficult, however, due to the highly non-ideal nature of the atmospheres where XRBs occur. Observations from X-ray telescopes such as RXTE and NuStar can potentially place strong constraints on nuclear matter once uncertainties in atmosphere models have been reduced. Here we discuss current progress on modeling atmospheres of X-ray bursting neutron stars and some of the challenges still to be overcome.

MODEL ATMOSPHERES FOR X-RAY BURSTING NEUTRON STARS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Medin, Zach; Fontes, Christopher J.; Fryer, Chris L.; Hungerford, Aimee L. [Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States); Steinkirch, Marina von; Calder, Alan C. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794 (United States)

2016-12-01

The hydrogen and helium accreted by X-ray bursting neutron stars is periodically consumed in runaway thermonuclear reactions that cause the entire surface to glow brightly in X-rays for a few seconds. With models of the emission, the mass and radius of the neutron star can be inferred from the observations. By simultaneously probing neutron star masses and radii, X-ray bursts (XRBs) are one of the strongest diagnostics of the nature of matter at extremely high densities. Accurate determinations of these parameters are difficult, however, due to the highly non-ideal nature of the atmospheres where XRBs occur. Observations from X-ray telescopes such as RXTE and NuStar can potentially place strong constraints on nuclear matter once uncertainties in atmosphere models have been reduced. Here we discuss current progress on modeling atmospheres of X-ray bursting neutron stars and some of the challenges still to be overcome.

Cosmic Rays and Non-thermal Emission Induced by Accretion of Cool Gas onto the Galactic Disk

Science.gov (United States)

Inoue, Susumu; Uchiyama, Yasunobu; Arakawa, Masanori; Renaud, Matthieu; Wada, Keiichi

2017-11-01

On both observational and theoretical grounds, the disk of our Galaxy should be accreting cool gas with temperature ≲ {10}5 K via the halo at a rate ˜1 {{M}⊙ {yr}}-1. At least some of this accretion is mediated by high-velocity clouds (HVCs), observed to be traveling in the halo with velocities of a few 100 km s-1 and occasionally impacting the disk at such velocities, especially in the outer regions of the Galaxy. We address the possibility of particle acceleration in shocks triggered by such HVC accretion events, and the detectability of consequent non-thermal emission in the radio to gamma-ray bands and high-energy neutrinos. For plausible shock velocities ˜ 300 {km} {{{s}}}-1 and magnetic field strengths ˜ 0.3{--}10 μ {{G}}, electrons and protons may be accelerated up to ˜1-10 TeV and ˜ 30{--}{10}3 TeV, respectively, in sufficiently strong adiabatic shocks during their lifetime of ˜ {10}6 {{yr}}. The resultant pion decay and inverse Compton gamma-rays may be the origin of some unidentified Galactic GeV-TeV sources, particularly the “dark” source HESS J1503-582 that is spatially coincident with the anomalous H I structure known as “forbidden-velocity wings.” Correlation of their locations with star-forming regions may be weak, absent, or even opposite. Non-thermal radio and X-ray emission from primary and/or secondary electrons may be detectable with deeper observations. The contribution of HVC accretion to Galactic cosmic rays is subdominant, but could be non-negligible in the outer Galaxy. As the thermal emission induced by HVC accretion is likely difficult to detect, observations of such phenomena may offer a unique perspective on probing gas accretion onto the Milky Way and other galaxies.

Methodology of ionizing radiation measurement, from x-ray equipment, for radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caballero, Katia C.S.; Borges, Jose C.

1996-01-01

Most of X-rays beam used for diagnostic, are short exposure time (milliseconds). Exception are those used in fluoroscopy. measuring instruments (area monitors with ionizing chambers or Geiger tubes) used in hospitals and clinics, in general, have characteristic answer time not adequate to X-rays beams length in time. Our objective was to analyse instruments available commercially, to prepare a measuring methodology for direct and secondary beams, in order to evaluate protection barriers for beams used in diagnostic radiology installations. (author)

A density cusp of quiescent X-ray binaries in the central parsec of the Galaxy

Science.gov (United States)

Hailey, Charles J.; Mori, Kaya; Bauer, Franz E.; Berkowitz, Michael E.; Hong, Jaesub; Hord, Benjamin J.

2018-04-01

The existence of a ‘density cusp’—a localized increase in number—of stellar-mass black holes near a supermassive black hole is a fundamental prediction of galactic stellar dynamics. The best place to detect such a cusp is in the Galactic Centre, where the nearest supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*, resides. As many as 20,000 black holes are predicted to settle into the central parsec of the Galaxy as a result of dynamical friction; however, so far no density cusp of black holes has been detected. Low-mass X-ray binary systems that contain a stellar-mass black hole are natural tracers of isolated black holes. Here we report observations of a dozen quiescent X-ray binaries in a density cusp within one parsec of Sagittarius A*. The lower-energy emission spectra that we observed in these binaries is distinct from the higher-energy spectra associated with the population of accreting white dwarfs that dominates the central eight parsecs of the Galaxy. The properties of these X-ray binaries, in particular their spatial distribution and luminosity function, suggest the existence of hundreds of binary systems in the central parsec of the Galaxy and many more isolated black holes. We cannot rule out a contribution to the observed emission from a population (of up to about one-half the number of X-ray binaries) of rotationally powered, millisecond pulsars. The spatial distribution of the binary systems is a relic of their formation history, either in the stellar disk around Sagittarius A* (ref. 7) or through in-fall from globular clusters, and constrains the number density of sources in the modelling of gravitational waves from massive stellar remnants, such as neutron stars and black holes.

Low-energy gamma rays from Cygnus X-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roques, J.P.; Mandrou, P.; Lebrun, F.; Paul, J.

1985-08-01

Cyg X-1 was observed by the CESR balloon borne telescope OPALE, in June 1976. The high-energy spectrum of the source, which was in its ''superlow state'', was seen to extend well beyond 1 MeV. In this paper, the observed low-energy γ-ray component of Cyg X-1 is compared with the predictions of recent models involving accretion onto a stellar black hole, and including a possible contribution from the pair-annihilation 511 keV γ-ray line

New Constraints on the Geometry and Kinematics of Matter Surrounding the Accretion Flow in X-Ray Binaries from Chandra High-energy Transmission Grating X-Ray Spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Tzanavaris, P.; Yaqoob, T.

2018-03-01

The narrow, neutral Fe Kα fluorescence emission line in X-ray binaries (XRBs) is a powerful probe of the geometry, kinematics, and Fe abundance of matter around the accretion flow. In a recent study it has been claimed, using Chandra High-Energy Transmission Grating (HETG) spectra for a sample of XRBs, that the circumnuclear material is consistent with a solar-abundance, uniform, spherical distribution. It was also claimed that the Fe Kα line was unresolved in all cases by the HETG. However, these conclusions were based on ad hoc models that did not attempt to relate the global column density to the Fe Kα line emission. We revisit the sample and test a self-consistent model of a uniform, spherical X-ray reprocessor against HETG spectra from 56 observations of 14 Galactic XRBs. We find that the model is ruled out in 13/14 sources because a variable Fe abundance is required. In two sources a spherical distribution is viable, but with nonsolar Fe abundance. We also applied a solar-abundance Compton-thick reflection model, which can account for the spectra that are inconsistent with a spherical model, but spectra with a broader bandpass are required to better constrain model parameters. We also robustly measured the velocity width of the Fe Kα line and found FWHM values of up to ∼5000 km s‑1. Only in some spectra was the Fe Kα line unresolved by the HETG.

New Constraints on the Geometry and Kinematics of Matter Surrounding the Accretion Flow in X-Ray Binaries from Chandra High-Energy Transmission Grating X-Ray Spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Tzanavaris, P.; Yaqoob, T.

2018-01-01

The narrow, neutral Fe Ka fluorescence emission line in X-ray binaries (XRBs) is a powerful probe of the geometry, kinematics, and Fe abundance of matter around the accretion flow. In a recent study it has been claimed, using Chandra High-Energy Transmission Grating (HETG) spectra for a sample of XRBs, that the circumnuclear material is consistent with a solar-abundance, uniform, spherical distribution. It was also claimed that the Fe Ka line was unresolved in all cases by the HETG. However, these conclusions were based on ad hoc models that did not attempt to relate the global column density to the Fe Ka line emission. We revisit the sample and test a self-consistent model of a uniform, spherical X-ray reprocessor against HETG spectra from 56 observations of 14 Galactic XRBs. We find that the model is ruled out in 13/14 sources because a variable Fe abundance is required. In two sources a spherical distribution is viable, but with nonsolar Fe abundance. We also applied a solar-abundance Compton-thick reflection model, which can account for the spectra that are inconsistent with a spherical model, but spectra with a broader bandpass are required to better constrain model parameters. We also robustly measured the velocity width of the Fe Ka line and found FWHM values of up to approx. 5000 km/s. Only in some spectra was the Fe Ka line unresolved by the HETG.

Einstein@Home discovers a radio-quiet gamma-ray millisecond pulsar.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Colin J; Pletsch, Holger J; Wu, Jason; Guillemot, Lucas; Kerr, Matthew; Johnson, Tyrel J; Camilo, Fernando; Salvetti, David; Allen, Bruce; Anderson, David; Aulbert, Carsten; Beer, Christian; Bock, Oliver; Cuéllar, Andres; Eggenstein, Heinz-Bernd; Fehrmann, Henning; Kramer, Michael; Kwang, Shawn A; Machenschalk, Bernd; Nieder, Lars; Ackermann, Markus; Ajello, Marco; Baldini, Luca; Ballet, Jean; Barbiellini, Guido; Bastieri, Denis; Bellazzini, Ronaldo; Bissaldi, Elisabetta; Blandford, Roger D; Bloom, Elliott D; Bonino, Raffaella; Bottacini, Eugenio; Brandt, Terri J; Bregeon, Johan; Bruel, Philippe; Buehler, Rolf; Burnett, Toby H; Buson, Sara; Cameron, Rob A; Caputo, Regina; Caraveo, Patrizia A; Cavazzuti, Elisabetta; Cecchi, Claudia; Charles, Eric; Chekhtman, Alexandre; Ciprini, Stefano; Cominsky, Lynn R; Costantin, Denise; Cutini, Sara; D'Ammando, Filippo; De Luca, Andrea; Desiante, Rachele; Di Venere, Leonardo; Di Mauro, Mattia; Di Lalla, Niccolò; Digel, Seth W; Favuzzi, Cecilia; Ferrara, Elizabeth C; Franckowiak, Anna; Fukazawa, Yasushi; Funk, Stefan; Fusco, Piergiorgio; Gargano, Fabio; Gasparrini, Dario; Giglietto, Nico; Giordano, Francesco; Giroletti, Marcello; Gomez-Vargas, Germán A; Green, David; Grenier, Isabelle A; Guiriec, Sylvain; Harding, Alice K; Hewitt, John W; Horan, Deirdre; Jóhannesson, Guðlaugur; Kensei, Shiki; Kuss, Michael; La Mura, Giovanni; Larsson, Stefan; Latronico, Luca; Li, Jian; Longo, Francesco; Loparco, Francesco; Lovellette, Michael N; Lubrano, Pasquale; Magill, Jeffrey D; Maldera, Simone; Manfreda, Alberto; Mazziotta, Mario N; McEnery, Julie E; Michelson, Peter F; Mirabal, Nestor; Mitthumsiri, Warit; Mizuno, Tsunefumi; Monzani, Maria Elena; Morselli, Aldo; Moskalenko, Igor V; Nuss, Eric; Ohsugi, Takashi; Omodei, Nicola; Orienti, Monica; Orlando, Elena; Palatiello, Michele; Paliya, Vaidehi S; de Palma, Francesco; Paneque, David; Perkins, Jeremy S; Persic, Massimo; Pesce-Rollins, Melissa; Porter, Troy A; Principe, Giacomo; Rainò, Silvia; Rando, Riccardo; Ray, Paul S; Razzano, Massimiliano; Reimer, Anita; Reimer, Olaf; Romani, Roger W; Saz Parkinson, Pablo M; Sgrò, Carmelo; Siskind, Eric J; Smith, David A; Spada, Francesca; Spandre, Gloria; Spinelli, Paolo; Thayer, Jana B; Thompson, David J; Torres, Diego F; Troja, Eleonora; Vianello, Giacomo; Wood, Kent; Wood, Matthew

2018-02-01

Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are old neutron stars that spin hundreds of times per second and appear to pulsate as their emission beams cross our line of sight. To date, radio pulsations have been detected from all rotation-powered MSPs. In an attempt to discover radio-quiet gamma-ray MSPs, we used the aggregated power from the computers of tens of thousands of volunteers participating in the Einstein@Home distributed computing project to search for pulsations from unidentified gamma-ray sources in Fermi Large Area Telescope data. This survey discovered two isolated MSPs, one of which is the only known rotation-powered MSP to remain undetected in radio observations. These gamma-ray MSPs were discovered in completely blind searches without prior constraints from other observations, raising hopes for detecting MSPs from a predicted Galactic bulge population.

THE LONGEST TIMESCALE X-RAY VARIABILITY REVEALS EVIDENCE FOR ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI IN THE HIGH ACCRETION STATE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Youhong

2011-01-01

The All Sky Monitor (ASM) on board the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer has continuously monitored a number of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with similar sampling rates for 14 years, from 1996 January to 2009 December. Utilizing the archival ASM data of 27 AGNs, we calculate the normalized excess variances of the 300-day binned X-ray light curves on the longest timescale (between 300 days and 14 years) explored so far. The observed variance appears to be independent of AGN black-hole mass and bolometric luminosity. According to the scaling relation of black-hole mass (and bolometric luminosity) from galactic black hole X-ray binaries (GBHs) to AGNs, the break timescales that correspond to the break frequencies detected in the power spectral density (PSD) of our AGNs are larger than the binsize (300 days) of the ASM light curves. As a result, the singly broken power-law (soft-state) PSD predicts the variance to be independent of mass and luminosity. Nevertheless, the doubly broken power-law (hard-state) PSD predicts, with the widely accepted ratio of the two break frequencies, that the variance increases with increasing mass and decreases with increasing luminosity. Therefore, the independence of the observed variance on mass and luminosity suggests that AGNs should have soft-state PSDs. Taking into account the scaling of the break timescale with mass and luminosity synchronously, the observed variances are also more consistent with the soft-state than the hard-state PSD predictions. With the averaged variance of AGNs and the soft-state PSD assumption, we obtain a universal PSD amplitude of 0.030 ± 0.022. By analogy with the GBH PSDs in the high/soft state, the longest timescale variability supports the standpoint that AGNs are scaled-up GBHs in the high accretion state, as already implied by the direct PSD analysis.

Heating the Primordial Soup: X-raying the Circumstellar Disk of T Cha

Science.gov (United States)

Principe, David; Huenemoerder, D.; Kastner, J. H.; Bessell, M. S.; Sacco, G.

2014-01-01

The classical T Tauri Star (cTTS) T Chamaeleontis (T Cha) presents a unique opportunity to probe pre-main sequence star-disk interactions and late-stage circumstellar disk evolution. T Cha is the only known example of a nearly edge-on, actively accreting star/disk system within ~110 pc, and furthermore may be orbited by a low-mass companion or massive planet that has cleared an inner hole in its disk. The star is characterized by strong variability in the optical 3 magnitudes in the V band) as well as large and variable extinction (AV in the range of 1-5). Like most cTTS, T Cha is also a luminous X-ray source. We present preliminary results of two observations (totaling 150 ks) of T Cha with Chandra’s HETGS. Our motivations are to (a) determine the intrinsic X-ray spectrum of T Cha, so as to establish whether its X-ray emission can be attributed to accretion shocks, coronal emission, or a combination; (b) investigate whether its X-ray flux exhibits modulation that may be related to the stellar rotational period 3.3 days); and (c) take advantage of the nearly-edge-on disk viewing geometry to model the spectrum of X-rays absorbed by the gaseous disk orbiting T Cha. These results will serve as much-needed input to models of magnetospheric accretion and irradiated, planet-forming disks. This research is supported via award number GO3-14022X to RIT issued by the Chandra X-ray Observatory Center, which is operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory for and on behalf of NASA under contract NAS803060. Additional support is provided by National Science Foundation grant AST-1108950 to RIT.

Spectral and Timing Nature of the Symbiotic X-Ray Binary 4U 1954+319: The Slowest Rotating Neutron Star in AN X-Ray Binary System

Science.gov (United States)

Enoto, Teruaki; Sasano, Makoto; Yamada, Shin'Ya; Tamagawa, Toru; Makishima, Kazuo; Pottschmidt, Katja; Marcu, Diana; Corbet, Robin H. D.; Fuerst, Felix; Wilms, Jorn

2014-01-01

The symbiotic X-ray binary (SyXB) 4U 1954+319 is a rare system hosting a peculiar neutron star (NS) and an M-type optical companion. Its approx. 5.4 hr NS spin period is the longest among all known accretion-powered pulsars and exhibited large (is approx. 7%) fluctuations over 8 yr. A spin trend transition was detected with Swift/BAT around an X-ray brightening in 2012. The source was in quiescent and bright states before and after this outburst based on 60 ks Suzaku observations in 2011 and 2012. The observed continuum is well described by a Comptonized model with the addition of a narrow 6.4 keV Fe-K alpha line during the outburst. Spectral similarities to slowly rotating pulsars in high-mass X-ray binaries, its high pulsed fraction (approx. 60%-80%), and the location in the Corbet diagram favor high B-field (approx. greater than 10(exp12) G) over a weak field as in low-mass X-ray binaries. The observed low X-ray luminosity (10(exp33)-10(exp35) erg s(exp-1)), probable wide orbit, and a slow stellar wind of this SyXB make quasi-spherical accretion in the subsonic settling regime a plausible model. Assuming a approx. 10(exp13) G NS, this scheme can explain the approx. 5.4 hr equilibrium rotation without employing the magnetar-like field (approx. 10(exp16) G) required in the disk accretion case. The timescales of multiple irregular flares (approx. 50 s) can also be attributed to the free-fall time from the Alfv´en shell for a approx. 10(exp13) G field. A physical interpretation of SyXBs beyond the canonical binary classifications is discussed.

COMPARING THE ACCRETION DISK EVOLUTION OF BLACK HOLE AND NEUTRON STAR X-RAY BINARIES FROM LOW TO SUPER-EDDINGTON LUMINOSITY

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weng Shanshan; Zhang Shuangnan

2011-01-01

Low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) are systems in which a low-mass companion transfers mass via Roche-lobe overflow onto a black hole (BH) or a weakly magnetized neutron star (NS). It is believed that both the solid surface and the magnetic field of an NS can affect the accretion flow and show some observable effects. Using the disk emission dominant data, we compare the disk evolution of the two types of systems from low luminosity to super-Eddington luminosity. As the luminosity decreases the disk in the NS LMXB 4U1608-522 begins to leave the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) at much higher luminosity (∼0.1 L Edd ), compared with BH LMXBs at much lower luminosity (∼0.03 L Edd ), due to the interaction between the NS magnetosphere and accretion flow. However, as the luminosity increases above a critical luminosity, the disks in BH and NS LMXBs trace the same evolutionary pattern, because the magnetosphere is restricted inside ISCO, and then both the NS surface emission and (dipole) magnetic field do not significantly affect the secular evolution of the accretion disk, which is driven by the increased radiation pressure in the inner region. We further suggest that the NS surface emission provides additional information about the accretion disk not available in BH systems. Through the observed NS surface emission, we argue that the disk thickness H/R is less than 0.3-0.4, and that the significant outflow from the inner disk edge exists at a luminosity close to Eddington luminosity.

EGRET upper limits to the high-energy gamma-ray emission from the millisecond pulsars in nearby globular clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Michelson, P. F.; Bertsch, D. L.; Brazier, K.; Chiang, J.; Dingus, B. L.; Fichtel, C. E.; Fierro, J.; Hartman, R. C.; Hunter, S. D.; Kanbach, G.

1994-01-01

We report upper limits to the high-energy gamma-ray emission from the millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in a number of globular clusters. The observations were done as part of an all-sky survey by the energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET) on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) during Phase I of the CGRO mission (1991 June to 1992 November). Several theoretical models suggest that MSPs may be sources of high-energy gamma radiation emitted either as primary radiation from the pulsar magnetosphere or as secondary radiation generated by conversion into photons of a substantial part of the relativistic e(+/-) pair wind expected to flow from the pulsar. To date, no high-energy emission has been detected from an individual MSP. However, a large number of MSPs are expected in globular cluster cores where the formation rate of accreting binary systems is high. Model predictions of the total number of pulsars range in the hundreds for some clusters. These expectations have been reinforced by recent discoveries of a substantial number of radio MSPs in several clusters; for example, 11 have been found in 47 Tucanae (Manchester et al.). The EGRET observations have been used to obtain upper limits for the efficiency eta of conversion of MSP spin-down power into hard gamma rays. The upper limits are also compared with the gamma-ray fluxes predicted from theoretical models of pulsar wind emission (Tavani). The EGRET limits put significant constraints on either the emission models or the number of pulsars in the globular clusters.

Testing the Performance and Accuracy of the RELXILL Model for the Relativistic X-Ray Reflection from Accretion Disks

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhury, Kishalay; García, Javier A.; Steiner, James F.; Bambi, Cosimo

2017-12-01

The reflection spectroscopic model RELXILL is commonly implemented in studying relativistic X-ray reflection from accretion disks around black holes. We present a systematic study of the model’s capability to constrain the dimensionless spin and ionization parameters from ∼6000 Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) simulations of a bright X-ray source employing the lamp-post geometry. We employ high-count spectra to show the limitations in the model without being confused with limitations in signal-to-noise. We find that both parameters are well-recovered at 90% confidence with improving constraints at higher reflection fraction, high spin, and low source height. We test spectra across a broad range—first at 106–107 and then ∼105 total source counts across the effective 3–79 keV band of NuSTAR, and discover a strong dependence of the results on how fits are performed around the starting parameters, owing to the complexity of the model itself. A blind fit chosen over an approach that carries some estimates of the actual parameter values can lead to significantly worse recovery of model parameters. We further stress the importance to span the space of nonlinear-behaving parameters like {log} ξ carefully and thoroughly for the model to avoid misleading results. In light of selecting fitting procedures, we recall the necessity to pay attention to the choice of data binning and fit statistics used to test the goodness of fit by demonstrating the effect on the photon index Γ. We re-emphasize and implore the need to account for the detector resolution while binning X-ray data and using Poisson fit statistics instead while analyzing Poissonian data.

High-Resolution X-Ray Spectra of the Symbiotic Star SS73 17

Science.gov (United States)

Eze, R. N. C.; Luna, G. J. M.; Smith, R. K.

2010-01-01

SS73 17 was an innocuous Mira-type symbiotic star until the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory and Swift discovered its bright hard X-ray emission, adding it to the small class of "hard X-ray emitting symbiotics." Suzaku observations in 2006 then showed it emits three bright iron lines as well, with little to no emission in the 0.3-2.0 keV bandpass. We present here follow-up observations with the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating and Suzaku that confirm the earlier detection of strong emission lines of Fe K(alpha) fluorescence, Fe XXV and Fe XXVI but also show significantly more soft X-ray emission. The high-resolution spectrum also shows emission lines of other highly ionized ions as Si xiv and possibly S XVI. In addition, a re-analysis of the 2006 Suzaku data using the latest calibration shows that the hard (15-50 keV) X-ray emission is brighter than previously thought and remains constant in both the 2006 and 2008 data. The G ratio calculated from the Fe xxv lines shows that these lines are thermal, not photoionized, in origin.With the exception of the hard X-ray emission, the spectra from both epochs can be fit using thermal radiation assuming a differential emission measure based on a cooling-flow model combined with a full and partial absorber. We show that acceptable fits can be obtained for all the data in the 1-10 keV band varying only the partial absorber. Based on the temperature and accretion rate, the thermal emission appears to be arising from the boundary layer between the accreting white dwarf and the accretion disk.

HIGH-RESOLUTION X-RAY SPECTRA OF THE SYMBIOTIC STAR SS73 17

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eze, R. N. C.; Luna, G. J. M.; Smith, R. K.

2010-01-01

SS73 17 was an innocuous Mira-type symbiotic star until the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory and Swift discovered its bright hard X-ray emission, adding it to the small class of 'hard X-ray emitting symbiotics'. Suzaku observations in 2006 then showed it emits three bright iron lines as well, with little to no emission in the 0.3-2.0 keV bandpass. We present here follow-up observations with the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating and Suzaku that confirm the earlier detection of strong emission lines of Fe Kα fluorescence, Fe XXV and Fe XXVI but also show significantly more soft X-ray emission. The high-resolution spectrum also shows emission lines of other highly ionized ions as Si XIV and possibly S XVI. In addition, a re-analysis of the 2006 Suzaku data using the latest calibration shows that the hard (15-50 keV) X-ray emission is brighter than previously thought and remains constant in both the 2006 and 2008 data. The G ratio calculated from the Fe XXV lines shows that these lines are thermal, not photoionized, in origin. With the exception of the hard X-ray emission, the spectra from both epochs can be fit using thermal radiation assuming a differential emission measure based on a cooling-flow model combined with a full and partial absorber. We show that acceptable fits can be obtained for all the data in the 1-10 keV band varying only the partial absorber. Based on the temperature and accretion rate, the thermal emission appears to be arising from the boundary layer between the accreting white dwarf and the accretion disk.

Sixa-silicon x-ray array

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, I.

1995-01-01

Full text: The Spectrum-X-Gamma (SRG) satellite is scheduled for launch in 1995-96. Mission objectives include broad and narrow band imaging spectroscopy over a wide range of energies from the EUV through hard X-rays with an emphasis on studying galactic and extragalactic X-ray sources. Timing and moderate resolution spectroscopy can be performed with the solid state spectrometer SIXA (Silicon X-Ray Array), placed on the focal plane of the SODART telescope with total effective area of 1150 cm 2 at 6 keV (for f = 8 in telescope). The detector consists of 19 circular Si(Li) pixels, each with an active diameter of 9.2 min and thickness of 3 min. A radiative cooler will be used to bring the detector to the proper operating temperature (120-130 K). The energy range 0.5-20 keV is divided into 1024 channels of 20 eV size. Photons can be recorded with 30 μs time resolution and 160-200 eV (1-7 keV) energy resolution. Potential observing programmes (for e.g. time-resolved Iron Kα line spectroscopy) include stellar coronae, cataclysmic variables and X-ray binaries; accretion discs and coronae of neutron stars and black hole candidates; supernova remnants, active galactic nuclei and clusters of galaxies. (author)

Stellar winds in binary X-ray systems

Science.gov (United States)

Macgregor, K. B.; Vitello, P. A. J.

1982-01-01

It is thought that accretion from a strong stellar wind by a compact object may be responsible for the X-ray emission from binary systems containing a massive early-type primary. To investigate the effect of X-ray heating and ionization on the mass transfer process in systems of this type, an idealized model is constructed for the flow of a radiation-driven wind in the presence of an X-ray source of specified luminosity, L sub x. It is noted that for low values of L sub x, X-ray photoionization gives rise to additional ions having spectral lines with wavelengths situated near the peak of the primary continuum flux distribution. As a consequence, the radiation force acting on the gas increases in relation to its value in the absence of X-rays, and the wind is accelerated to higher velocities. As L sub x is increased, the degree of ionization of the wind increases, and the magnitude of the radiation force is diminished in comparison with the case in which L sub x = 0. This reduction leads at first to a decrease in the wind velocity and ultimately (for L sub x sufficiently large) to the termination of radiatively driven mass loss.

Einstein@Home discovers a radio-quiet gamma-ray millisecond pulsar

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Colin J.; Pletsch, Holger J.; Wu, Jason; Guillemot, Lucas; Kerr, Matthew; Johnson, Tyrel J.; Camilo, Fernando; Salvetti, David; Allen, Bruce; Anderson, David; Aulbert, Carsten; Beer, Christian; Bock, Oliver; Cuéllar, Andres; Eggenstein, Heinz-Bernd; Fehrmann, Henning; Kramer, Michael; Kwang, Shawn A.; Machenschalk, Bernd; Nieder, Lars; Ackermann, Markus; Ajello, Marco; Baldini, Luca; Ballet, Jean; Barbiellini, Guido; Bastieri, Denis; Bellazzini, Ronaldo; Bissaldi, Elisabetta; Blandford, Roger D.; Bloom, Elliott D.; Bonino, Raffaella; Bottacini, Eugenio; Brandt, Terri J.; Bregeon, Johan; Bruel, Philippe; Buehler, Rolf; Burnett, Toby H.; Buson, Sara; Cameron, Rob A.; Caputo, Regina; Caraveo, Patrizia A.; Cavazzuti, Elisabetta; Cecchi, Claudia; Charles, Eric; Chekhtman, Alexandre; Ciprini, Stefano; Cominsky, Lynn R.; Costantin, Denise; Cutini, Sara; D’Ammando, Filippo; De Luca, Andrea; Desiante, Rachele; Di Venere, Leonardo; Di Mauro, Mattia; Di Lalla, Niccolò; Digel, Seth W.; Favuzzi, Cecilia; Ferrara, Elizabeth C.; Franckowiak, Anna; Fukazawa, Yasushi; Funk, Stefan; Fusco, Piergiorgio; Gargano, Fabio; Gasparrini, Dario; Giglietto, Nico; Giordano, Francesco; Giroletti, Marcello; Gomez-Vargas, Germán A.; Green, David; Grenier, Isabelle A.; Guiriec, Sylvain; Harding, Alice K.; Hewitt, John W.; Horan, Deirdre; Jóhannesson, Guðlaugur; Kensei, Shiki; Kuss, Michael; La Mura, Giovanni; Larsson, Stefan; Latronico, Luca; Li, Jian; Longo, Francesco; Loparco, Francesco; Lovellette, Michael N.; Lubrano, Pasquale; Magill, Jeffrey D.; Maldera, Simone; Manfreda, Alberto; Mazziotta, Mario N.; McEnery, Julie E.; Michelson, Peter F.; Mirabal, Nestor; Mitthumsiri, Warit; Mizuno, Tsunefumi; Monzani, Maria Elena; Morselli, Aldo; Moskalenko, Igor V.; Nuss, Eric; Ohsugi, Takashi; Omodei, Nicola; Orienti, Monica; Orlando, Elena; Palatiello, Michele; Paliya, Vaidehi S.; de Palma, Francesco; Paneque, David; Perkins, Jeremy S.; Persic, Massimo; Pesce-Rollins, Melissa; Porter, Troy A.; Principe, Giacomo; Rainò, Silvia; Rando, Riccardo; Ray, Paul S.; Razzano, Massimiliano; Reimer, Anita; Reimer, Olaf; Romani, Roger W.; Saz Parkinson, Pablo M.; Sgrò, Carmelo; Siskind, Eric J.; Smith, David A.; Spada, Francesca; Spandre, Gloria; Spinelli, Paolo; Thayer, Jana B.; Thompson, David J.; Torres, Diego F.; Troja, Eleonora; Vianello, Giacomo; Wood, Kent; Wood, Matthew

2018-01-01

Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are old neutron stars that spin hundreds of times per second and appear to pulsate as their emission beams cross our line of sight. To date, radio pulsations have been detected from all rotation-powered MSPs. In an attempt to discover radio-quiet gamma-ray MSPs, we used the aggregated power from the computers of tens of thousands of volunteers participating in the Einstein@Home distributed computing project to search for pulsations from unidentified gamma-ray sources in Fermi Large Area Telescope data. This survey discovered two isolated MSPs, one of which is the only known rotation-powered MSP to remain undetected in radio observations. These gamma-ray MSPs were discovered in completely blind searches without prior constraints from other observations, raising hopes for detecting MSPs from a predicted Galactic bulge population. PMID:29503868

Solar and Stellar X-ray Cycles

Science.gov (United States)

Martens, P. C. H.; SADE Team

2004-05-01

Stern et al. have shown that Yohkoh-SXT full disk X-ray irradiance shows an 11 year cycle with an max/min amplitude ratio of a factor 30. Similar cyclic X-ray variation in Sun-like stars observed by ROSAT and its predecessors is observed in only a few cases and limited to a factor two or three. We will show, by means of detailed bandpass comparisons, that this discrepancy cannot be ascribed to the differences in energy response between SXT and the stellar soft X-ray detectors. Is the Sun exceptional? After centuries of geocentric and heliocentric worldviews we find this a difficult proposition to entertain. But perhaps the Sun is a member of a small class of late-type stars with large amplitudes in their X-ray cycles. The stellar X-ray observations listed in the HEASARC catalog are too sparse to verify this hypothesis. To resolve these and related questions we have proposed a small low-cost stellar X-ray spectroscopic imager originally called SADE to obtain regular time series from late and early-type stars and accretion disks. This instrument is complimentary to the much more advanced Chandra and XMM-Newton observatories, and allows them to focus on those sources that require their full spatial and spectral resolution. We will describe the basic design and spectroscopic capability of SADE and show it meets the mission requirements.

X-rays from stars

Science.gov (United States)

Güdel, Manuel

2004-07-01

Spectroscopic studies available from Chandra and XMM-Newton play a pivotal part in the understanding of the physical processes in stellar (magnetic and non-magnetic) atmospheres. It is now routinely possible to derive densities and to study the influence of ultraviolet radiation fields, both of which can be used to infer the geometry of the radiating sources. Line profiles provide important information on bulk mass motions and attenuation by neutral matter, e.g. in stellar winds. The increased sensitivity has revealed new types of X-ray sources in systems that were thought to be unlikely places for X-rays: flaring brown dwarfs, including rather old, non-accreting objects, and terminal shocks in jets of young stars are important examples. New clues concerning the role of stellar high-energy processes in the modification of the stellar environment (ionization, spallation, etc.) contribute significantly to our understanding of the "astro-ecology" in forming planetary systems. Technological limitations are evident. The spectral resolution has not reached the level where bulk mass motions in cool stars become easily measurable. Higher resolution would also be important to perform X-ray "Doppler imaging" in order to reconstruct the 3-D distribution of the X-ray sources around a rotating star. Higher sensitivity will be required to perform high-resolution spectroscopy of weak sources such as brown dwarfs or embedded pre-main-sequence sources. A new generation of satellites such as Constellation-X or XEUS should pursue these goals.

The Accretion-Ejection Mechanisms in X-ray Binaries: an Unified View

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Petrucci, P. O.; Foellmi, C.; Ferreira, J.; Henri, G.; Cabanac, C.; Belmont, R.; Malzac, J.

2009-01-01

We present a new keplerian accretion disc solution, the so-called Jet Emitting Disc (JED hereafter), which is part of global self-consistent disc-jet MHD structure. In our framework, a large scale, organized vertical magnetic field is threading the JED giving birth, when conditions are met, to stationnary self-collimated non relativistic jets. The main condition is that the magnetic pressure P mag must be of the order of the total pressure P tot in the JED and a direct consequence is a jet torque largely dominating the viscuous torque. This in turn implies an accretion velocity of the order of the sound speed and then a density much lower than a standard accretion disc. Moreover, most of the accretion power P acc being extracted by the jet, only part of it (<50%) is liberated in the JED as heating power.

X-ray Reflected Spectra from Accretion Disk Models. III. A Complete Grid of Ionized Reflection Calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, J.; Dauser, T.; Reynolds, C. S.; Kallman, T. R.; McClintock, J. E.; Wilms, J.; Ekmann, W.

2013-01-01

We present a new and complete library of synthetic spectra for modeling the component of emission that is reflected from an illuminated accretion disk. The spectra were computed using an updated version of our code xillver that incorporates new routines and a richer atomic data base. We offer in the form of a table model an extensive grid of reflection models that cover a wide range of parameters. Each individual model is characterized by the photon index Gamma of the illuminating radiation, the ionization parameter zeta at the surface of the disk (i.e., the ratio of the X-ray flux to the gas density), and the iron abundance A(sub Fe) relative to the solar value. The ranges of the parameters covered are: 1.2 <= Gamma <= 3.4, 1 <= zeta <= 104, and 0.5 <= A(sub Fe) <= 10. These ranges capture the physical conditions typically inferred from observations of active galactic nuclei, and also stellar-mass black holes in the hard state. This library is intended for use when the thermal disk flux is faint compared to the incident power-law flux. The models are expected to provide an accurate description of the Fe K emission line, which is the crucial spectral feature used to measure black hole spin. A total of 720 reflection spectra are provided in a single FITS file suitable for the analysis of X-ray observations via the atable model in xspec. Detailed comparisons with previous reflection models illustrate the improvements incorporated in this version of xillver.

Anti-correlation between X-ray luminosity and pulsed fraction in the Small Magellanic Cloud pulsar SXP 1323

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jun; Zezas, Andreas; Coe, Malcolm J.; Drake, Jeremy J.; Hong, JaeSub; Laycock, Silas G. T.; Wik, Daniel R.

2018-05-01

We report the evidence for the anti-correlation between pulsed fraction (PF) and luminosity of the X-ray pulsar SXP 1323, found for the first time in a luminosity range 1035-1037 erg s-1 from observations spanning 15 years. The phenomenon of a decrease in X-ray PF when the source flux increases has been observed in our pipeline analysis of other X-ray pulsars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). It is expected that the luminosity under a certain value decreases as the PF decreases due to the propeller effect. Above the propeller region, an anti-correlation between the PF and flux might occur either as a result of an increase in the un-pulsed component of the total emission or a decrease of the pulsed component. Additional modes of accretion may also be possible, such as spherical accretion and a change in emission geometry. At higher mass accretion rates, the accretion disk could also extend closer to the neutron star (NS) surface, where a reduced inner radius leads to hotter inner disk emission. These modes of plasma accretion may affect the change in the beam configuration to fan-beam dominant emission.

Strong disk winds traced throughout outbursts in black-hole X-ray binaries.

Science.gov (United States)

Tetarenko, B E; Lasota, J-P; Heinke, C O; Dubus, G; Sivakoff, G R

2018-02-01

Recurring outbursts associated with matter flowing onto compact stellar remnants (such as black holes, neutron stars and white dwarfs) in close binary systems provide a way of constraining the poorly understood accretion process. The light curves of these outbursts are shaped by the efficiency of angular-momentum (and thus mass) transport in the accretion disks, which has traditionally been encoded in a viscosity parameter, α. Numerical simulations of the magneto-rotational instability that is believed to be the physical mechanism behind this transport yield values of α of roughly 0.1-0.2, consistent with values determined from observations of accreting white dwarfs. Equivalent viscosity parameters have hitherto not been estimated for disks around neutron stars or black holes. Here we report the results of an analysis of archival X-ray light curves of 21 outbursts in black-hole X-ray binaries. By applying a Bayesian approach to a model of accretion, we determine corresponding values of α of around 0.2-1.0. These high values may be interpreted as an indication either of a very high intrinsic rate of angular-momentum transport in the disk, which could be sustained by the magneto-rotational instability only if a large-scale magnetic field threads the disk, or that mass is being lost from the disk through substantial outflows, which strongly shape the outburst in the black-hole X-ray binary. The lack of correlation between our estimates of α and the accretion state of the binaries implies that such outflows can remove a substantial fraction of the disk mass in all accretion states and therefore suggests that the outflows correspond to magnetically driven disk winds rather than thermally driven ones, which require specific radiative conditions.

Strong disk winds traced throughout outbursts in black-hole X-ray binaries

Science.gov (United States)

Tetarenko, B. E.; Lasota, J.-P.; Heinke, C. O.; Dubus, G.; Sivakoff, G. R.

2018-02-01

Recurring outbursts associated with matter flowing onto compact stellar remnants (such as black holes, neutron stars and white dwarfs) in close binary systems provide a way of constraining the poorly understood accretion process. The light curves of these outbursts are shaped by the efficiency of angular-momentum (and thus mass) transport in the accretion disks, which has traditionally been encoded in a viscosity parameter, α. Numerical simulations of the magneto-rotational instability that is believed to be the physical mechanism behind this transport yield values of α of roughly 0.1–0.2, consistent with values determined from observations of accreting white dwarfs. Equivalent viscosity parameters have hitherto not been estimated for disks around neutron stars or black holes. Here we report the results of an analysis of archival X-ray light curves of 21 outbursts in black-hole X-ray binaries. By applying a Bayesian approach to a model of accretion, we determine corresponding values of α of around 0.2–1.0. These high values may be interpreted as an indication either of a very high intrinsic rate of angular-momentum transport in the disk, which could be sustained by the magneto-rotational instability only if a large-scale magnetic field threads the disk, or that mass is being lost from the disk through substantial outflows, which strongly shape the outburst in the black-hole X-ray binary. The lack of correlation between our estimates of α and the accretion state of the binaries implies that such outflows can remove a substantial fraction of the disk mass in all accretion states and therefore suggests that the outflows correspond to magnetically driven disk winds rather than thermally driven ones, which require specific radiative conditions.

The Giant Flares of the Microquasar Cygnus X-3: X-Rays States and Jets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergei Trushkin

2017-11-01

Full Text Available We report on two giant radio flares of the X-ray binary microquasar Cyg X-3, consisting of a Wolf–Rayet star and probably a black hole. The first flare occurred on 13 September 2016, 2000 days after a previous giant flare in February 2011, as the RATAN-600 radio telescope daily monitoring showed. After 200 days on 1 April 2017, we detected a second giant flare. Both flares are characterized by the increase of the fluxes by almost 2000-times (from 5–10 to 17,000 mJy at 4–11 GHz during 2–7 days, indicating relativistic bulk motions from the central region of the accretion disk around a black hole. The flaring light curves and spectral evolution of the synchrotron radiation indicate the formation of two relativistic collimated jets from the binaries. Both flares occurred when the source went from hypersoft X-ray states to soft ones, i.e. hard fluxes (Swift/BAT 15–50 keV data dropped to zero, the soft X-ray fluxes (MAXI 2–10 keV data staying high, and then later, the binary came back to a hard state. Both similar giant flares indicated the unchanged mechanism of the jets’ formation in Cyg X-3, probably in conditions of strong stellar wind and powerful accretion onto a black hole.

Nuclear Physical Uncertainties in Modeling X-Ray Bursts

Science.gov (United States)

Regis, Eric; Amthor, A. Matthew

2017-09-01

Type I x-ray bursts occur when a neutron star accretes material from the surface of another star in a compact binary star system. For certain accretion rates and material compositions, much of the nuclear material is burned in short, explosive bursts. Using a one-dimensional stellar model, Kepler, and a comprehensive nuclear reaction rate library, ReacLib, we have simulated chains of type I x-ray bursts. Unfortunately, there are large remaining uncertainties in the nuclear reaction rates involved, since many of the isotopes reacting are unstable and have not yet been studied experimentally. Some individual reactions, when varied within their estimated uncertainty, alter the light curves dramatically. This limits our ability to understand the structure of the neutron star. Previous studies have looked at the effects of individual reaction rate uncertainties. We have applied a Monte Carlo method ``-simultaneously varying a set of reaction rates'' -in order to probe the expected uncertainty in x-ray burst behaviour due to the total uncertainty in all nuclear reaction rates. Furthermore, we aim to discover any nonlinear effects due to the coupling between different reaction rates. Early results show clear non-linear effects. This research was made possible by NSF-DUE Grant 1317446, BUScholars Program.

On the illumination of neutron star accretion discs

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkins, D. R.

2018-03-01

The illumination of the accretion disc in a neutron star X-ray binary by X-rays emitted from (or close to) the neutron star surface is explored through general relativistic ray tracing simulations. The applicability of the canonical suite of relativistically broadened emission line models (developed for black holes) to discs around neutron stars is evaluated. These models were found to describe well emission lines from neutron star accretion discs unless the neutron star radius is larger than the innermost stable orbit of the accretion disc at 6 rg or the disc is viewed at high inclination, above 60° where shadowing of the back side of the disc becomes important. Theoretical emissivity profiles were computed for accretion discs illuminated by hotspots on the neutron star surfaces, bands of emission and emission by the entirety of the hot, spherical star surface and in all cases, the emissivity profile of the accretion disc was found to be well represented by a single power law falling off slightly steeper than r-3. Steepening of the emissivity index was found where the emission is close to the disc plane and the disc can appear truncated when illuminated by a hotspot at high latitude. The emissivity profile of the accretion disc in Serpens X-1 was measured and found to be consistent with a single unbroken power law with index q=3.5_{-0.4}^{+0.3}, suggestive of illumination by the boundary layer between the disc and neutron star surface.

News on the X-ray emission from hot subdwarf stars

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Palombara Nicola La

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In latest years, the high sensitivity of the instruments on-board the XMM-Newton and Chandra satellites allowed us to explore the properties of the X-ray emission from hot subdwarf stars. The small but growing sample of X-ray detected hot subdwarfs includes binary systems, in which the X-ray emission is due to wind accretion onto a compact companion (white dwarf or neutron star, as well as isolated sdO stars, in which X-rays are probably due to shock instabilities in the wind. X-ray observations of these low-mass stars provide information which can be useful for our understanding of the weak winds of this type of stars and can lead to the discovery of particularly interesting binary systems. Here we report the most recent results we have recently obtained in this research area.

Spectroscopy of X-ray Photoionized Plasmas in the Laboratory

Science.gov (United States)

Liedahl, Duane A.; Loisel, Guillaume; Bailey, James E.; Nagayama, Taisuke; Hansen, Stephanie B.; Rochau, Gregory; Fontes, Christopher J.; Mancini, Roberto; Kallman, Timothy R.

2018-06-01

The physical processes operating in astrophysical plasmas --- heating, cooling, ionization, recombination, level population kinetics, and radiation transport --- are all accessible to observation in the laboratory. What distinguishes X-ray photoionized plasmas from the more common case of high-temperature collisionally-ionized plasmas is the elevated level of importance of the radiation/matter interaction. The advent of laboratory facilities with the capability to generate high-powered X-ray sources has provided the means by which to study this interaction, which is also fundamental to active galactic nuclei and other accretion-powered objects. We discuss recent and ongoing experiments, with an emphasis on X-ray spectroscopic measurements of silicon plasmas obtained at the Sandia Z Pulsed Power Facility.

Population Synthesis of Radio & Gamma-Ray Millisecond Pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Frederick, Sara; Gonthier, P. L.; Harding, A. K.

2014-01-01

In recent years, the number of known gamma-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in the Galactic disk has risen substantially thanks to confirmed detections by Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi). We have developed a new population synthesis of gamma-ray and radio MSPs in the galaxy which uses Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques to explore the large and small worlds of the model parameter space and allows for comparisons of the simulated and detected MSP distributions. The simulation employs empirical radio and gamma-ray luminosity models that are dependent upon the pulsar period and period derivative with freely varying exponents. Parameters associated with the birth distributions are also free to vary. The computer code adjusts the magnitudes of the model luminosities to reproduce the number of MSPs detected by a group of ten radio surveys, thus normalizing the simulation and predicting the MSP birth rates in the Galaxy. Computing many Markov chains leads to preferred sets of model parameters that are further explored through two statistical methods. Marginalized plots define confidence regions in the model parameter space using maximum likelihood methods. A secondary set of confidence regions is determined in parallel using Kuiper statistics calculated from comparisons of cumulative distributions. These two techniques provide feedback to affirm the results and to check for consistency. Radio flux and dispersion measure constraints have been imposed on the simulated gamma-ray distributions in order to reproduce realistic detection conditions. The simulated and detected distributions agree well for both sets of radio and gamma-ray pulsar characteristics, as evidenced by our various comparisons.

The disc-jet coupling in the neutron star X-ray binary 4U 1728-34

Science.gov (United States)

Tudose, Valeriu; Tzioumis, Anastasios; Belloni, Tomaso; Altamirano, Diego; Linares, Manuel; Mendez, Mariano; Hiemstra, Beike

2010-10-01

The present radio proposal is part of a multi-wavelength campaign focused on the study of the accretion/ejection process in the neutron star X-ray binary system 4U 1728-34. Our intention is to study the behaviour of the inner part of the accretion disc as inferred from the X-ray observations of the Fe emission line and the kHz quasi-periodic oscillations, and to link it to the properties of the radio jet. To achieve this goal we request 5 × 11h of observing time with ATCA, scheduled at regular intervals in the period 2010 August 27- October 13, the visibility window of the granted X-ray observations with RXTE (PI: Mendez) and Suzaku (PI: Linares).

Optical Observations of X-ray Bright, Optically Normal Galaxies

Science.gov (United States)

Sadun, Alberto C.; Aryan, N. S.; Ghosh, K. K.

2007-05-01

X-ray bright, optically normal galaxies (XBONGs) are galaxies that seem to have normal spectra and morphology, but are relatively bright x-ray sources. The large ratio of the x-ray to optical emission suggests that some activity, similar to that of active galactic nuclei (AGN), is occurring. Since the galaxies do not show any obvious sign of nuclear activity in their optical spectra, one possible explanation is that these galaxies do not have an optically thick accretion disk at small radii, as previously assumed. Previous data for NGC 7626 classifies it as an XBONG, and so we are studying optical features of this galaxy in order to determine better its features. After confirming an x-ray jet, we are now comparing this to optical features that we have found, including warped dust lanes and a possible optical jet.

Status of the accretion flow solution in the Golden Jubilee year of the discovery of extra-solar X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Chakrabarti, S. K.

Fifty years have just passed since the first discovery of the extra-solar X-ray sources by Giacconi and his team which we know today to be some stellar mass black holes. By 1973, not only a catalog of these enigmatic objects were made, and their spectra were obtained. Today, forty years have passed since the revolutionary idea of the thin, axisymmetric, Keplerian, disk model by Shakura and Sunyaev was published. Yet, the complete predictability of their radiative properties remains as illusive as ever. The only available and self-consistent solution to date is the generalized viscous transonic flow solutions where both heating and cooling effects are included. I demonstrate that the latest `Avatar' of the accretion/outflow picture, the Generalized Two Component Advective Flow (GTCAF), is capable of explaining almost all the black hole observational results, when the results of the time dependent simulation of viscous and radiative processes are also taken into consideration. I also discuss the problems with predictability and argue that understanding companion's behaviour in terms of its habit of mass loss, ellipticity of its orbit, magnetic properties, etc. is extremely important for the prediction of emission properties of the accretion flow.

COMMON PATTERNS IN THE EVOLUTION BETWEEN THE LUMINOUS NEUTRON STAR LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY SUBCLASSES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fridriksson, Joel K.; Homan, Jeroen; Remillard, Ronald A.

2015-01-01

The X-ray transient XTE J1701–462 was the first source observed to evolve through all known subclasses of low-magnetic-field neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries (NS-LMXBs), as a result of large changes in its mass accretion rate. To investigate to what extent similar evolution is seen in other NS-LMXBs we have performed a detailed study of the color–color and hardness–intensity diagrams (CDs and HIDs) of Cyg X-2, Cir X-1, and GX 13+1—three luminous X-ray binaries, containing weakly magnetized neutron stars, known to exhibit strong secular changes in their CD/HID tracks. Using the full set of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer Proportional Counter Array data collected for the sources over the 16 year duration of the mission, we show that Cyg X-2 and Cir X-1 display CD/HID evolution with close similarities to XTE J1701–462. Although GX 13+1 shows behavior that is in some ways unique, it also exhibits similarities to XTE J1701–462, and we conclude that its overall CD/HID properties strongly indicate that it should be classified as a Z source, rather than as an atoll source. We conjecture that the secular evolution of Cyg X-2, Cir X-1, and GX 13+1—illustrated by sequences of CD/HID tracks we construct—arises from changes in the mass accretion rate. Our results strengthen previous suggestions that within single sources Cyg-like Z source behavior takes place at higher luminosities and mass accretion rates than Sco-like Z behavior, and lend support to the notion that the mass accretion rate is the primary physical parameter distinguishing the various NS-LMXB subclasses

COMMON PATTERNS IN THE EVOLUTION BETWEEN THE LUMINOUS NEUTRON STAR LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY SUBCLASSES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fridriksson, Joel K. [Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam (Netherlands); Homan, Jeroen; Remillard, Ronald A., E-mail: J.K.Fridriksson@uva.nl [Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States)

2015-08-10

The X-ray transient XTE J1701–462 was the first source observed to evolve through all known subclasses of low-magnetic-field neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries (NS-LMXBs), as a result of large changes in its mass accretion rate. To investigate to what extent similar evolution is seen in other NS-LMXBs we have performed a detailed study of the color–color and hardness–intensity diagrams (CDs and HIDs) of Cyg X-2, Cir X-1, and GX 13+1—three luminous X-ray binaries, containing weakly magnetized neutron stars, known to exhibit strong secular changes in their CD/HID tracks. Using the full set of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer Proportional Counter Array data collected for the sources over the 16 year duration of the mission, we show that Cyg X-2 and Cir X-1 display CD/HID evolution with close similarities to XTE J1701–462. Although GX 13+1 shows behavior that is in some ways unique, it also exhibits similarities to XTE J1701–462, and we conclude that its overall CD/HID properties strongly indicate that it should be classified as a Z source, rather than as an atoll source. We conjecture that the secular evolution of Cyg X-2, Cir X-1, and GX 13+1—illustrated by sequences of CD/HID tracks we construct—arises from changes in the mass accretion rate. Our results strengthen previous suggestions that within single sources Cyg-like Z source behavior takes place at higher luminosities and mass accretion rates than Sco-like Z behavior, and lend support to the notion that the mass accretion rate is the primary physical parameter distinguishing the various NS-LMXB subclasses.

Study with the sigma data base of the galactic bulge hard x-ray and gamma-ray sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vargas, Marielle

1997-01-01

The Sigma coded-mask telescope on board the Granat spacecraft produces sky images in the hard X-ray and soft gamma-ray energy domain (30-1300 keV) with an angular resolution of 15 arc minutes. The observations of the 18 Angstroms x 17 Angstroms region around the Galactic Center, performed with Sigma regularly during seven years, allowed the detection of a cluster of 17 sources showing activity beyond 40 ke V. This cluster is identified with the Galactic Bulge and its core coincides with the Galactic Center. Each of these sources reveals matter accretion by a collapse star in binary system. Its nature is determined by the luminosity and the spectral behavior recorded beyond 40 keV. Three accreting black holes show peculiar transient activities and comparable flare luminosities providing a criterion to evaluate distance of other specimens located elsewhere in the Galaxy. No sign of activity has been detected from the very center of the Galaxy where a supermassive black hole would be placed and would accrete the surrounding matter. (author) [fr

The Physics of Wind-Fed Accretion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mauche, Christopher W.; Liedahl, Duane A.; Akiyama, Shizuka; Plewa, Tomasz

2008-01-01

We provide a brief review of the physical processes behind the radiative driving of the winds of OB stars and the Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton capture and accretion of a fraction of the stellar wind by a compact object, typically a neutron star, in detached high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs). In addition, we describe a program to develop global models of the radiatively-driven photoionized winds and accretion flows of HMXBs, with particular attention to the prototypical system Vela X-l. The models combine XSTAR photoionization calculations, HULLAC emission models appropriate to X-ray photoionized plasmas, improved models of the radiative driving of photoionized winds, FLASH time-dependent adaptive-mesh hydrodynamics calculations, and Monte Carlo radiation transport. We present two- and three-dimensional maps of the density, temperature, velocity, ionization parameter, and emissivity distributions of representative X-ray emission lines, as well as synthetic global Monte Carlo X-ray spectra. Such models help to better constrain the properties of the winds of HMXBs, which bear on such fundamental questions as the long-term evolution of these binaries and the chemical enrichment of the interstellar medium.

The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE): Overview

Science.gov (United States)

O'Dell, Steve; Weisskopf, M.; Soffitta, P.; Baldini, L.; Bellazzini, R.; Costa, E.; Elsner, R.; Kaspi, V.; Kolodziejczak, J.; Latronico, L.;

The X-ray eclipse geometry of the super-soft X-ray source CAL 87

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ribeiro, T.; Lopes de Oliveira, R. [Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon s/n, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE (Brazil); Borges, B. W., E-mail: tribeiro@ufs.br, E-mail: rlopes@ufs.br, E-mail: bernardo@astro.ufsc.br [Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Campus Araranguá, 88905-120 Araranguá, SC (Brazil)

2014-09-01

We explore XMM-Newton observations of the eclipsing super-soft X-ray source CAL 87 in order to map the accretion structures of the system. Indirect imaging techniques were applied in X-ray light curves to provide eclipse maps. The surface brightness distribution exhibits an extended and symmetric emission, and a feature is revealed from the hardest X-rays that is likely due to a bright spot. A rate of P-dot =(+6±2)×10{sup −10} for changes in the orbital period of the system was derived from the eclipses. There is no significant variation of the emission lines even during eclipses, arguing that the lines are formed in an extended region. The continuum emission dominates the decrease in flux that is observed during eclipses. The O VIII Lyα line reveals a broadening velocity that is estimated to be 365{sub −69}{sup +65} km s{sup –1} (at 1σ), marginal evidence for asymmetry in its profile, and sometimes shows evidence of double-peaked emission. Together, the results support that the wind-driven mass transfer scenario is running in CAL 87.

A mass of less than 15 solar masses for the black hole in an ultraluminous X-ray source.

Science.gov (United States)

Motch, C; Pakull, M W; Soria, R; Grisé, F; Pietrzyński, G

2014-10-09

Most ultraluminous X-ray sources have a typical set of properties not seen in Galactic stellar-mass black holes. They have luminosities of more than 3 × 10(39) ergs per second, unusually soft X-ray components (with a typical temperature of less than about 0.3 kiloelectronvolts) and a characteristic downturn in their spectra above about 5 kiloelectronvolts. Such puzzling properties have been interpreted either as evidence of intermediate-mass black holes or as emission from stellar-mass black holes accreting above their Eddington limit, analogous to some Galactic black holes at peak luminosity. Recently, a very soft X-ray spectrum was observed in a rare and transient stellar-mass black hole. Here we report that the X-ray source P13 in the galaxy NGC 7793 is in a binary system with a period of about 64 days and exhibits all three canonical properties of ultraluminous sources. By modelling the strong optical and ultraviolet modulations arising from X-ray heating of the B9Ia donor star, we constrain the black hole mass to be less than 15 solar masses. Our results demonstrate that in P13, soft thermal emission and spectral curvature are indeed signatures of supercritical accretion. By analogy, ultraluminous X-ray sources with similar X-ray spectra and luminosities of up to a few times 10(40) ergs per second can be explained by supercritical accretion onto massive stellar-mass black holes.

A fast search strategy for gravitational waves from low-mass x-ray binaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Messenger, C; Woan, G

2007-01-01

We present a new type of search strategy designed specifically to find continuously emitting gravitational wave sources in known binary systems. A component of this strategy is based on the incoherent summation of frequency-modulated binary signal sidebands, a method previously employed in the detection of electromagnetic pulsar signals from radio observations. The search pipeline can be divided into three stages: the first is a wide bandwidth, F-statistic search demodulated for sky position. This is followed by a fast second stage in which areas in frequency space are identified as signal candidates through the frequency domain convolution of the F-statistic with an approximate signal template. For this second stage only precise information on the orbit period and approximate information on the orbital semi-major axis are required a priori. For the final stage we propose a fully coherent Markov chain Monte Carlo based follow-up search on the frequency subspace defined by the candidates identified by the second stage. This search is particularly suited to the low-mass x-ray binaries, for which orbital period and sky position are typically well known and additional orbital parameters and neutron star spin frequency are not. We note that for the accreting x-ray millisecond pulsars, for which spin frequency and orbital parameters are well known, the second stage can be omitted and the fully coherent search stage can be performed. We describe the search pipeline with respect to its application to a simplified phase model and derive the corresponding sensitivity of the search

Oscillations During Thermonuclear X-ray Bursts: A New Probe of Neutron Stars

Science.gov (United States)

Strohmayer, Tod E.; White, Nicholas E. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Observations of thermonuclear (also called Type 1) X-ray bursts from neutron stars in low mass X-ray binaries (LMXB) with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) have revealed large amplitude, high coherence X-ray brightness oscillations with frequencies in the 300 - 600 Hz range. Substantial spectral and timing evidence point to rotational modulation of the X-ray burst flux as the cause of these oscillations, and it is likely that they reveal the spin frequencies of neutron stars in LMXB from which they are detected. Here we review the status of our knowledge of these oscillations and describe how they can be used to constrain the masses and radii of neutron stars as well as the physics of thermonuclear burning on accreting neutron stars.

Magnetospheres of accreting compact objects in binary systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aly, J.J.

1985-09-01

Bright pulsating X-ray sources (X-ray pulsars, AM Her stars,...) have been identified as strongly magnetized compact objects accreting matter from a binary companion. We give here a summary of some of the work which has been recently done to try to understand the interaction between the magnetic field of the compact object and the matter around. We examine in turn the models describing the interaction of the field with: i) a spherically symmetric accretion flow; ii) a thin keplerian accretion disk; iii) the companion itself. In all these cases, we pay particular attention to the following problems: i) how the external plasma interacting with the magnetosphere can get mixed with the field; ii) by which mechanism the magnetic field controls the mass-momentum-energy exchanges between the two stars. In conclusion, we compare the magnetosphere of an accreting compact object with that one of a planet [fr

Characterizing X-Ray and Radio Emission in the Black Hole X-Ray Binary V404 Cygni During Quiescence

Science.gov (United States)

Rana, Vikram; Loh, Alan; Corbel, Stephane; Tomsick, John A.; Chakrabarty, Deepto; Walton, Dominic J.; Barret, Didier; Boggs, Steven E.; Christensen, Finn E.; Craig, William;

X-ray Polarization from Black Holes: GEMS Scientific White Paper

OpenAIRE

Schnittman, Jeremy; Angelini, Lorella; Baring, Matthew; Baumgartner, Wayne; Black, Kevin; Dotson, Jessie; Ghosh, Pranab; Harding, Alice; Hill, Joanne; Jahoda, Keith; Kaaret, Phillip; Kallman, Tim; Krawczynski, Henric; Krolik, Julian; Lai, Dong

2013-01-01

We present here a summary of the scientific goals behind the Gravity and Extreme Magnetism SMEX (GEMS) X-ray polarimetry mission's black hole (BH) observing program. The primary targets can be divided into two classes: stellar-mass galactic BHs in accreting binaries, and super-massive BHs in the centers of active galactic nuclei (AGN). The stellar-mass BHs can in turn be divided into various X-ray spectral states: thermal-dominant (disk), hard (radio jet), and steep power-law (hot corona). Th...

Very Luminous X-ray Point Sources in Starburst Galaxies

Science.gov (United States)

Colbert, E.; Heckman, T.; Ptak, A.; Weaver, K. A.; Strickland, D.

Extranuclear X-ray point sources in external galaxies with luminosities above 1039.0 erg/s are quite common in elliptical, disk and dwarf galaxies, with an average of ~ 0.5 and dwarf galaxies, with an average of ~0.5 sources per galaxy. These objects may be a new class of object, perhaps accreting intermediate-mass black holes, or beamed stellar mass black hole binaries. Starburst galaxies tend to have a larger number of these intermediate-luminosity X-ray objects (IXOs), as well as a large number of lower-luminosity (1037 - 1039 erg/s) point sources. These point sources dominate the total hard X-ray emission in starburst galaxies. We present a review of both types of objects and discuss possible schemes for their formation.

Probing the clumpy winds of giant stars with high mass X-ray binaries

Science.gov (United States)

Grinberg, Victoria; Hell, Natalie; Hirsch, Maria; Garcia, Javier; Huenemoerder, David; Leutenegger, Maurice A.; Nowak, Michael; Pottschmidt, Katja; Schulz, Norbert S.; Sundqvists, Jon O.; Townsend, Richard D.; Wilms, Joern

2016-04-01

Line-driven winds from early type stars are structured, with small, overdense clumps embedded in tenuous hot gas. High mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs), systems where a neutron star or a black hole accretes from the line-driven stellar wind of an O/B-type companion, are ideal for studying such winds: the wind drives the accretion onto the compact object and thus the X-ray production. The radiation from close to the compact object is quasi-pointlike and effectively X-rays the wind.We used RXTE and Chandra-HETG observations of two of the brightest HMXBs, Cyg X-1 and Vela X-1, to decipher their wind structure. In Cyg X-1, we show that the orbital variability of absorption can be only explained by a clumpy wind model and constrain the porosity of the wind as well as the onion-like structure of the clumps. In Vela X-1 we show, using the newest reference energies for low ionization Si-lines obtained with LLNL’s EBIT-I, that the ionized phase of the circumstellar medium and the cold clumps have different velocities.

Multiwavelength observations of Active Galactic Nuclei from the radio to the hard X-rays

Science.gov (United States)

Beuchert, Tobias

2017-07-01

Active Galaxies form a peculiar type of galaxies. Their cores, the so-called "Active Galactic Nuclei" (AGN), are the most persistent luminous objects in the universe. Accretion of several solar masses per year onto black holes of Millions to Billions of solar masses drive the immense energy output of these systems, which can exceed that of the entire galaxy. The compact energy source, however, only measures about one over a Billion times that of the entire galaxy. Subject of my thesis are observations of the two main channels of energy release of selected AGN systems, both of which are encompassed by profound and yet unanswered questions. These channels are on the one hand the pronounced X-ray emission of the hot and compact accreting environment in close vicinity of the black hole, and on the other hand the radio synchrotron emission of magnetically collimated jets that are fed by portions of the accreted matter. These jets also function as effective accelerators and drive the injected matter deep into the intergalactic medium. As the circumnuclear environment of AGN is too compact to be spatially resolved in the X-rays, I show how X-ray spectroscopy can be used to: (1) understand the effects of strong gravity to trace the geometry and physics of the X-ray source and (2) more consistently quantify matter that surrounds and dynamically absorbs our direct line of sight towards the X-ray source. Second, I unveil the valuable information contained in the polarized radio light being emitted from magnetized jet outflows. In contrast to the X-ray emitting region, I am able to spatially resolve the inner parts of the jet of a prominent galaxy with help of the Very Long Baseline Array, a large network of radio telescopes. The resulting polarization maps turn out to be exceptionally promising in answering fundamental questions related to jet physics.

TRACING THE LOWEST PROPELLER LINE IN MAGELLANIC HIGH-MASS X-RAY BINARIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Christodoulou, Dimitris M.; Laycock, Silas G. T.; Yang, Jun; Fingerman, Samuel, E-mail: dimitris_christodoulou@uml.edu, E-mail: silas_laycock@uml.edu, E-mail: jun_yang@uml.edu, E-mail: fingerman.samuel@gmail.com [Lowell Center for Space Science and Technology, 600 Suffolk Street, Lowell, MA 01854 (United States)

2016-09-20

We have combined the published observations of high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) pulsars in the Magellanic Clouds with a new processing of the complete archival data sets from the XMM-Newton and Chandra observatories in an attempt to trace the lowest propeller line below which accretion to polar caps is inhibited by the centrifugal force and the pulsations from the most weakly magnetized pulsars cease. Previously published data reveal that some of the faster-spinning pulsars with spin periods of P {sub S} < 12 s, detected at relatively low X-ray luminosities L {sub X} , appear to define such a line in the P {sub S} – L {sub X} diagram, characterized by a magnetic moment of μ = 3 × 10{sup 29} G cm{sup 3}. This value implies the presence of surface magnetic fields of B ≥ 3 × 10{sup 11} G in the compact objects of this class. Only a few quiescent HMXBs are found below the propeller line: LXP4.40 and SXP4.78, for which XMM-Newton and Chandra null detections respectively placed firm upper limits on their X-ray fluxes in deep quiescence; and A0538-66, for which many sub-Eddington detections have never measured any pulsations. On the other hand, the data from the XMM-Newton and Chandra archives show clearly that, during routine observation cycles, several sources have been detected below the propeller line in extremely faint, nonpulsating states that can be understood as the result of weak magnetospheric emission when accretion to the poles is centrifugally stalled or severely diminished. We also pay attention to the anomalous X-ray pulsar CXOU J010043.1-721134 that was reported in HMXB surveys. Its pulsations and locations near and above the propeller line indicate that this pulsar could be accreting from a fossil disk.

X-RAY AND INFRARED OBSERVATIONS OF TWO EXTERNALLY POLLUTED WHITE DWARFS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jura, M.; Zuckerman, B.; Muno, M. P.; Farihi, J.

2009-01-01

With XMM-Newton and the Spitzer Space Telescope, we obtain upper bounds to the X-ray fluxes from G29-38 and GD 362, and the 70 μm flux from G29-38. These data provide indirect evidence that G29-38 is accreting from a tidally disrupted asteroid: it is neither accreting large amounts of hydrogen and helium nor is its surrounding dusty disk being replenished from a reservoir of cold grains experiencing Poynting-Robertson drag. The upper bound to the X-ray flux from GD 362 is consistent with the estimated rate of mass accretion required to explain its pollution by elements heavier than helium. GD 362 also possesses 0.01 M + of hydrogen, an anomalously large amount for a white dwarf with a helium-dominated atmosphere. One possibility is that before the current disk was formed, this hydrogen was accreted either from ∼100 Ceres-like asteroids or one large object. An alternative scenario which simultaneously explains all of GD 362's distinctive properties is that we are witnessing the consequences of the tidal destruction of a single parent body that had internal water and was at least as massive as Callisto and probably as massive as Mars.

A Non-thermal Pulsed X-Ray Emission of AR Scorpii

Science.gov (United States)

Takata, J.; Hu, C.-P.; Lin, L. C. C.; Tam, P. H. T.; Pal, P. S.; Hui, C. Y.; Kong, A. K. H.; Cheng, K. S.

2018-02-01

We report the analysis result of UV/X-ray emission from AR Scorpii, which is an intermediate polar (IP) composed of a magnetic white dwarf and an M-type star, with the XMM-Newton data. The X-ray/UV emission clearly shows a large variation over the orbit, and their intensity maximum (or minimum) is located at the superior conjunction (or inferior conjunction) of the M star orbit. The hardness ratio of the X-ray emission shows a small variation over the orbital phase and shows no indication of the absorption by an accretion column. These properties are naturally explained by the emission from the M star surface rather than that from the accretion column on the white dwarf’s (WD) star, which is similar to usual IPs. Additionally, the observed X-ray emission also modulates with the WD’s spin with a pulse fraction of ∼14%. The peak position is aligned in the optical/UV/X-ray band. This supports the hypothesis that the electrons in AR Scorpii are accelerated to a relativistic speed and emit non-thermal photons via the synchrotron radiation. In the X-ray bands, evidence of the power-law spectrum is found in the pulsed component, although the observed emission is dominated by the optically thin thermal plasma emissions with several different temperatures. It is considered that the magnetic dissipation/reconnection process on the M star surface heats up the plasma to a temperature of several keV and also accelerates the electrons to the relativistic speed. The relativistic electrons are trapped in the WD’s closed magnetic field lines by the magnetic mirror effect. In this model, the observed pulsed component is explained by the emissions from the first magnetic mirror point.

X-Ray Timing Analysis of Cyg X-3 Using AstroSat/LAXPC: Detection of Milli-hertz Quasi-periodic Oscillations during the Flaring Hard X-Ray State

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pahari, Mayukh; Misra, Ranjeev [Inter-University Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411007 (India); Antia, H M; Yadav, J S; Chauhan, Jai Verdhan; Chitnis, V R; Dedhia, Dhiraj; Katoch, Tilak; Madhwani, P; Shah, Parag [Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Homi Bhabha Road, Mumbai 400005 (India); Agrawal, P C [UM-DAE Center of Excellence for Basic Sciences, University of Mumbai, Kalina, Mumbai 400098 (India); Manchanda, R K [University of Mumbai, Kalina, Mumbai 400098 (India); Paul, B, E-mail: mayukh@iucaa.in [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Raman Research Institute, Bengaluru 560080 (India)

2017-11-01

We present here results from the X-ray timing and spectral analysis of the X-ray binary Cyg X-3 using observations from the Large Area X-ray proportional Counter on board AstroSat . Consecutive light curves observed over a period of one year show the binary orbital period of 17253.56 ± 0.19 s. Another low-amplitude, slow periodicity of the order of 35.8 ± 1.4 days is observed, which may be due to the orbital precession as suggested earlier by Molteni et al. During the rising binary phase, power density spectra from different observations during the flaring hard X-ray state show quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) at ∼5–8 mHz, ∼12–14 mHz, and ∼18–24 mHz frequencies at the minimum confidence of 99%. However, during the consecutive binary decay phase, no QPO is detected up to 2 σ significance. Energy-dependent time-lag spectra show soft lag (soft photons lag hard photons) at the mHz QPO frequency and the fractional rms of the QPO increases with the photon energy. During the binary motion, the observation of mHz QPOs during the rising phase of the flaring hard state may be linked to the increase in the supply of the accreting material in the disk and corona via stellar wind from the companion star. During the decay phase, the compact source moves in the outer wind region causing the decrease in supply of material for accretion. This may cause weakening of the mHz QPOs below the detection limit. This is also consistent with the preliminary analysis of the orbital phase-resolved energy spectra presented in this paper.

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Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Low-lying States of V III, 157. Jain Chetana Search for Orbital Motion of the Pulsar 4U 1626-67: Candidate for a Neutron Star with a Supernova Fall-back Accretion Disk, 175; Pulse Phase. Dependence of the Magnetar Bursts, 185; Orbital Evolution Measurement of the. Accreting Millisecond X-ray Pulsar SAX J1808.4–3658, ...

X-RAY DETERMINATION OF THE VARIABLE RATE OF MASS ACCRETION ONTO TW HYDRAE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brickhouse, N. S.; Cranmer, S. R.; Dupree, A. K.; Guenther, H. M.; Wolk, S. J. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Luna, G. J. M. [Current address: Instituto de Astronomia y Fisica del Espacio (IAFE), Buenos Aires (Argentina)

2012-12-01

Diagnostics of electron temperature (T{sub e} ), electron density (n{sub e} ), and hydrogen column density (N{sub H}) from the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating spectrum of He-like Ne IX in TW Hydrae (TW Hya), in conjunction with a classical accretion model, allow us to infer the accretion rate onto the star directly from measurements of the accreting material. The new method introduces the use of the absorption of Ne IX lines as a measure of the column density of the intervening, accreting material. On average, the derived mass accretion rate for TW Hya is 1.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -9} M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}, for a stellar magnetic field strength of 600 G and a filling factor of 3.5%. Three individual Chandra exposures show statistically significant differences in the Ne IX line ratios, indicating changes in N{sub H}, T{sub e} , and n{sub e} by factors of 0.28, 1.6, and 1.3, respectively. In exposures separated by 2.7 days, the observations reported here suggest a five-fold reduction in the accretion rate. This powerful new technique promises to substantially improve our understanding of the accretion process in young stars.

A Comprehensive Spectral Analysis of the X-Ray Pulsar 4U 1907+09 from Two Observations with the Suzaku X-Ray Observatory

Science.gov (United States)

Rivers, Elizabeth; Markowitz, Alex; Pottschmidt, Katja; Roth, Stefanie; Barragan, Laura; Furst, Felix; Suchy, Slawomir; Kreykenbohm, Ingo; Wilms, Jorn; Rothschild, Richard

2009-01-01

We present results from two observations of the wind-accreting X-ray pulsar 4U 1907+09 using the Suzaku observatory, The broadband time-averaged spectrum allows us to examine the continuum emission of the source and the cyclotron resonance scattering feature at approx. 19 keV. Additionally, using the narrow CCD response of Suzaku near 6 ke V allows us to study in detail the Fe K bandpass and to quantify the Fe Kp line for this source for the first time. The source is absorbed by fully-covering material along the line of sight with a column density of N(sub H) approx. 2 x 10(exp 22)/sq cm, consistent with a wind accreting geometry, and a high Fe abundance (approx. 3 - 4 x solar). Time and phase-resolved analyses allow us to study variations in the source spectrum. In particular, dips found in the 2006 observation which are consistent with earlier observations occur in the hard X-ray bandpass, implying a variation of the whole continuum rather than occultation by intervening material, while a dip near the end of the 2007 observation occurs mainly in the lower energies implying an increase in NH along the line of sight, perhaps indicating clumpiness in the stellar wind

Probing the Jet Turnover Frequency Dependence on Mass and Mass Accretion Rate

Science.gov (United States)

Hammerstein, Erica; Gültekin, Kayhan; King, Ashley

2018-01-01

We have examined a sample of 15 sub-Eddington supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in a variety of galaxy classifications to further understand the proposed fundamental plane of black hole activity and scaling relations between black hole masses and their radio and X-ray luminosities. This plane describes black holes from stellar-mass to supermassive. The physics probed by these sub-Eddington systems is thought to be a radiatively inefficient, jet-dominated accretion flow. By studying black holes in this regime, we can learn important information on the disk-jet connection for accreting black holes.A key factor in studying the fundamental plane is the turnover frequency — the frequency at which emission transitions from optically thick at lower frequencies to optically thin at higher frequencies. This turnover point can be measured by observing the source in both radio and X-ray. Our project aims to test the dependence of the turnover frequency on mass and mass accretion rate.Radio observations of the sample were obtained using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) in the range of 5-40 GHz across four different frequency bands in A configuration to give the highest spatial resolution to focus on the core emission. Our carefully chosen sample of SMBHs with dynamically measured masses consists of two sub-samples: those with approximately constant mass accretion rate (LX/LEdd ~ 10‑7) and those with approximately constant mass (MBH ~ 108 Msun). X-ray data were obtained from archival Chandra observations. To find the turnover frequency, we used Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods to fit two power laws to the radio data and the archival X-ray data. The intersection of the radio and X-ray fits is the turnover frequency.We present the results for both subsamples of SMBHs and their relationship between the turnover frequency and X-ray luminosity, which we take to scale with mass accretion rate, and jet power derived from both radio and X-ray properties.

SEARCHES FOR MILLISECOND PULSAR CANDIDATES AMONG THE UNIDENTIFIED FERMI OBJECTS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hui, C. Y.; Park, S. M. [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Hu, C. P. [Graduate Institute of Astronomy, National Central University, Jhongli 32001, Taiwan (China); Lin, L. C. C. [Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Academia Sinica, Taiwan (China); Li, K. L.; Kong, A. K. H.; Jin, Ruolan; Yen, T.-C. [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Tam, P. H. T. [Institute of Astronomy and Space Science, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275 (China); Takata, J.; Cheng, K. S. [Department of Physics, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong (China); Kim, Chunglee, E-mail: cyhui@cnu.ac.kr [Yonsei University Observatory, Yonsei University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2015-08-10

Here we report the results of searching millisecond pulsar (MSP) candidates from the Fermi LAT second source catalog (2FGL). Seven unassociated γ-ray sources in this catalog are identified as promising MSP candidates based on their γ-ray properties. Through the X-ray analysis, we have detected possible X-ray counterparts, localized to an arcsecond accuracy. We have systematically estimated their X-ray fluxes and compared them with the corresponding γ-ray fluxes. The X-ray to γ-ray flux ratios for 2FGL J1653.6-0159 and 2FGL J1946.4-5402 are comparable with the typical value for pulsars. For 2FGL J1625.2-0020, 2FGL J1653.6-0159, and 2FGL J1946.4-5402, their candidate X-ray counterparts are bright enough to perform a detailed spectral and temporal analysis to discriminate their thermal/non-thermal nature and search for the periodic signal. We have also searched for possible optical/IR counterparts at the X-ray positions. For the optical/IR source coincident with the brightest X-ray object associated with 2FGL J1120.0-2204, its spectral energy distribution is comparable with a late-type star. Evidence for the variability has also been found by examining its optical light curve. All the aforementioned 2FGL sources resemble a pulsar in one or more aspects, making them promising targets for follow-up investigations.

Thermal states of coldest and hottest neutron stars in soft X-ray transients

OpenAIRE

Yakovlev, D. G.; Levenfish, K. P.; Potekhin, A. Y.; Gnedin, O. Y.; Chabrier, G.

2003-01-01

We calculate the thermal structure and quiescent thermal luminosity of accreting neutron stars (warmed by deep crustal heating in accreted matter) in soft X-ray transients (SXTs). We consider neutron stars with nucleon and hyperon cores and with accreted envelopes. It is assumed that an envelope has an outer helium layer (of variable depth) and deeper layers of heavier elements, either with iron or with much heavier nuclei (of atomic weight A > 100) on the top (Haensel & Zdunik 1990, 2003, as...

Chandra-SDSS Normal and Star-Forming Galaxies. I. X-Ray Source Properties of Galaxies Detected by the Chandra X-Ray Observatory in SDSS DR2

Science.gov (United States)

Hornschemeier, A. E.; Heckman, T. M.; Ptak, A. F.; Tremonti, C. A.; Colbert, E. J. M.

2005-01-01

We have cross-correlated X-ray catalogs derived from archival Chandra X-Ray Observatory ACIS observations with a Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 2 (DR2) galaxy catalog to form a sample of 42 serendipitously X-ray-detected galaxies over the redshift interval 0.03X-ray-studied samples of normal galaxies and those in the deepest X-ray surveys. Our chief purpose is to compare optical spectroscopic diagnostics of activity (both star formation and accretion) with X-ray properties of galaxies. Our work supports a normalization value of the X-ray-star formation rate correlation consistent with the lower values published in the literature. The difference is in the allocation of X-ray emission to high-mass X-ray binaries relative to other components, such as hot gas, low-mass X-ray binaries, and/or active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We are able to quantify a few pitfalls in the use of lower resolution, lower signal-to-noise ratio optical spectroscopy to identify X-ray sources (as has necessarily been employed for many X-ray surveys). Notably, we find a few AGNs that likely would have been misidentified as non-AGN sources in higher redshift studies. However, we do not find any X-ray-hard, highly X-ray-luminous galaxies lacking optical spectroscopic diagnostics of AGN activity. Such sources are members of the ``X-ray-bright, optically normal galaxy'' (XBONG) class of AGNs.

Thermonuclear process and accretion onto neutron star envelopes: x-ray burst and transient sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Starrfield, S.; Kenyon, S.; Sparks, W.M.; Truran, J.W.; Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory)

1982-01-01

We have used a Lagrangian, fully implicit, one-dimensional, hydrodynamic computer code to investigate the evolution of thermonuclear runaways in the thick, accreted, hydrogen-rich envelopes of 1.0 M/sub sun/ neutron stars with radii of 10 km and 20 km. Our simulations produce outbursts which range in time scale from about 2000 seconds to longer than 1 day. Peak effective temperature was 3.3 x 10 7 K (kTapprox.2.91 keV), and peak luminosity was 2 x 10 5 L/sub sun/ for the 10 km study. The 20 km neutron star produced a peak effective temperature and luminosity of 5.3 x 10 6 K and 5.9 x 10 2 L/sub sun/, respectively. We also investigated the effects of changes in the rates of the 14 O(α,p) and 15 O(α,ν) reactions on the evolution. Hydrodynamic expansion on the 10 km neutron star produced a precursor lasting about 10 - 6 seconds

Ultraluminous X-ray sources as neutrino pulsars

Science.gov (United States)

Mushtukov, Alexander A.; Tsygankov, Sergey S.; Suleimanov, Valery F.; Poutanen, Juri

2018-05-01

The classical limit on the accretion luminosity of a neutron star is given by the Eddington luminosity. The advanced models of accretion on to magnetized neutron stars account for the appearance of magnetically confined accretion columns and allow the accretion luminosity to be higher than the Eddington value by a factor of tens. However, the recent discovery of pulsations from ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) in NGC 5907 demonstrates that the accretion luminosity can exceed the Eddington value up to by a factor of 500. We propose a model explaining observational properties of ULX-1 in NGC 5907 without any ad hoc assumptions. We show that the accretion column at extreme luminosity becomes advective. Enormous energy release within a small geometrical volume and advection result in very high temperatures at the bottom of accretion column, which demand to account for the energy losses due to neutrino emission which can be even more effective than the radiation energy losses. We show that the total luminosity at the mass accretion rates above 1021 g s-1 is dominated by the neutrino emission similarly to the case of core-collapse supernovae. We argue that the accretion rate measurements based on detected photon luminosity in case of bright ULXs powered by neutron stars can be largely underestimated due to intense neutrino emission. The recently discovered pulsating ULX-1 in galaxy NGC 5907 with photon luminosity of {˜ } 10^{41} {erg s^{-1}} is expected to be even brighter in neutrinos and is thus the first known Neutrino Pulsar.

ULX spectra revisited: Accreting, highly magnetized neutron stars as the engines of ultraluminous X-ray sources

Science.gov (United States)

Koliopanos, Filippos; Vasilopoulos, Georgios; Godet, Olivier; Bachetti, Matteo; Webb, Natalie A.; Barret, Didier

2017-12-01

Aims: In light of recent discoveries of pulsating ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) and recently introduced theoretical schemes that propose neutron stars (NSs) as the central engines of ULXs, we revisit the spectra of eighteen well known ULXs, in search of indications that favour this newly emerging hypothesis. Methods: We examine the spectra from high-quality XMM-Newton and NuSTAR observations. We use a combination of elementary black body and multicolour disk black body (MCD) models, to diagnose the predictions of classic and novel theoretical models of accretion onto NSs. We re-interpret the well established spectral characteristics of ULXs in terms of accretion onto lowly or highly magnetised NSs, and explore the resulting parameter space for consistency. Results: We confirm the previously noted presence of the low-energy (≲6 keV) spectral rollover and argue that it could be interpreted as due to thermal emission. The spectra are well described by a double thermal model consisting of a "hot" (≳1 keV) and a "cool" (≲0.7 keV) multicolour black body (MCB). Under the assumption that the "cool" MCD emission originates in a disk truncated at the neutron star magnetosphere, we find that all ULXs in our sample are consistent with accretion onto a highly magnetised (B ≳ 1012 G) neutron star. We note a strong correlation between the strength of the magnetic field, the temperature of the "hot" thermal component and the total unabsorbed luminosity. Examination of the NuSTAR data supports this interpretation and also confirms the presence of a weak, high-energy (≳15 keV) tail, most likely the result of modification of the MCB emission by inverse Compton scattering. We also note that the apparent high-energy tail, may simply be the result of mismodelling of MCB emission with an atypical temperature (T) versus radius (r) gradient, using a standard MCD model with a fixed gradient of T r-0.75. Conclusions: We have offered a new and robust physical interpretation for

COSMIC-RAY POSITRONS FROM MILLISECOND PULSARS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Venter, C.; Kopp, A.; Büsching, I. [Centre for Space Research, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520 (South Africa); Harding, A. K. [Astrophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Gonthier, P. L. [Hope College, Department of Physics, Holland, MI (United States)

2015-07-10

Observations by the Fermi Large Area Telescope of γ-ray millisecond pulsar (MSP) light curves imply copious pair production in their magnetospheres, and not exclusively in those of younger pulsars. Such pair cascades may be a primary source of Galactic electrons and positrons, contributing to the observed enhancement in positron flux above ∼10 GeV. Fermi has also uncovered many new MSPs, impacting Galactic stellar population models. We investigate the contribution of Galactic MSPs to the flux of terrestrial cosmic-ray electrons and positrons. Our population synthesis code predicts the source properties of present-day MSPs. We simulate their pair spectra invoking an offset-dipole magnetic field. We also consider positrons and electrons that have been further accelerated to energies of several TeV by strong intrabinary shocks in black widow (BW) and redback (RB) systems. Since MSPs are not surrounded by pulsar wind nebulae or supernova shells, we assume that the pairs freely escape and undergo losses only in the intergalactic medium. We compute the transported pair spectra at Earth, following their diffusion and energy loss through the Galaxy. The predicted particle flux increases for non-zero offsets of the magnetic polar caps. Pair cascades from the magnetospheres of MSPs are only modest contributors around a few tens of GeV to the lepton fluxes measured by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, PAMELA, and Fermi, after which this component cuts off. The contribution by BWs and RBs may, however, reach levels of a few tens of percent at tens of TeV, depending on model parameters.

WATCHDOG: A COMPREHENSIVE ALL-SKY DATABASE OF GALACTIC BLACK HOLE X-RAY BINARIES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tetarenko, B. E.; Sivakoff, G. R.; Heinke, C. O.; Gladstone, J. C.

2016-01-01

With the advent of more sensitive all-sky instruments, the transient universe is being probed in greater depth than ever before. Taking advantage of available resources, we have established a comprehensive database of black hole (and black hole candidate) X-ray binary (BHXB) activity between 1996 and 2015 as revealed by all-sky instruments, scanning surveys, and select narrow-field X-ray instruments on board the INTErnational Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory, Monitor of All-Sky X-ray Image, Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, and Swift telescopes; the Whole-sky Alberta Time-resolved Comprehensive black-Hole Database Of the Galaxy or WATCHDOG. Over the past two decades, we have detected 132 transient outbursts, tracked and classified behavior occurring in 47 transient and 10 persistently accreting BHs, and performed a statistical study on a number of outburst properties across the Galactic population. We find that outbursts undergone by BHXBs that do not reach the thermally dominant accretion state make up a substantial fraction (∼40%) of the Galactic transient BHXB outburst sample over the past ∼20 years. Our findings suggest that this “hard-only” behavior, observed in transient and persistently accreting BHXBs, is neither a rare nor recent phenomenon and may be indicative of an underlying physical process, relatively common among binary BHs, involving the mass-transfer rate onto the BH remaining at a low level rather than increasing as the outburst evolves. We discuss how the larger number of these “hard-only” outbursts and detected outbursts in general have significant implications for both the luminosity function and mass-transfer history of the Galactic BHXB population

XMM-Newton and Swift spectroscopy of the newly discovered very faint X-ray transient IGR J17494-3030

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Armas Padilla, M.; Wijnands, R.; Degenaar, N.

2013-01-01

A growing group of low-mass X-ray binaries are found to be accreting at very faint X-ray luminosities of <1036 erg s−1 (2-10 keV). One such system is the new X-ray transient IGR J17494-3030. We present Swift and XMM-Newton observations obtained during its 2012 discovery outburst. The Swift

PRIMUS: INFRARED AND X-RAY AGN SELECTION TECHNIQUES AT 0.2 < z < 1.2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mendez, Alexander J.; Coil, Alison L.; Aird, James; Diamond-Stanic, Aleksandar M. [Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, Department of Physics, University of California, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, San Diego, CA 92093 (United States); Moustakas, John [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Siena College, 515 Loudon Road, Loudonville, NY 12211 (United States); Blanton, Michael R. [Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, Department of Physics, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY 10003 (United States); Cool, Richard J. [Observatories of the Carnegie Institution for Science, 813 Santa Barbara Street, Pasadena, CA 91101 (United States); Eisenstein, Daniel J. [Harvard College Observatory, 60 Garden St., Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Wong, Kenneth C. [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 N. Cherry Ave., Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Zhu Guangtun [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)

2013-06-10

We present a study of Spitzer/IRAC and X-ray active galactic nucleus (AGN) selection techniques in order to quantify the overlap, uniqueness, contamination, and completeness of each. We investigate how the overlap and possible contamination of the samples depend on the depth of both the IR and X-ray data. We use Spitzer/IRAC imaging, Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray imaging, and spectroscopic redshifts from the PRism MUlti-object Survey to construct galaxy and AGN samples at 0.2 < z < 1.2 over 8 deg{sup 2}. We construct samples over a wide range of IRAC flux limits (SWIRE to GOODS depth) and X-ray flux limits (10 ks to 2 Ms). We compare IR-AGN samples defined using both the IRAC color selection of Stern et al. and Donley et al. with X-ray-detected AGN samples. For roughly similar depth IR and X-ray surveys, we find that {approx}75% of IR-selected AGNs are also identified as X-ray AGNs. This fraction increases to {approx}90% when comparing against the deepest X-ray data, indicating that at most {approx}10% of IR-selected AGNs may be heavily obscured. The IR-AGN selection proposed by Stern et al. suffers from contamination by star-forming galaxies at various redshifts when using deeper IR data, though the selection technique works well for shallow IR data. While similar overall, the IR-AGN samples preferentially contain more luminous AGNs, while the X-ray AGN samples identify a wider range of AGN accretion rates including low specific accretion rate AGNs, where the host galaxy light dominates at IR wavelengths. The host galaxy populations of the IR and X-ray AGN samples have similar rest-frame colors and stellar masses; both selections identify AGNs in blue, star-forming and red, quiescent galaxies.

X-ray emission and the winds of cataclysmic variables

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cordova, F.A.

1985-01-01

X-ray and ultraviolet observations of cataclysmic variable stars reveal a variety of exotic behavior - pulsations, winds, and episodic outbursts - are these related, what do they tell us about the nature of the outburst, about the environment of the accreting white dwarf. The author summarizes the observed changes in the x-ray and uv continuum and spectral features through the outbursts of the dwarf novae. The author then discusses how the modeling of these data have refined our ideas about the location and nature of the emissions, and the source of the outbursts. The author shows how comparisons of the x-ray and uv properties of cataclysmic variables with similar phenomena in other astronomical systems - the solar corona, OB stars, and Be stars - suggest ways in which the x-ray and uv emissions in CVs may be related, and point to further, specific observations that would elucidate our understanding of the behavior and role of the white dwarf in the outburst. 26 references

Do some x-ray stars have white dwarf companions

Science.gov (United States)

Mccollum, Bruce

1995-01-01

Some Be stars which are intermittent X-ray sources may have white dwarf companions rather than neutron stars. It is not possible to prove or rule out the existence of Be + WD systems using X-ray or optical data. However, the presence of a white dwarf could be established by the detection of its EUV continuum shortward of the Be star's continuum turnover at 100 A. Either the detection or the nondetection of Be + WD systems would have implications for models of Be star variability, models of Be binary system formation and evolution, and models of wind-fed accretion.

Topics in the physics of accretion onto black holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoeger, W.R.

1977-06-01

The subject is covered in chapters, entitled: introduction and overview; boundary-condition modification of accretion-disk models; standard assumptions and nonkeplerian inner-disk models; the 'inner edge' of accretion disks and spiral orbits; a review of comptonization in accretion disks and a criterion for Lightman-Eardley stability; the thickening of accretion disks and flows; radial pressure gradients and low-angular-momentum accretion; accretion-disk scenarios for X-ray transient and burst sources; photon pair-creation processes in transrelativistic plasmas; and the astrophysical consequences of Rosen's bi-metric theory of gravity. (U.K.)

How young the accretion-powered pulsars could be?

Science.gov (United States)

Kostina, M. V.; Ikhsanov, N. R.

2017-12-01

A question about the age of accretion-powered X-ray pulsars has recently been reopened by a discovery of the X-ray pulsar SXP 1062 in the SMC. This High Mass X-ray Binary (HMXB) contains a neutron star rotating with the period of 1062 s and is associated with a supernova remnant of the age ∼ 104 yr. An attempt to explain the origin of this young long-period X-ray pulsar within the traditional scenario of three basic states (ejector, propeller and accretor) encounters difficulties. Even if this pulsar were born as a magnetar the spin-down time during the propeller stage would exceed 104 yr. Here we explore a more circuitous way of the pulsar spin evolution in HMXBs, in which the propeller stage in the evolutionary track is avoided. We find this way to be possible if the stellar wind of the massive companion to the neutron star is magnetized. The geometry of plasma flow captured by the neutron star in this case differs from spherically symmetrical and the magnetospheric radius of the neutron star is smaller than that evaluated in the convention accretion scenarios. We show that the age of an accretion-powered pulsar in this case can be as small as ∼ 104 years without the need of invoking initial magnetic field in excess of 1013 G.

THE FERMI-GBM X-RAY BURST MONITOR: THERMONUCLEAR BURSTS FROM 4U 0614+09

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Linares, M.; Chakrabarty, D.; Connaughton, V.; Bhat, P. N.; Briggs, M. S.; Preece, R.; Jenke, P.; Kouveliotou, C.; Wilson-Hodge, C. A.; Van der Horst, A. J.; Camero-Arranz, A.; Finger, M.; Paciesas, W. S.; Beklen, E.; Von Kienlin, A.

2012-01-01

Thermonuclear bursts from slowly accreting neutron stars (NSs) have proven difficult to detect, yet they are potential probes of the thermal properties of the NS interior. During the first year of a systematic all-sky search for X-ray bursts using the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor aboard the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope we have detected 15 thermonuclear bursts from the NS low-mass X-ray binary 4U 0614+09 when it was accreting at nearly 1% of the Eddington limit. We measured an average burst recurrence time of 12 ± 3 days (68% confidence interval) between 2010 March and 2011 March, classified all bursts as normal duration bursts and placed a lower limit on the recurrence time of long/intermediate bursts of 62 days (95% confidence level). We discuss how observations of thermonuclear bursts in the hard X-ray band compare to pointed soft X-ray observations and quantify such bandpass effects on measurements of burst radiated energy and duration. We put our results for 4U 0614+09 in the context of other bursters and briefly discuss the constraints on ignition models. Interestingly, we find that the burst energies in 4U 0614+09 are on average between those of normal duration bursts and those measured in long/intermediate bursts. Such a continuous distribution in burst energy provides a new observational link between normal and long/intermediate bursts. We suggest that the apparent bimodal distribution that defined normal and long/intermediate duration bursts during the last decade could be due to an observational bias toward detecting only the longest and most energetic bursts from slowly accreting NSs.

Advanced high speed X-ray CT scanner for measurement and visualization of multi-phase flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hori, Keiichi; Fujimoto, Tetsuro; Kawanishi, Kohei; Nishikawa, Hideo

1998-01-01

The development of an ultra-fast X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanner has been performed. The object of interest is in a transient or unsettled state, which makes the conventional CT scanner inappropriate. A concept of electrical switching of electron beam of X-ray generation unit is adopted to reduce the scanning time instead of a mechanical motion adopted by a conventional CT scanner. The mechanical motion is a major obstacle to improve the scanning speed. A prototype system with a scanning time of 3.6 milliseconds was developed at first. And, the feasibility was confirmed to measure the dynamic events of two-phase flow. However, faster scanning speed is generally required for the practical use in the thermalhydraulics research field. Therefore, the development of advanced type has been performed. This advanced type can operate under the scanning time of 0.5 milliseconds and is applicable for the measurement of the multi-phase flow with velocity up to 4-5 m/s. (author)

X-ray bursts: Observation versus theory

Science.gov (United States)

Lewin, W. H. G.

1981-01-01

Results of various observations of common type I X-ray bursts are discussed with respect to the theory of thermonuclear flashes in the surface layers of accreting neutron stars. Topics covered include burst profiles; irregular burst intervals; rise and decay times and the role of hydrogen; the accuracy of source distances; accuracy in radii determination; radius increase early in the burst; the super Eddington limit; temperatures at burst maximum; and the role of the magnetic field.

Neutron stars as X-ray burst sources. II. Burst energy histograms and why they burst

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baan, W.A.

1979-01-01

In this work we explore some of the implications of a model for X-ray burst sources where bursts are caused by Kruskal-Schwarzschild instabilities at the magnetopause of an accreting and rotating neutron star. A number of simplifying assumptions are made in order to test the model using observed burst-energy histograms for the rapid burster MXB 1730--335. The predicted histograms have a correct general shape, but it appears that other effects are important as well, and that mode competition, for instance, may suppress the histograms at high burst energies. An explanation is ventured for the enhancement in the histogram at the highest burst energies, which produces the bimodal shape in high accretion rate histograms. Quantitative criteria are given for deciding when accreting neutron stars are steady sources or burst sources, and these criteria are tested using the X-ray pulsars

Nustar Detection of Hard X-Ray Phase Lags from the Accreting Pulsar GS 0834-430

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Miyasaka, Hiromasa; Bachetti, Matteo; Harrison, Fiona A.

2013-01-01

The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array hard X-ray telescope observed the transient Be/X-ray binary GS 0834-430 during its 2012 outburst-the first active state of this system observed in the past 19 yr. We performed timing and spectral analysis and measured the X-ray spectrum between 3-79 keV w...

Supersoft X-Ray Source CAL 83: A Possible AE Aqr-like System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Odendaal

2015-02-01

Full Text Available CAL83 is a close binary supersoft X-ray source in the Large Magellanic Cloud. A ~67 s periodicity detected in supersoft X-rays is most probably associated with the spin period of a highly spun-up white dwarf (WD. The variability in the period is ascribed to the obscuration of the WD by the hydrogen burning envelope surrounding it, rotating with a period that is close to, but not quite synchronized with, the WD rotation period. Optical spectra obtained with SALT exhibit accretion disc emission lines with broad wing structures and P Cyg profiles, indicating mass outflows. Timing analysis of photometrical observations performed at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO revealed variable signals at ≤1 mHz which are thought to be associated with quasi-periodic oscillations from an accretion disc. The short spin period inferred for CAL83 can be the result of spin-up by accretion disc torques during a long mass transfer history, placing this source on a similar evolutionary track as the cataclysmic variable AE Aqr.

Blob accretion in AM Herculis systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Litchfield, S.J.; King, A.R.

1990-01-01

We calculate self-consistent hydrostatic temperature distributions for the atmosphere of a white dwarf in an AM Herculis system on to which a discrete blob has accreted. We show that the surface derived from this temperature structure does not produce soft X-ray light curves characteristic of the anomalous X-ray state of AM Herculis. We suggest that non-hydrostatic splashes are a more likely origin for the light curves. (author)

Substance accretion onto supermassive black holes and X radiation of active galaxy nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zentsova, A.S.

1980-01-01

The X-ray radiation of quasars and Seyfert galaxies is explained on the ground of the two-temperature model of the disk accretion onto a supermassive black hole. The inner region of the disk is optically thin to absorption, gas-pressure dominated and the electron temperature is approximately 5x10 8 K and ion temperature is approximately 10 3 times higher. X radiation is produced by inverse Compton scatetring of soft radiation in the inner region of the disk. The source of soft radiation is the outer region of the disk. This model predicts a power spectrum of the radiation from 1 to 60 keV with the index γ=1, the latter approaches to a mean spectral index of X radiation of active galaxy nuclei [ru

THERMAL X-RAY EMISSION FROM THE SHOCKED STELLAR WIND OF PULSAR GAMMA-RAY BINARIES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zabalza, V.; Paredes, J. M. [Departament d' Astronomia i Meteorologia, Institut de Ciencies del Cosmos (ICC), Universitat de Barcelona (IEEC-UB), Marti i Franques 1, E08028 Barcelona (Spain); Bosch-Ramon, V., E-mail: vzabalza@am.ub.es [Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 31 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2 (Ireland)

2011-12-10

Gamma-ray-loud X-ray binaries are binary systems that show non-thermal broadband emission from radio to gamma rays. If the system comprises a massive star and a young non-accreting pulsar, their winds will collide producing broadband non-thermal emission, most likely originated in the shocked pulsar wind. Thermal X-ray emission is expected from the shocked stellar wind, but until now it has neither been detected nor studied in the context of gamma-ray binaries. We present a semi-analytic model of the thermal X-ray emission from the shocked stellar wind in pulsar gamma-ray binaries, and find that the thermal X-ray emission increases monotonically with the pulsar spin-down luminosity, reaching luminosities of the order of 10{sup 33} erg s{sup -1}. The lack of thermal features in the X-ray spectrum of gamma-ray binaries can then be used to constrain the properties of the pulsar and stellar winds. By fitting the observed X-ray spectra of gamma-ray binaries with a source model composed of an absorbed non-thermal power law and the computed thermal X-ray emission, we are able to derive upper limits on the spin-down luminosity of the putative pulsar. We applied this method to LS 5039, the only gamma-ray binary with a radial, powerful wind, and obtain an upper limit on the pulsar spin-down luminosity of {approx}6 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 36} erg s{sup -1}. Given the energetic constraints from its high-energy gamma-ray emission, a non-thermal to spin-down luminosity ratio very close to unity may be required.

Testing warm Comptonization models for the origin of the soft X-ray excess in AGNs

Science.gov (United States)

Petrucci, P.-O.; Ursini, F.; De Rosa, A.; Bianchi, S.; Cappi, M.; Matt, G.; Dadina, M.; Malzac, J.

2018-03-01

The X-ray spectra of many active galactic nuclei (AGNs) show a soft X-ray excess below 1-2 keV on top of the extrapolated high-energy power law. The origin of this component is uncertain. It could be a signature of relativistically blurred, ionized reflection or the high-energy tail of thermal Comptonization in a warm (kT 1 keV), optically thick (τ ≃ 10-20) corona producing the optical/UV to soft X-ray emission. The purpose of the present paper is to test the warm corona model on a statistically significant sample of unabsorbed, radio-quiet AGNs with XMM-Newton archival data, providing simultaneous optical/UV and X-ray coverage. The sample has 22 objects and 100 observations. We use two thermal Comptonization components to fit the broadband spectra, one for the warm corona emission and one for the high-energy continuum. In the optical/UV, we also include the reddening, the small blue bump, and the Galactic extinction. In the X-rays, we include a warm absorber and a neutral reflection. The model gives a good fit (reduced χ2 uniformly distributed in the 0.1-1 keV range, while the optical depth is in the range 10-40. These values are consistent with a warm corona covering a large fraction of a quasi-passive accretion disk, i.e., that mostly reprocesses the warm corona emission. The disk intrinsic emission represents no more than 20% of the disk total emission. According to this interpretation, most of the accretion power would be released in the upper layers of the accretion flow.

Super-Eddington accreting massive black holes as long-lived cosmological standards.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jian-Min; Du, Pu; Valls-Gabaud, David; Hu, Chen; Netzer, Hagai

2013-02-22

Super-Eddington accreting massive black holes (SEAMBHs) reach saturated luminosities above a certain accretion rate due to photon trapping and advection in slim accretion disks. We show that these SEAMBHs could provide a new tool for estimating cosmological distances if they are properly identified by hard x-ray observations, in particular by the slope of their 2-10 keV continuum. To verify this idea we obtained black hole mass estimates and x-ray data for a sample of 60 narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies that we consider to be the most promising SEAMBH candidates. We demonstrate that the distances derived by the new method for the objects in the sample get closer to the standard luminosity distances as the hard x-ray continuum gets steeper. The results allow us to analyze the requirements for using the method in future samples of active black holes and to demonstrate that the expected uncertainty, given large enough samples, can make them into a useful, new cosmological ruler.

Detection of X-ray spectral state transitions in mini-outbursts of black hole transient GRS 1739-278

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Zhen; Yu, Wenfei

2017-10-01

We report the detection of the state transitions and hysteresis effect in the two mini-outbursts of the black hole (BH) transient GRS 1739-278 following its 2014 major outburst. The X-ray spectral evolutions in these two mini-outbursts are similar to the major outburst in spite of their peak luminosities and the outburst durations are one order of magnitude lower. We found L_hard{-to-soft} and Lpeak,soft of the mini-outbursts also follow the correlation previously found in other X-ray binaries. L_hard{-to-soft} of the mini-outbursts is still higher than that of the persistent BH binary Cyg X-1, which supports that there is a link between the maximum luminosity a source can reach in the hard state and the corresponding non-stationary accretion represented by substantial rate of change in the mass accretion rate during flares/outbursts. The detected luminosity range of these two mini-outbursts is roughly in 3.5 × 10-5 to 0.015 (D/7.5 kpc)2(M/8M⊙) LEdd. The X-ray spectra of other BH transients at such low luminosities are usually dominated by a power-law component, and an anti-correlation is observed between the photon index and the X-ray luminosity below 1 per cent LEdd. So, the detection of X-ray spectral state transitions indicates that the accretion flow evolution in these two mini-outbursts of GRS 1739-278 are different from other BH systems at such low-luminosity regime.

Magnetic field strength of a neutron-star-powered ultraluminous X-ray source

Science.gov (United States)

Brightman, M.; Harrison, F. A.; Fürst, F.; Middleton, M. J.; Walton, D. J.; Stern, D.; Fabian, A. C.; Heida, M.; Barret, D.; Bachetti, M.

2018-04-01

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are bright X-ray sources in nearby galaxies not associated with the central supermassive black hole. Their luminosities imply they are powered by either an extreme accretion rate onto a compact stellar remnant, or an intermediate mass ( 100-105M⊙) black hole1. Recently detected coherent pulsations coming from three bright ULXs2-5 demonstrate that some of these sources are powered by accretion onto a neutron star, implying accretion rates significantly in excess of the Eddington limit, a high degree of geometric beaming, or both. The physical challenges associated with the high implied accretion rates can be mitigated if the neutron star surface field is very high (1014 G)6, since this suppresses the electron scattering cross-section, reducing the radiation pressure that chokes off accretion for high luminosities. Surface magnetic field strengths can be determined through cyclotron resonance scattering features7,8 produced by the transition of charged particles between quantized Landau levels. Here, we present the detection at a significance of 3.8σ of an absorption line at 4.5 keV in the Chandra spectrum of a ULX in M51. This feature is likely to be a cyclotron resonance scattering feature produced by the strong magnetic field of a neutron star. Assuming scattering off electrons, the magnetic field strength is implied to be 1011 G, while protons would imply a magnetic field of B 1015 G.

SEXTANT X-Ray Pulsar Navigation Demonstration: Flight System and Test Results

Science.gov (United States)

Winternitz, Luke; Mitchell, Jason W.; Hassouneh, Munther A.; Valdez, Jennifer E.; Price, Samuel R.; Semper, Sean R.; Yu, Wayne H.; Ray, Paul S.; Wood, Kent S.; Arzoumanian, Zaven;

NEAR-INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY OF LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARIES: ACCRETION DISK CONTAMINATION AND COMPACT OBJECT MASS DETERMINATION IN V404 Cyg AND Cen X-4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khargharia, Juthika; Froning, Cynthia S.; Robinson, Edward L.

2010-01-01

We present near-infrared (NIR) broadband (0.80-2.42 μm) spectroscopy of two low-mass X-ray binaries: V404 Cyg and Cen X-4. One important parameter required in the determination of the mass of the compact objects in these systems is the binary inclination. We can determine the inclination by modeling the ellipsoidal modulations of the Roche-lobe filling donor star, but the contamination of the donor star light from other components of the binary, particularly the accretion disk, must be taken into account. To this end, we determined the donor star contribution to the infrared flux by comparing the spectra of V404 Cyg and Cen X-4 to those of various field K-stars of known spectral type. For V404 Cyg, we determined that the donor star has a spectral type of K3 III. We determined the fractional donor contribution to the NIR flux in the H and K bands as 0.98 ± 0.05 and 0.97 ± 0.09, respectively. We remodeled the H-band light curve from Sanwal et al. after correcting for the donor star contribution to obtain a new value for the binary inclination. From this, we determined the mass of the black hole in V404 Cyg to be M BH = 9.0 +0.2 -0.6 M sun . We performed the same spectral analysis for Cen X-4 and found the spectral type of the donor star to be in the range K5-M1 V. The donor star contribution in Cen X-4 is 0.94 ± 0.14 in the H band while in the K band, the accretion disk can contribute up to 10% of the infrared flux. We remodeled the H-band light curve from Shahbaz et al., again correcting for the fractional contribution of the donor star to obtain the inclination. From this, we determined the mass of the neutron star as M NS = 1.5 +0.1 -0.4 M sun . However, the masses obtained for both systems should be viewed with some caution since contemporaneous light curve and spectral data are required to obtain definitive masses.

Soft X-ray production by photon scattering in pulsating binary neutron star sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bussard, R.W.; Meszaros, P.; Alexander, S.

1985-01-01

A new mechanism is proposed as a source of soft (less than 1 keV) radiation in binary pulsating X-ray sources, in the form of photon scattering which leaves the electron in an excited Landau level. In a plasma with parameters typical of such sources, the low-energy X-ray emissivity of this mechanism far exceeds that of bremsstrahlung. This copious source of soft photons is quite adequate to provide the seed photons needed to explain the power-law hard X-ray spectrum by inverse Comptonization on the hot electrons at the base of the accretion column. 13 references

NuSTAR Hard X-Ray Observation of the Gamma-Ray Binary Candidate HESS J1832–093

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mori, Kaya; Gotthelf, E. V.; Hailey, Charles J.

2017-01-01

−093, is detected up to ~30 keV and is well-described by an absorbed power-law model with a best-fit photon index . A re-analysis of archival Chandra and XMM-Newton data finds that the long-term X-ray flux increase of XMMU J183245−0921539 is (90% C.L.), much less than previously reported. A search for a pulsar spin...... of XMMU J183245−0921539 are most consistent with a non-accreting binary generating synchrotron X-rays from particle acceleration in the shock formed as a result of the pulsar and stellar wind collision. We also report on three nearby hard X-ray sources, one of which may be associated with diffuse emission...

X-ray Ionization of Heavy Elements Applied to Protoplanetary Disks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ádámkovics, Máté; Glassgold, Alfred E.; Meijerink, Rowin

The consequences of the Auger effect on the population of heavy-element ions are analyzed for the case of relatively cool gas irradiated by keV X-rays with intended applications to the accretion disks of young stellar objects. Highly charged ions are rapidly reduced to the doubly charged state in

Pulsator-like Spectra from Ultraluminous X-Ray Sources and the Search for More Ultraluminous Pulsars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pintore, F.; Mereghetti, S.; Zampieri, L.; Stella, L.; Israel, G. L.; Wolter, A.

2017-01-01

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are a population of extragalactic objects whose luminosity exceeds the Eddington limit for a 10 M ⊙ black hole (BH). Their properties have been widely interpreted in terms of accreting stellar-mass or intermediate-mass BHs. However at least three neutron stars (NSs) have been recently identified in ULXs through the discovery of periodic pulsations. Motivated by these findings we studied the spectral properties of a sample of bright ULXs using a simple continuum model which was extensively used to fit the X-ray spectra of accreting magnetic NSs in the Galaxy. We found that such a model, consisting of a power-law with a high-energy exponential cut-off, fits most of the ULX spectra analyzed here very well, at a level comparable to that of models involving an accreting BH. On these grounds alone we suggest that other non-pulsating ULXs may host NSs. We also found that above 2 keV the spectrum of known pulsating ULXs is harder than that of the majority of the other ULXs of the sample, with only IC 342 X-1 and Ho IX X-1 displaying spectra of comparable hardness. We thus suggest that these two ULXs may host an accreting NS and encourage searches for periodic pulsations in the flux.

Pulsator-like Spectra from Ultraluminous X-Ray Sources and the Search for More Ultraluminous Pulsars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pintore, F.; Mereghetti, S. [INAF-IASF Milano, via E. Bassini 15, I-20133 Milano (Italy); Zampieri, L. [INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio 5, I-35122 Padova (Italy); Stella, L.; Israel, G. L. [INAF—Osservatorio astronomico di Roma, Via Frascati 44, I-00078, Monteporzio Catone (Italy); Wolter, A. [INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, via Brera 28, I-20121 Milano (Italy)

2017-02-10

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are a population of extragalactic objects whose luminosity exceeds the Eddington limit for a 10 M {sub ⊙} black hole (BH). Their properties have been widely interpreted in terms of accreting stellar-mass or intermediate-mass BHs. However at least three neutron stars (NSs) have been recently identified in ULXs through the discovery of periodic pulsations. Motivated by these findings we studied the spectral properties of a sample of bright ULXs using a simple continuum model which was extensively used to fit the X-ray spectra of accreting magnetic NSs in the Galaxy. We found that such a model, consisting of a power-law with a high-energy exponential cut-off, fits most of the ULX spectra analyzed here very well, at a level comparable to that of models involving an accreting BH. On these grounds alone we suggest that other non-pulsating ULXs may host NSs. We also found that above 2 keV the spectrum of known pulsating ULXs is harder than that of the majority of the other ULXs of the sample, with only IC 342 X-1 and Ho IX X-1 displaying spectra of comparable hardness. We thus suggest that these two ULXs may host an accreting NS and encourage searches for periodic pulsations in the flux.

Hard X ray lines from neutron stars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Polcaro, V.F.; Bazzano, A.; La Padula, C.; Ubertini, P.

1982-01-01

Experimental evidence is presented and evaluated concerning the features of the hard X-ray spectra detected in a number of cosmic X-ray sources which contain a neutron star. The strong emission line at cyclotron resonance detected in the spectrum of Her XI at an energy of 58 keV is evaluated and the implications of this finding are discussed. Also examined is the presence of spectral features in the energy range 20-80 keV found in the spectra of gamma-ray bursts, which have been interpreted as cyclotron resonance from interstellar-gas-accreting neutron stars. The less understood finding of a variable emission line at approximately 70 keV in the spectrum of the Crab Pulsar is considered. It is determined that several features varying with time are present in the spectra of cosmic X-ray sources associated with neutron stars. If these features are due to cyclotron resonance, it is suggested that they provide a direct measurement of neutron star magnetic fields on the order of 10 to the 11th-10 to the 13th Gauss. However, the physical condition of the emitting region and its geometry are still quite obscure.

Eleven years of monitoring the Seyfert 1 Mrk 335 with Swift: Characterizing the X-ray and UV/optical variability

Science.gov (United States)

Gallo, L. C.; Blue, D. M.; Grupe, D.; Komossa, S.; Wilkins, D. R.

2018-05-01

The narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy (NLS1) Mrk 335 has been continuously monitored with Swift since May 2007 when it fell into a long-lasting, X-ray low-flux interval. Results from the nearly 11 years of monitoring are presented here. Structure functions are used to measure the UV-optical and X-ray power spectra. The X-ray structure function measured between 10 - 100 days is consistent with the flat, low-frequency part of the power spectrum measured previously in Mrk 335. The UV-optical structure functions of Mrk 335 are comparable with those of other Seyfert 1 galaxies and of Mrk 335 itself when it was in a normal bright state. There is no indication that the current X-ray low-flux state is attributed to changes in the accretion disc structure of Mrk 335. The characteristic timescales measured in the structure functions can be attributed to thermal (for the UV) and dynamic (for the optical) timescales in a standard accretion disc. The high-quality UVW2 (˜1800 Å in the source frame) structure function appears to have two breaks and two different slopes between 10 - 160 days. Correlations between the X-ray and other bands are not highly significant when considering the entire 11-year light curves, but more significant behaviour is present when considering segments of the light curves. A correlation between the X-ray and UVW2 in 2014 (Year-8) may be predominately caused by an giant X-ray flare that was interpreted as jet-like emission. In 2008 (Year-2), possible lags between the UVW2 emission and other UV-optical waveband may be consistent with reprocessing of X-ray or UV emission in the accretion disc.

Tidal disruption of stars by supermassive black holes: The X-ray view

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Komossa S.

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The tidal disruption of stars by supermassive black holes produces luminous soft X-ray accretion flares in otherwise inactive galaxies. First events have been discovered in X-rays with the ROSAT observatory, and have more recently been detected with XMM-Newton, Chandra and Swift, and at other wavelengths. In X-rays, they typically appear as very soft, exceptionally luminous outbursts of radiation, which decline consistent with L ∝ t−5/3 on the timescale of months to years. They reach total amplitudes of decline up to factors 1000–6000 more than a decade after their initial high-states, and in low-state, their host galaxies are essentially X-ray inactive, optically inactive, and radio inactive. X-ray luminous tidal disruption events (TDEs represent a powerful new probe of accretion physics near the event horizon, and of relativistic effects. TDEs offer a new way of estimating black hole spin, and they are signposts of supermassive binary black holes and recoiling black holes. Once discovered in the thousands in upcoming sky surveys, their rates will probe stellar dynamics in distant galaxies, and they will uncover the – so far elusive – population of intermediate mass black holes in the universe, if they do exist. Further, the reprocessing of the flare into IR, optical and UV emission lines provides us with multiple new diagnostics of the properties of any gaseous material in the vicinity of the black hole (including the disrupted star itself and in the host galaxy. First candidate events of this kind have been reported recently.

Search for optical millisecond pulsars in globular clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Middleditch, J.H.; Imamura, J.N.; Steiman-Cameron, T.Y.

1988-01-01

A search for millisecond optical pulsars in several bright, compact globular clusters was conducted. The sample included M28, and the X-ray clusters 47 Tuc, NGC 6441, NGC 6624, M22, and M15. The globular cluster M28 contains the recently discovered 327 Hz radio pulsar. Upper limits of 4 sigma to pulsed emission of (1-20) solar luminosities were found for the globular clusters tested, and 0.3 solar luminosity for the M28 pulsar for frequencies up to 500 Hz. 8 references

A systematic search for new X-ray pulsators in ROSAT fields

Science.gov (United States)

Israel, G. L.

1996-10-01

For some 30 of the galactic X-ray sources, with a luminosity greater than 10^35 erg/s, it has been possible to detect a periodic modulation in the X-ray flux. These periodic signals often arise from the rotation of a compact magnetic star, or the orbital motion of a binary system. The accurate measurement of these periods provides a tool of paramount importance. For instance, in the early 1970s the measurement of the orbital period and the secular changes of the spin period in binary X-ray pulsars proved that the X-ray emission in these systems is powered by accretion and allowed to obtain the first measurements of neutron star masses. The study of periodicities yields also important insights into physical processes occurring close to the surface of the compact objects, such as white dwarfs and neutron stars, where strong gravitational and magnetic field effects play an important role. It is often possible to obtain fundamental additional information, such as the compact object angular momentum history, magnetic field strength and system orbital parameters (if in a binary system). Several other periodic or quasi-periodic phenomena in X-ray sources have been discovered over a variety of timescales (from milliseconds to years). Their interpretation comprises, e.g., precession, radial oscillations, accretion disc-magnetosphere interactions, motions or occultations in an accretion disc and activity of the companion star. Several populations of X-ray sources are expected to show coherent periodicities in their flux. These include X-ray binaries hosting a neutron star or even a black hole and cataclysmic variables where the accreting object is a white dwarf. It is plausible that also an isolated neutron star (not in binary systems) emits X-ray radiation as a result of material accreted from the interstellar medium or molecular cloud. Pulsations at soft (less than 2 keV) X-ray energies are expected to arise from the rotation of these isolated neutron stars. Rotation

THE FERMI –GBM THREE-YEAR X-RAY BURST CATALOG

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jenke, P. A. [CSPAR, SPA University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, AL 35805 (United States); Linares, M. [Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, c/Vía Láctea s/n, E-38205 La Laguna, Tenerife (Spain); Connaughton, V.; Camero-Arranz, A.; Finger, M. H. [Universities Space Research Association, Huntsville, AL 35805 (United States); Beklen, E. [Department of Physics, Suleyman Demirel University, 32260, Isparta (Turkey); Wilson-Hodge, C. A. [Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL 35812 (United States)

2016-08-01

The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) is an all-sky gamma-ray monitor well known in the gamma-ray burst (GRB) community. Although GBM excels in detecting the hard, bright extragalactic GRBs, its sensitivity above 8 keV and its all-sky view make it an excellent instrument for the detection of rare, short-lived Galactic transients. In 2010 March, we initiated a systematic search for transients using GBM data. We conclude this phase of the search by presenting a three-year catalog of 1084 X-ray bursts. Using spectral analysis, location, and spatial distributions we classified the 1084 events into 752 thermonuclear X-ray bursts, 267 transient events from accretion flares and X-ray pulses, and 65 untriggered gamma-ray bursts. All thermonuclear bursts have peak blackbody temperatures broadly consistent with photospheric radius expansion (PRE) bursts. We find an average rate of 1.4 PRE bursts per day, integrated over all Galactic bursters within about 10 kpc. These include 33 and 10 bursts from the ultra-compact X-ray binaries 4U 0614+09 and 2S 0918-549, respectively. We discuss these recurrence times and estimate the total mass ejected by PRE bursts in our Galaxy.

X-Ray Observations of the Black Hole Transient 4U 1630-47 during 2 Years of X-Ray Activity

Science.gov (United States)

Tomsick, John A.; Corbel, Stéphane; Goldwurm, Andrea; Kaaret, Philip

2005-09-01

The black hole candidate (BHC) X-ray transient 4U 1630-47 continuously produced strong X-ray emission for more than 2 years during its 2002-2004 outburst, which is one of the brightest and longest outbursts ever seen from this source. We use more than 300 observations made with the Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) to study the source throughout the outburst, along with hard X-ray images from the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL), which are critical for interpreting the RXTE data in this crowded field. The source exhibits extreme behaviors, which can be interpreted as an indication that the system luminosity approaches the Eddington limit. For 15 observations, fitting the spectral continuum with a disk-blackbody plus power-law model results in measured inner disk temperatures between 2.7 and 3.8 keV, and such temperatures are only rivaled by the brightest BHC systems, such as GRS 1915+105 and XTE J1550-564. If the high temperatures are caused by the dominance of electron scattering opacity in the inner regions of the accretion disk, it is theoretically required that the source luminosity be considerably higher than 20% of the Eddington limit. We detect a variety of high-amplitude variability, including hard 10-100 s flares, which peak at levels as much as 2-3 times higher than nonflare levels. This flaring occurs at the highest disk luminosities in a regime in which the source deviates from the Ldisk~T4in relationship that is seen at lower luminosities, possibly suggesting that we are seeing transitions between a Shakura & Sunyaev disk and a ``slim'' disk, which is predicted to occur at very high mass accretion rates. The X-ray properties in 2002-2004 are significantly different from those seen during the 1998 outburst, which is the only outburst with detected radio jet emission. Our results support the ``jet line'' concept recently advanced by Fender and coworkers. Our study allows for a test of the quantitative McClintock & Remillard

Broadband Correlations Provide Evidence for Synchrotron Self-Compton X-rays from the Black Hole Binary GX 339-4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coriat, M.; Corbel, S.; Buxton, M. M.; Baylin, C. D.

2009-01-01

GX 339-4 has been one of the key sources for unravelling the accretion ejection coupling in accreting stellar mass black holes. After a long period of quiescence between 1999 and 2002, GX 339-4 underwent a series of 4 outbursts that have been intensively observed by many ground based observatories (radio/infrared/optical) and satellites (X-rays). Here, we present some specific results of these broad band observational campaigns, focusing on the optical-infrared/X-ray flux correlations over the four outbursts. Thanks to our extensive data-set, we found a strong OIR/X-ray correlation over four decades with the presence of a break in the correlation index. These results seem to favour a synchrotron self-Compton origin for the X-ray emission in GX 339-4 during the hard state and could also provide an indirect detection of the break frequency in the synchrotron spectrum of the compact jets.

An Expanded Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer Survey of X-Ray Variability in Seyfert 1 Galaxies

Science.gov (United States)

Markowitz, A.; Edelson, R.

2004-12-01

The first seven years of RXTE monitoring of Seyfert 1 active galactic nuclei have been systematically analyzed to yield five homogeneous samples of 2-12 keV light curves, probing hard X-ray variability on successively longer durations from ~1 day to ~3.5 yr. The 2-10 keV variability on timescales of ~1 day, as probed by ASCA, is included. All sources exhibit stronger X-ray variability toward longer timescales, but the increase is greater for relatively higher luminosity sources. Variability amplitudes are anticorrelated with X-ray luminosity and black hole mass, but amplitudes saturate and become independent of luminosity or black hole mass toward the longest timescales. The data are consistent with the models of power spectral density (PSD) movement described by Markowitz and coworkers and McHardy and coworkers, whereby Seyfert 1 galaxies' variability can be described by a single, universal PSD shape whose break frequency scales with black hole mass. The best-fitting scaling relations between variability timescale, black hole mass, and X-ray luminosity imply an average accretion rate of ~5% of the Eddington limit for the sample. Nearly all sources exhibit stronger variability in the relatively soft 2-4 keV band compared to the 7-12 keV band on all timescales. There are indications that relatively less luminous or less massive sources exhibit a greater degree of spectral variability for a given increase in overall flux.

Inner Disk Structure of Dwarf Novae in the Light of X-Ray Observations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Balman

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Diversity of the X-ray observations of dwarf nova are still not fully understood. I review the X-ray spectral characteristics of dwarf novae during the quiescence in general explained by cooling flow models and the outburst spectra that show hard X-ray emission dominantly with few sources that reveal soft X-ray/EUV blackbody emission. The nature of aperiodic time variability of brightness of dwarf novae shows band limited noise, which can be adequately described in the framework of the model of propagating fluctuations. The frequency of the break (1-6 mHz indicates inner disk truncation of the optically thick disk with a range of radii (3.0-10.0×109 cm. The RXTE and optical (RTT150 data of SS Cyg in outburst and quiescence reveal that the inner disk radius moves towards the white dwarf and receeds as the outburst declines to quiescence. A preliminary analysis of SU UMa indicates a similar behaviour. In addition, I find that the outburst spectra of WZ Sge shows two component spectrum of only hard X-ray emission, one of which may be fitted with a power law suggesting thermal Comptonization occuring in the system. Cross-correlations between the simultaneous UV and X-ray light curves (XMM −Newton of five DNe in quiescence show time lags in the X-rays of 96-181 sec consistent with travel time of matter from a truncated inner disk to the white dwarf surface. All this suggests that dwarf novae and other plausible nonmagnetic systems have truncated accretion disks indicating that the disks may be partially evaporated and the accretion may occur through hot (coronal flows in the disk.

Extended hard-X-ray emission in the inner few parsecs of the Galaxy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perez, Kerstin; Hailey, Charles J.; Bauer, Franz E.

2015-01-01

of objects emitting soft X-rays (less than 10 kiloelectronvolts) within the surrounding hundreds of parsecs, as well as the population responsible for unresolved X-ray emission extending along the Galactic plane, is dominated by accreting white dwarf systems. Observations of diffuse hard-X-ray (more than 10...... kiloelectronvolts) emission in the inner 10 parsecs, however, have been hampered by the limited spatial resolution of previous instruments. Here we report the presence of a distinct hard-X-ray component within the central 4 × 8 parsecs, as revealed by subarcminute-resolution images in the 20-40 kiloelectronvolt...... outflows interacting with the surrounding radiation field, dense molecular material or magnetic fields. However, all these interpretations pose significant challenges to our understanding of stellar evolution, binary formation, and cosmic-ray production in the Galactic Centre....

Modulated High-Energy Gamma-Ray Emission from the Micro-quasar Cygnus X-3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdo, A.A.; Cheung, C.C.; Dermer, C.D.; Grove, J.E.; Johnson, W.N.; Lovellette, M.N.; Makeev, A.; Ray, P.S.; Strickman, M.S.; Wood, K.S.; Abdo, A.A.; Cheung, C.C.; Ackermann, M.; Ajello, M.; Bechtol, K.; Berenji, B.; Blandford, R.D.; Bloom, E.D.; Borgland, A.W.; Cameron, R.A.; Chiang, J.; Claus, R.; Digel, S.W.; Silva, E.D.E.; Drell, P.S.; Dubois, R.; Focke, W.B.; Glanzman, T.; Godfrey, G.; Hayashida, M.; Johannesson, G.; Johnson, A.S.; Kamae, T.; Kocian, M.L.; Lande, J.; Madejski, G.M.; Michelson, P.F.; Mitthumsiri, W.; Monzani, M.E.; Moskalenko, I.V.; Murgia, S.; Nolan, P.L.; Paneque, D.; Reimer, A.; Reimer, O.; Rochester, L.S.; Romani, R.W.; Tanaka, T.; Thayer, J.B.; Tramacere, A.; Uchiyama, Y.; Usher, T.L.; Waite, A.P.; Wang, P.; Ackermann, M.; Ajello, M.; Bechtol, K.; Berenji, B.; Blandford, R.D.; Bloom, E.D.; Borgland, A.W.; Cameron, R.A.; Chiang, J.; Claus, R.; Digel, S.W.; Silva, E.D.E.; Drell, P.S.; Dubois, R.; Focke, W.B.; Glanzman, T.; Godfrey, G.; Hayashida, M.; Johannesson, G.; Johnson, A.S.; Kamae, T.; Kocian, M.L.; Lande, J.; Madejski, G.M.; Michelson, P.F.; Mitthumsiri, W.; Monzani, M.E.; Moskalenko, I.V.; Murgia, S.; Nolan, P.L.; Paneque, D.; Reimer, A.; Reimer, O.; Rochester, L.S.; Romani, R.W.; Tanaka, T.; Thayer, J.B.; Tramacere, A.; Uchiyama, Y.; Usher, T.L.; Waite, A.P.; Wang, P.; Axelsson, M.; Hjalmarsdotter, L.; Axelsson, M.; Conrad, J.; Hjalmarsdotter, L.; Jackson, M.S.; Meurer, C.; Ryde, F.; Ylinen, T.; Baldini, L.; Bellazzini, R.; Brez, A.; Kuss, M.; Latronico, L.; Omodei, N.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Razzano, M.; Sgro, C.; Ballet, J.; Casandjian, J.M.; Chaty, S.; Corbel, S.; Grenier, I.A.; Koerding, E.; Rodriguez, J.; Starck, J.L.; Tibaldo, L.

2009-01-01

Micro-quasars are accreting black holes or neutron stars in binary systems with associated relativistic jets. Despite their frequent outburst activity, they have never been unambiguously detected emitting high-energy gamma rays. The Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has detected a variable high-energy source coinciding with the position of the x-ray binary and micro-quasar Cygnus X-3. Its identification with Cygnus X-3 is secured by the detection of its orbital period in gamma rays, as well as the correlation of the LAT flux with radio emission from the relativistic jets of Cygnus X-3. The gamma-ray emission probably originates from within the binary system, opening new areas in which to study the formation of relativistic jets. (authors)

Discovery of the Optical Counterparts to Four Energetic Fermi Millisecond Pulsars

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Breton, R.P.; van Kerkwijk, M.H.; Roberts, M.S.E.; Hessels, J.W.T.; Camilo, F.; McLaughlin, M.A.; Ransom, S.M.; Ray, P.S.; Stairs, I.H.

2013-01-01

In the last few years, over 43 millisecond radio pulsars have been discovered by targeted searches of unidentified γ-ray sources found by the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope. A large fraction of these millisecond pulsars are in compact binaries with low-mass companions. These systems often show

Measuring the spins of accreting black holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McClintock, Jeffrey E; Narayan, Ramesh; Gou, Lijun; Kulkarni, Akshay; Penna, Robert F; Steiner, James F; Davis, Shane W; Orosz, Jerome A; Remillard, Ronald A

2011-01-01

A typical galaxy is thought to contain tens of millions of stellar-mass black holes, the collapsed remnants of once massive stars, and a single nuclear supermassive black hole. Both classes of black holes accrete gas from their environments. The accreting gas forms a flattened orbiting structure known as an accretion disk. During the past several years, it has become possible to obtain measurements of the spins of the two classes of black holes by modeling the x-ray emission from their accretion disks. Two methods are employed, both of which depend upon identifying the inner radius of the accretion disk with the innermost stable circular orbit, whose radius depends only on the mass and spin of the black hole. In the Fe Kα method, which applies to both classes of black holes, one models the profile of the relativistically broadened iron line with a special focus on the gravitationally redshifted red wing of the line. In the continuum-fitting (CF) method, which has so far only been applied to stellar-mass black holes, one models the thermal x-ray continuum spectrum of the accretion disk. We discuss both methods, with a strong emphasis on the CF method and its application to stellar-mass black holes. Spin results for eight stellar-mass black holes are summarized. These data are used to argue that the high spins of at least some of these black holes are natal, and that the presence or absence of relativistic jets in accreting black holes is not entirely determined by the spin of the black hole.

Soft excess and orbital evolution studies of X-ray pulsars with BeppoSAX

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paul, B.; Naik, S.; Bhatt, N.

2004-01-01

We present here a spectral study of two accreting binary X-ray pulsars LMC X-4 and SMC X-1 made with the BeppoSAX observatory. The energy spectrum of both the pulsars in 0.1-10.0 keV band can be described by a model consisting of a hard power-law component, a soft excess and an iron emission line at 6.4 keV. In addition, the power-law component of SMC X-1 also has an exponential cutoff at ∼ 6 keV. Pulse-phase resolved spectroscopy confirms a pulsating nature of the soft spectral component in both the pulsars, with a certain phase offset compared to the hard power-law component. A dissimilar pulse profile of the two spectral components and a phase difference between the pulsating soft and hard spectral components are evidence for their different origins. In another study of an accreting binary X-ray pulsar Her X-1, we have made accurate measurements of new mid-eclipse times from pulse arrival time delays using observations made with the BeppoSAX and RXTE observatories. The new measurements, combined with the earlier reported mid-eclipse times are used to investigate orbital evolution of the binary. The most recent observation indicates deviation from a quadratic trend coincident with an anomalous low X-ray state, observed for the second time in this pulsar

NUSTAR AND XMM-NEWTON OBSERVATIONS OF THE EXTREME ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCE NGC 5907 ULX1: A VANISHING ACT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walton, D. J.; Stern, D. [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Harrison, F. A.; Fuerst, F.; Grefenstette, B. W.; Madsen, K. K.; Rana, V. [Space Radiation Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Bachetti, M.; Barret, D.; Webb, N. [Universite de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP, Toulouse (France); Boggs, S. E.; Craig, W. W. [Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Christensen, F. E. [DTU Space, National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Elektrovej 327, DK-2800 Lyngby (Denmark); Hailey, C. J. [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States); Middleton, M. J. [Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA (United Kingdom); Roberts, T. P.; Sutton, A. D. [Department of Physics, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Zhang, W. [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

2015-02-01

We present results obtained from two broadband X-ray observations of the extreme ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) NGC 5907 ULX1, known to have a peak X-ray luminosity of ∼5 × 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1}. These XMM-Newton and NuSTAR observations, separated by only ∼4 days, revealed an extreme level of short-term flux variability. In the first epoch, NGC 5907 ULX1 was undetected by NuSTAR, and only weakly detected (if at all) with XMM-Newton, while in the second NGC 5907 ULX1 was clearly detected at high luminosity by both missions. This implies an increase in flux of ∼2 orders of magnitude or more during this ∼4 day window. We argue that this is likely due to a rapid rise in the mass accretion rate, rather than to a transition from an extremely obscured to an unobscured state. During the second epoch we observed the broadband 0.3-20.0 keV X-ray luminosity to be (1.55 ± 0.06) × 10{sup 40} erg s{sup –1}, similar to the majority of the archival X-ray observations. The broadband X-ray spectrum obtained from the second epoch is inconsistent with the low/hard accretion state observed in Galactic black hole binaries, but is well modeled with a simple accretion disk model incorporating the effects of photon advection. This strongly suggests that when bright, NGC 5907 ULX1 is a high-Eddington accretor.

Phase-Resolved Spectroscopy of the Low-Mass X-ray Binary V801 Ara

Science.gov (United States)

Brauer, Kaley; Vrtilek, Saeqa Dil; Peris, Charith; McCollough, Michael

2018-06-01

We present phase-resolved optical spectra of the low mass X-ray binary system V801 Ara. The spectra, obtained in 2014 with IMACS on the Magellan/Baade telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, cover the full binary orbit of 3.8 hours. They contain strong emission features allowing us to map the emission of Hα, Hβ, He II λ4686, and the Bowen blend at λ4640. The radial velocity curves of the Bowen blend shows significantly stronger modulation at the orbital period than Hα as expected for the former originating on the secondary with the latter consistent with emission dominated by the disk. Our tomograms of Hα and Hβ are the most detailed studies of these lines for V801 to date and they clearly detect the accretion disk. The Hβ emission extends to higher velocities than Hα, suggesting emission from closer to the neutron star and differentiating temperature variance in the accretion disk for the first time. The center of the accretion disk appears offset from the center-of-mass of the neutron star as has been seen in several other X-ray binaries. This is often interpreted to imply disk eccentricity. Our tomograms do not show strong evidence for a hot spot at the point where the accretion stream hits the disk. This could imply a reduced accretion rate or could be due to the spot being drowned out by bright accretion flow around it. There is enhanced emission further along the disk, however, which implies gas stream interaction downstream of the hot spot.

A HARD X-RAY POWER-LAW SPECTRAL CUTOFF IN CENTAURUS X-4

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chakrabarty, Deepto; Nowak, Michael A. [MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Tomsick, John A.; Boggs, Steven E.; Craig, William W. [Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Grefenstette, Brian W.; Fürst, Felix; Harrison, Fiona A.; Rana, Vikram [Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Psaltis, Dimitrios [Department of Astronomy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Bachetti, Matteo; Barret, Didier [Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, Université de Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier, F-31400 Toulouse (France); Christensen, Finn E. [Division of Astrophysics, National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Lyngby (Denmark); Hailey, Charles J. [Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States); Kaspi, Victoria M. [Department of Physics, McGill University, Montreal, PQ H3A 2T8 (Canada); Miller, Jon M. [Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States); Stern, Daniel [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Wik, Daniel R.; Zhang, William W. [Astrophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Wilms, Jörn, E-mail: deepto@mit.edu [Dr. Karl-Remeis-Sternwarte and Erlangen Centre for Astroparticle Physics, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, D-96049 Bamberg (Germany)

2014-12-20

The low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) Cen X-4 is the brightest and closest (<1.2 kpc) quiescent neutron star transient. Previous 0.5-10 keV X-ray observations of Cen X-4 in quiescence identified two spectral components: soft thermal emission from the neutron star atmosphere and a hard power-law tail of unknown origin. We report here on a simultaneous observation of Cen X-4 with NuSTAR (3-79 keV) and XMM-Newton (0.3-10 keV) in 2013 January, providing the first sensitive hard X-ray spectrum of a quiescent neutron star transient. The 0.3-79 keV luminosity was 1.1×10{sup 33} D{sub kpc}{sup 2} erg s{sup –1}, with ≅60% in the thermal component. We clearly detect a cutoff of the hard spectral tail above 10 keV, the first time such a feature has been detected in this source class. We show that thermal Comptonization and synchrotron shock origins for the hard X-ray emission are ruled out on physical grounds. However, the hard X-ray spectrum is well fit by a thermal bremsstrahlung model with kT{sub e} = 18 keV, which can be understood as arising either in a hot layer above the neutron star atmosphere or in a radiatively inefficient accretion flow. The power-law cutoff energy may be set by the degree of Compton cooling of the bremsstrahlung electrons by thermal seed photons from the neutron star surface. Lower thermal luminosities should lead to higher (possibly undetectable) cutoff energies. We compare Cen X-4's behavior with PSR J1023+0038, IGR J18245–2452, and XSS J12270–4859, which have shown transitions between LMXB and radio pulsar modes at a similar X-ray luminosity.

Observational constraints on neutron star masses and radii

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coleman Miller, M. [University of Maryland, Department of Astronomy and Joint Space-Science Institute, College Park, MD (United States); Lamb, Frederick K. [University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Center for Theoretical Astrophysics and Department of Physics, Urbana, IL (United States); University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Astronomy, Urbana, IL (United States)

2016-03-15

Precise and reliable measurements of the masses and radii of neutron stars with a variety of masses would provide valuable guidance for improving models of the properties of cold matter with densities above the saturation density of nuclear matter. Several different approaches for measuring the masses and radii of neutron stars have been tried or proposed, including analyzing the X-ray fluxes and spectra of the emission from neutron stars in quiescent low-mass X-ray binary systems and thermonuclear burst sources; fitting the energy-dependent X-ray waveforms of rotation-powered millisecond pulsars, burst oscillations with millisecond periods, and accretion-powered millisecond pulsars; and modeling the gravitational radiation waveforms of coalescing double neutron star and neutron star - black hole binary systems. We describe the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches, most of which currently have substantial systematic errors, and discuss the prospects for decreasing the systematic errors in each method. (orig.)

X-ray emission from hot subdwarfs with compact companions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esposito P.

2013-03-01

Full Text Available We review the X-ray observations of hot subdwarf stars. While no X-ray emission has been detected yet from binaries containing B-type subdwarfs, interesting results have been obtained in the case of the two luminous O-type subdwarfs HD 49798 and BD + 37° 442. Both of them are members of binary systems in which the X-ray luminosity is powered by accretion onto a compact object: a rapidly spinning (13.2 s and massive (1.28  M⊙ white dwarf in the case of HD 49798 and most likely a neutron star, spinning at 19.2 s, in the case of BD + 37° 442. Their study can shed light on the poorly known processes taking place during common envelope evolutionary phases and on the properties of wind mass loss from hot subdwarfs.

The 5 Hour Pulse Period and Broadband Spectrum of the Symbiotic X-Ray Binary 3A 1954+319

Science.gov (United States)

Marcu, Diana M.; Fuerst, Felix; Pottschmidt, Katja; Grinberg, Victoria; Miller, Sebstian; Wilms, Joern; Postnov, Konstantin A.; Corbet, Robin H. D.; Markwardt, Craig B.; Cadolle Bel, Marion

2011-01-01

We present an analysis of the highly variable accreting X-ray pulsar 3A 1954+319 using 2005-2009 monitoring data obtained with INTEGRAL and Swift. This considerably extends the pulse period history and covers flaring episodes in 2005 and 2008. In 2006 the source was identified as one of only a few known symbiotic X-ray binaries, Le" systems composed of a neutron star accreting from the inhomogeneous medium around an M-giant star. The extremely long pulse period of approximately 5.3 h is directly visible in the 2008 INTEGRAL-ISGRI outburst light curve. The pulse profile is double peaked and not significantly energy dependent. During the outburst a strong spin-up of -1.8 x 10(exp -4) h h(exp -1) occurred. Between 2005 and 2008 a long term spin-down trend of 2.1 x 10(exp -5) h h(exp -1) was observed for the first time for this source. The 3-80 keV pulse peak spectrum of 3A 1954+319 during the 2008 flare could be well described by a thermal Comptonization model. We interpret the results within the framework of a recently developed quasi-spherical accretion model for symbiotic X-ray binaries.

A giant radio flare from Cygnus X-3 with associated γ-ray emission: The 2011 radio and γ-ray flare of Cyg X-3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Corbel, S.; Dubus, G.; Tomsick, J. A.; Szostek, A.

2012-01-01

With frequent flaring activity of its relativistic jets, Cygnus X-3 (Cyg X-3) is one of the most active microquasars and is the only Galactic black hole candidate with confirmed high-energy γ-ray emission, thanks to detections by Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi/LAT) and AGILE. In 2011, we observed Cyg X-3 in order to transit to a soft X-ray state, which is known to be associated with high-energy γ-ray emission. We present the results of a multiwavelength campaign covering a quenched state, when radio emission from Cyg X-3 is at its weakest and the X-ray spectrum is very soft. A giant (~20 Jy) optically thin radio flare marks the end of the quenched state, accompanied by rising non-thermal hard X-rays. Fermi/LAT observations (E≥ 100 MeV) reveal renewed γ-ray activity associated with this giant radio flare, suggesting a common origin for all non-thermal components. In addition, current observations unambiguously show that the γ-ray emission is not exclusively related to the rare giant radio flares. A three-week period of γ-ray emission is also detected when Cyg X-3 was weakly flaring in radio, right before transition to the radio quenched state. There were no γ-rays observed during the ~1-month long quenched state, when the radio flux is weakest. These results suggest transitions into and out of the ultrasoft X-ray (radio-quenched) state trigger γ-ray emission, implying a connection to the accretion process, and also that the γ-ray activity is related to the level of radio flux (and possibly shock formation), strengthening the connection to the relativistic jets.

Radiation parameters of the X-ray binary A 0535+26=HDE 245770 from the polarization and photometric data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larionov, V.M.

1987-01-01

An analysis of Shakhovskay et al's observations of the X-ray binary A 0535+26=HDE 245770 made it possible to distinguish in its radiation the two components connected with the visible star (O9 III) and the accretion disc around the neutron star. The interstellar polarization parameters are in accordance with Serkowski's formula and the observations of the field stars. The IR and optical variability can be explained in terms of variable accretion disc radiation. The intrinsic polarization parameters obtained can be used to predict, in the model proposed, the directions of the polarization vectors in the IR and X-ray bands

The MIRAX x-ray astronomy transient mission

Science.gov (United States)

Braga, João; Mejía, Jorge

2006-06-01

The Monitor e Imageador de Raios-X (MIRAX) is a small (~250 kg) X-ray astronomy satellite mission designed to monitor the central Galactic plane for transient phenomena. With a field-of-view of ~1000 square degrees and an angular resolution of ~6 arcmin, MIRAX will provide an unprecedented discovery-space coverage to study X-ray variability in detail, from fast X-ray novae to long-term (~several months) variable phenomena. Chiefly among MIRAX science objectives is its capability of providing simultaneous complete temporal coverage of the evolution of a large number of accreting black holes, including a detailed characterization of the spectral state transitions in these systems. MIRAX's instruments will include a soft X-ray (2-18 keV) and two hard X-ray (10-200 keV) coded-aperture imagers, with sensitivities of ~5 and ~2.6 mCrab/day, respectively. The hard X-ray imagers will be built at the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Brazil, in close collaboration with the Center for Astrophysics & Space Sciences (CASS) of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the Institut fur Astronomie und Astrophysik of the University of Tubingen (IAAT) in Germany; UCSD will provide the crossed-strip position-sensitive (0.5- mm spatial resolution) CdZnTe (CZT) hard X-ray detectors. The soft X-ray camera, provided by the Space Research Organization Netherlands (SRON), will be the spare flight unit of the Wide Field Cameras that flew on the Italian-Dutch satellite BeppoSAX. MIRAX is an approved mission of the Brazilian Space Agency (Agnecia Espacial Brasileira - AEB) and is scheduled to be launched in 2011 in a low-altitude (~550 km) circular equatorial orbit. In this paper we present recent developments in the mission planning and design, as well as Monte Carlo simulations performed on the GEANT-based package MGGPOD environment (Weidenspointner et al. 2004) and new algorithms for image digital processing. Simulated images of the central Galactic plane as it

Cosmological Evolution of the Central Engine in High-Luminosity, High-Accretion Rate AGN

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matteo Guainazzi

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper I discuss the status of observational studies aiming at probing the cosmological evolution of the central engine in high-luminosity, high-accretion rate Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN. X-ray spectroscopic surveys, supported by extensive multi-wavelength coverage, indicate a remarkable invariance of the accretion disk plus corona system, and of their coupling up to redshifts z≈6. Furthermore, hard X-ray (E >10 keV surveys show that nearby Seyfert Galaxies share the same central engine notwithstanding their optical classication. These results suggest that the high-luminosity, high accretion rate quasar phase of AGN evolution is homogeneous over cosmological times.

Parsec-Scale Accretion and Winds Irradiated by a Quasar

Science.gov (United States)

Dorodnitsyn, A.; Kallman, T.; Proga, D.

2016-01-01

We present numerical simulations of properties of a parsec-scale torus exposed to illumination by the central black hole in an active galactic nucleus (AGN). Our physical model allows to investigate the balance between the formation of winds and accretion simultaneously. Radiation-driven winds are allowed by taking into account radiation pressure due to UV and IR radiation along with X-ray heating and dust sublimation. Accretion is allowed through angular momentum transport and the solution of the equations of radiative, viscous radiation hydrodynamics. Our methods adopt flux-limited diffusion radiation hydrodynamics for the dusty, infrared pressure driven part of the flow, along with X-ray heating and cooling. Angular momentum transport in the accreting part of the flow is modeled using effective viscosity. Our results demonstrate that radiation pressure on dust can play an important role in shaping AGN obscuration. For example, when the luminosity illuminating the torus exceeds L greater than 0.01 L(sub Edd), where L(sub Edd) is the Eddington luminosity, we find no episodes of sustained disk accretion because radiation pressure does not allow a disk to form. Despite the absence of the disk accretion, the flow of gas to smaller radii still proceeds at a rate 10(exp -4)-10(exp -1)M dot yr(exp -1) through the capturing of the gas from the hot evaporative flow, thus providing a mechanism to deliver gas from a radiation-pressure dominated torus to the inner accretion disk. As L L(sub edd) increases, larger radiation input leads to larger torus aspect ratios and increased obscuration of the central black hole. We also find the important role of the X-ray heated gas in shaping the obscuring torus.

The Elusive Soft Emission from Hard X-ray Symbiotic System RT Cru