scholarly journals Unfolding the X-ray spectral curvature of Mkn 421 for further clues

2020 ◽  
Vol 499 (2) ◽  
pp. 2094-2103
Author(s):  
Pranjupriya Goswami ◽  
Sunder Sahayanathan ◽  
Atreyee Sinha ◽  
Rupjyoti Gogoi
Keyword(s):  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Turbulence Energy ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Peak Energy ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Energy Dependent

ABSTRACT The X-ray observations of Mkn 421 show significant spectral curvature that can be reproduced by a log-parabola function. The spectra can also be fitted by an analytical model considering synchrotron emission from an electron distribution that is accelerated at a shock front with an energy-dependent diffusion (EDD model). The spectral fit of NuSTAR and Swift-XRT observations using EDD model during different flux states reveals that the model parameters are strongly correlated. We perform a detailed investigation of this correlation to decipher the information hidden underneath. The model predicts the synchrotron peak energy to be correlated with the peak spectral curvature, which is consistent with the case of Mkn 421. Expressing the energy dependence of the diffusion in terms of the magnetohydrodynamic turbulence energy index, it appears that the turbulence shifts from Kolmogorov/Kraichnan type to Bohm limit during high flux states. Further, the correlation between the best-fitting parameters of EDD model lets us derive an expression for the product of source magnetic field(B) and jet Doppler factor(δ) in terms of synchrotron and Compton peak energies. The synchrotron peak energy is obtained using the simultaneous Swift-XRT–NuSTAR observations, whereas the Compton peak energy is estimated by performing a linear regression analysis of the archival spectral peaks. The deduced δB varies over a wide range; however, it satisfies reasonably well with the values estimated solely from the spectral peak energies independent of the EDD model. This highlights the plausible connection between the microscopic description of the electron diffusion with the macroscopic quantities deciding the broad-band spectrum of Mkn 421.

scholarly journals A stochastic propagation model to the energy dependent rapid temporal behaviour of Cygnus X-1 as observed by AstroSat in the hard state

2019 ◽  
Vol 486 (2) ◽  
pp. 2964-2975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bari Maqbool ◽  
Sneha Prakash Mudambi ◽  
R Misra ◽  
J S Yadav ◽  
S B Gudennavar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Lag ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Propagation Model ◽  
Large Area ◽  
Temporal Behaviour ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Single Temperature ◽  
Hard State ◽  
Band Spectra ◽  
Energy Dependent

Abstract We report the results from analysis of six observations of Cygnus X-1 by Large Area X-ray Proportional Counter (LAXPC) and Soft X-ray Telescope (SXT) onboard AstroSat, when the source was in the hard spectral state as revealed by the broad-band spectra. The spectra obtained from all the observations can be described by a single-temperature Comptonizing region with disc and reflection components. The event mode data from LAXPC provides unprecedented energy dependent fractional root mean square (rms) and time-lag at different frequencies which we fit with empirical functions. We invoke a fluctuation propagation model for a simple geometry of a truncated disc with a hot inner region. Unlike other propagation models, the hard X-ray emission (>4 keV) is assumed to be from the hot inner disc by a single-temperature thermal Comptonization process. The fluctuations first cause a variation in the temperature of the truncated disc and then the temperature of the inner disc after a frequency dependent time delay. We find that the model can explain the energy dependent rms and time-lag at different frequencies.

scholarly journals NuSTAR view of Be/X-ray binary pulsar 2S 1417−624 during 2018 giant outburst

2019 ◽  
Vol 490 (2) ◽  
pp. 2458-2466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shivangi Gupta ◽  
Sachindra Naik ◽  
Gaurava K Jaisawal
Keyword(s):  
Broad Band ◽  
Gaussian Function ◽  
Physical Models ◽  
Spectral Studies ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Binary Pulsar ◽  
Double Peak Structure ◽  
Peak Structure ◽  
Cyclotron Line

ABSTRACT We report the results obtained from a detailed timing and spectral studies of Be/X-ray binary pulsar 2S 1417−624 using data from Swift and NuSTAR observatories. The observations were carried out at the peak of a giant outburst of the pulsar in 2018. X-ray pulsations at ∼17.475 s were detected in the source light curves up to 79 keV. The evolution of the pulse profiles with energy was found to be complex. A four-peaked profile at lower energies gradually evolved into a double-peak structure at higher energies. The pulsed fraction of the pulsar, calculated from the NuSTAR observation was found to follow an anticorrelation trend with luminosity as observed during previous giant X-ray outburst studies in 2009. The broad-band spectrum of the pulsar is well described by a composite model consisting of a cut-off power-law model modified with the interstellar absorption, a thermal blackbody component with a temperature of ≈1 keV, and a Gaussian function for the 6.4 keV iron emission line. Though the pulsar was observed at the peak of the giant outburst, there was no signature of presence of any cyclotron line feature in the spectrum. The radius of the blackbody emitting region was estimated to be ≈2 km, suggesting that the most probable site of its origin is the stellar surface of the neutron star. Physical models were also explored to understand the emission geometry of the pulsar and are discussed in the paper.

scholarly journals The December 2015 re-brightening of V404 Cygni

2018 ◽  
Vol 616 ◽  
pp. A129 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. E. Kajava ◽  
S. E. Motta ◽  
C. Sánchez-Fernández ◽  
E. Kuulkers
Keyword(s):  
Broad Band ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Accretion Disc ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
Hard Photon ◽  
Time Resolved ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Spectral Behaviour ◽  
Black Hole Binary ◽  
Spectral Cut

In December 2015 the black hole binary V404 Cyg underwent a secondary outburst after the main June 2015 event. We monitored this re-brightening with the INTEGRAL and Swift satellites, and in this paper we report the results of the time-resolved spectral analysis of these data. The December outburst shared several characteristics with the June event. The well-sampled INTEGRAL light curve shows up to ten Crab flares, which are separated by relatively weak non-flaring emission phases when compared to the June outburst. The spectra are nicely described by absorbed Comptonization models, with hard photon indices, Γ ≲ 2, and significant detections of a high-energy cut-off only during the bright flares. This is in contrast to the June outburst, where the Comptonization models gave electron temperatures mostly in the 30–50 keV range, while some spectra were soft (Γ ~ 2.5) without signs of any spectral cut-off. Similarly to the June outburst, we see clear signs of a variable local absorber in the soft energy band covered by Swift/XRT and INTEGRAL/JEM-X, which causes rapid spectral variations observed during the flares. During one flare, both Swift and INTEGRAL captured V404 Cyg in a state where the absorber was nearly Compton thick, N H ≈ 1024 cm−2, and the broad-band spectrum was similar to obscured AGN spectra, as seen during the X-ray plateaus in the June outburst. We conclude that the spectral behaviour of V404 Cyg during the December outburst was analogous with the first few days of the June outburst, both having hard X-ray flares that were intermittently influenced by obscuration due to nearly Compton-thick outflows launched from the accretion disc.

scholarly journals Broad-band spectral analysis of LMXB XTE J1710−281 with Suzaku

2020 ◽  
Vol 496 (1) ◽  
pp. 197-205
Author(s):  
Prince Sharma ◽  
Rahul Sharma ◽  
Chetana Jain ◽  
Anjan Dutta
Keyword(s):  
Spectral Analysis ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Emission Spectra ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
Surface Boundary ◽  
Hot Electron ◽  
Spectral Parameters ◽  
Surface Boundary Layer ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Single Temperature

ABSTRACT This work presents the broad-band time-averaged spectral analysis of neutron star (NS) low-mass X-ray binary, XTE J1710−281 by using the Suzaku archival data. The source was in a hard or an intermediate spectral state during this observation. This is the first time that a detailed spectral analysis of the persistent emission spectra of XTE J1710−281 has been done up to 30 keV with improved constraints on its spectral parameters. By simultaneously fitting the X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (0.6–9.0 keV) and the HXD-PIN (15.0–30.0 keV) data, we have modelled the persistent spectrum of the source with models comprising a soft component from accretion disc and/or NS surface/boundary layer and a hard Comptonizing component. The 0.6–30 keV continuum with neutral absorber can be described by a multicolour disc blackbody with an inner disc temperature of kTdisc = 0.28 keV, which is significantly Comptonized by the hot electron cloud with electron temperature of kTe ≈ 5 keV and described by photon index Γ = 1.86. A more complex three-component model comprising a multicolour disc blackbody ≈0.30 keV, single-temperature blackbody ≈0.65 keV, and Comptonization from the disc, partially absorbed (about 38 per cent) by an ionized absorber (log(ξ) ≈ 4) describes the broad-band spectrum equally well.

scholarly journals The long-term enhanced brightness of the magnetar 1E 1547.0–5408

2020 ◽  
Vol 633 ◽  
pp. A31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Coti Zelati ◽  
Alice Borghese ◽  
Nanda Rea ◽  
Daniele Viganò ◽  
Teruaki Enoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Emission ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Spectral Shape ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
Pulse Profile ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Cooling Trend

We present the evolution of the X-ray emission properties of the magnetar 1E 1547.0–5408 since February 2004 over a time period covering three outbursts. We analyzed new and archival observations taken with the Swift, NuSTAR, Chandra, and XMM–Newton X-ray satellites. The source has been observed at a relatively steady soft X-ray flux of ≈10−11 erg cm−2 s−1 (0.3–10 keV) over the last 9 years, which is about an order of magnitude fainter than the flux at the peak of the last outburst in 2009, but a factor of ∼30 larger than the level in 2006. The broad-band spectrum extracted from two recent NuSTAR observations in April 2016 and February 2019 showed a faint hard X-ray emission up to ∼70 keV. Its spectrum is adequately described by a flat power law component, and its flux is ∼7 × 10−12 erg cm−2 s−1 (10–70 keV), that is a factor of ∼20 smaller than at the peak of the 2009 outburst. The hard X-ray spectral shape has flattened significantly in time, which is at variance with the overall cooling trend of the soft X-ray component. The pulse profile extracted from these NuSTAR pointings displays variability in shape and amplitude with energy (up to ≈25 keV). Our analysis shows that the flux of 1E 1547.0–5408 is not yet decaying to the 2006 level and that the source has been lingering in a stable, high-intensity state for several years. This might suggest that magnetars can hop among distinct persistent states that are probably connected to outburst episodes and that their persistent thermal emission can be almost entirely powered by the dissipation of currents in the corona.

scholarly journals The Hϒ Line Spectrum of Intermediate Polars

1998 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 385-385
Author(s):  
Y. Kim ◽  
K. Beuermann
Keyword(s):  
Spectral Range ◽  
Line Spectrum ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
X Rays ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Rotational Modulation ◽  
Intermediate Polars ◽  
Dominant Process ◽  
Energy Dependent ◽  
Insight Into

By using of a model for the propagation of the emitted X-rays through the infalling material and the reemission of the energy deposited by photoabsorption in the optical (and UV) spectral range (Kim & Beuermann, 1995) we calculated Hϒ line spectrum of intermediate polars. Photoabsorption of X-rays by the infalling material is the dominant process in forming the observed energy-dependent rotational modulation of the X-ray flux. X-ray and optical modulations are sensitive to model parameters in different ways. In principle these dependences allow us to obtain improved insight into the geometry of intermediate polars. Some results of our calculation will be presented in this paper in comparison with the Hβ spectrum calculated by Kim & Beuermann (1996).

scholarly journals Broad-band X-ray characteristics of the transient pulsar GRO J2058+42

2020 ◽  
Vol 497 (1) ◽  
pp. 1059-1065
Author(s):  
Sanhita Kabiraj ◽  
Biswajit Paul
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Field Strength ◽  
Magnetic Field Strength ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Energy Bands ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Energy Cutoff ◽  
Cyclotron Line ◽  
Energy Dependent

ABSTRACT The Be X-ray binary GRO J2058+42 recently went through a Type-II outburst during 2019 March–April lasting for about 50 d. This outburst was detected with the operating all sky X-ray monitors like the Fermi-GBM, Swift-BAT, and MAXI-GSC. Two Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array(NuSTAR) observations were also made, one during the rise and other during the decay of the outburst. It gave us the unique opportunity to analyse the broad-band characteristics of the pulsar for the first time and accretion torque characteristics of the pulsar over a range of X-ray luminosity. The pulse profiles are strongly energy-dependent, with at least four different pulse components at low energy (< 20 keV), which evolves to a single-peaked profile at high energy (> 30 keV). In each of the narrow energy bands, the pulse profiles are nearly identical in the two NuSTAR observations. The spectra from both the observations are fitted well to a power-law with a Fermi–Dirac-type high-energy cutoff. We ruled out presence of a cyclotron line in the pulse phase averaged X-ray spectrum in the NuSTAR band with an optical depth greater than 0.15. An iron emission line is detected in both the NuSTAR spectra with an equivalent width of about 125 eV. We looked at the dependence of the spin-up rate on the luminosity and estimated the magnetic field strength from that, which came out to be much higher compared to other known BeXRB pulsars. Lastly, we discussed the inadequacy of the torque–luminosity relation for determination of magnetic field strength of neutron stars.

scholarly journals The origin of X-ray emission in the gamma-ray emitting narrow-line Seyfert 1 1H 0323+342

2020 ◽  
Vol 496 (3) ◽  
pp. 2922-2931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergio A Mundo ◽  
Erin Kara ◽  
Edward M Cackett ◽  
A C Fabian ◽  
J Jiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
Narrow Line ◽  
Model Assumption ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Disc Model ◽  
Reflection Model ◽  
Superluminal Motion ◽  
Low Energies

ABSTRACT We present the results of X-ray spectral and timing analyses of the closest gamma-ray emitting narrow-line Seyfert 1 (γ-NLS1) galaxy, 1H 0323+342. We use observations from a recent, simultaneous XMM–Newton/NuSTAR campaign. As in radio-quiet NLS1s, the spectrum reveals a soft excess at low energies (≲2 keV) and reflection features such as a broad iron K emission line. We also find evidence of a hard excess at energies above ∼35 keV that is likely a consequence of jet emission. Our analysis shows that relativistic reflection is statistically required, and using a combination of models that includes the reflection model relxill for the broad-band spectrum, we find an inclination of $i=63^{+7}_{-5}$ degrees, which is in tension with much lower values inferred by superluminal motion in radio observations. We also find a flat (q = 2.2 ± 0.3) emissivity profile, implying that there is more reflected flux than usual being emitted from the outer regions of the disc, which in turn suggests a deviation from the thin disc model assumption. We discuss possible reasons for this, such as reflection off of a thick accretion disc geometry.

scholarly journals A new transient ultraluminous X-ray source in NGC 7090

2020 ◽  
Vol 501 (1) ◽  
pp. 1002-1012
Author(s):  
D J Walton ◽  
M Heida ◽  
M Bachetti ◽  
F Fürst ◽  
M Brightman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Signal To Noise Ratio ◽  
Broad Band ◽  
Small Population ◽  
Band Spectrum ◽  
X Ray ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Complex Models ◽  
Peak Luminosity

ABSTRACT We report on the discovery of a new, transient ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) in the galaxy NGC 7090. This new ULX, which we refer to as NGC 7090 ULX3, was discovered via monitoring with Swift during 2019–2020, and to date has exhibited a peak luminosity of LX ∼ 6 × 1039 erg s−1. Archival searches show that, prior to its recent transition into the ULX regime, ULX3 appeared to exhibit a fairly stable luminosity of LX ∼ 1038 erg s−1. Such strong long-time-scale variability may be reminiscent of the small population of known ULX pulsars, although deep follow-up observations with XMM–Newton and NuSTAR do not reveal any robust X-ray pulsation signals. Pulsations similar to those seen from known ULX pulsars cannot be completely excluded, however, as the limit on the pulsed fraction of any signal that remains undetected in these data is ≲20 per cent. The broad-band spectrum from these observations is well modelled with a simple thin disc model, consistent with sub-Eddington accretion, which may instead imply a moderately large black hole accretor (MBH ∼ 40 M⊙). Similarly, though, more complex models consistent with the super-Eddington spectra seen in other ULXs (and the known ULX pulsars) cannot be excluded given the limited signal-to-noise ratio of the available broad-band data. The nature of the accretor powering this new ULX therefore remains uncertain.

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