scholarly journals Proposed wavelength measurements of silicon X-ray spectra: Application to Vela X-1

2008 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
D A Liedahl ◽  
G V Brown

When a stellar wind from a massive star is captured by a neutron star in close orbit, gravitational potential energy is converted into hard X-radiation near the surface of the neutron star. The X-radiation, in turn, modifies the wind through heating and photoionization, which affects the dynamics of mass capture. We have begun a project to further elucidate this process, which involves time-dependent three-dimensional hydrodynamics, large-scale atomic physics calculations, and radiation transport, integrated in an attempt to derive a self-consistent “first principles” description of the mass transfer process. We anticipate that the high-resolution silicon X-ray spectrum, produced by innershell photoionization and photoexcitation, as measured by the Chandra observatory, will provide benchmarks for these calculations. However, theoretical wavelengths, which are required in order to draw inferences concerning the velocity field of the wind, are uncertain at the level of the likely Doppler shifts in the stellar wind. EBIT measurements could lead to a reliable set of wavelengths, thereby providing observational constraints on the physics that powers some of the brightest X-ray sources in the Galaxy. PACS Nos.: 32.30.Rj, 32.80.Fb, 32.80.Hd, 52.25.Os, 52.72.+v, 97.10.Me, 97.80.Jp

2004 ◽  
Vol 194 ◽  
pp. 144-145
Author(s):  
A. T. Okazaki ◽  
K. Hayasaki

AbstractWe study the interaction between the Be-star disk and the neutron star in Be/X-ray binaries by three dimensional SPH simulations. We find that, the resonant, truncation of the Be disk works except for systems with extremely high orbital eccentricity or large misalignment angles between the Be disk and the orbital plane. Owing to the truncation, the mass-capture rate by the neutron star is sensitive both to the orbital eccentricity and to the angle of misalignment. It is single-peaked in coplanar systems and in systems with small misalignment angles, whereas it, becomes double-peaked in systems with large misalignment angles.


2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (10) ◽  
pp. 1844006
Author(s):  
A. Dorodnitsyn ◽  
T. Kallman

Large scale magnetic field can be easily dragged from galactic scales toward AGN along with accreting gas. There, it can contribute to both the formation of AGN “torus” and help to remove angular momentum from the gas which fuels AGN accretion disk. However the dynamics of such gas is also strongly influenced by the radiative feedback from the inner accretion disk. Here we present results from the three-dimensional simulations of pc-scale accretion which is exposed to intense X-ray heating.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (S346) ◽  
pp. 193-196
Author(s):  
Swetlana Hubrig ◽  
Lara Sidoli ◽  
Konstantin A. Postnov ◽  
Markus Schöller ◽  
Alexander F. Kholtygin ◽  
...  

Abstract. A fraction of high-mass X-ray binaries are supergiant fast X-ray transients. These systems have on average low X-ray luminosities, but display short flares during which their X-ray luminosity rises by a few orders of magnitude. The leading model for the physics governing this X-ray behaviour suggests that the winds of the donor OB supergiants are magnetized. In agreement with this model, the first spectropolarimetric observations of the SFXT IGR J11215-5952 using the FORS 2 instrument at the Very Large Telescope indicate the presence of a kG longitudinal magnetic field. Based on these results, it seems possible that the key difference between supergiant fast X-ray transients and other high-mass X-ray binaries are the properties of the supergiant’s stellar wind and the physics of the wind’s interaction with the neutron star magnetosphere.


2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (06) ◽  
pp. 791-796
Author(s):  
MANEL PERUCHO ◽  
VALENTÍ BOSCH-RAMON ◽  
DMITRY KHANGULYAN

We present the first three-dimensional simulations of the evolution of a microquasar jet inside the binary star system. The aim is to study the interaction of these jets with the stellar wind from a massive companion and the possible locations of high-energy emission sites. We have simulated two jets with different injection power in order to give a hint on the minimum power required for the jet to escape the system and become visible in larger scales. In the setup, we include a massive star wind filling the grid through which the jet evolves. We show that jets should have powers of the order of 1037 erg s-1 or more in order not to be destroyed by the stellar wind. The jet–wind interaction results in regions in which high-energy emission could be produced. These results imply the possible existence of a population of X–ray binaries undetected in the radio band due to jet disruption inside the region dominated by the stellar wind.


2020 ◽  
Vol 637 ◽  
pp. A66 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Meyer-Hofmeister ◽  
B. F. Liu ◽  
E. Qiao ◽  
R. E. Taam

Context. Cygnus X-1 is a black hole X-ray binary system in which the black hole captures and accretes gas from the strong stellar wind emitted by its supergiant O9.7 companion star. The irradiation of the supergiant star essentially determines the flow properties of the stellar wind and the X-ray luminosity from the system. The results of three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of wind-fed X-ray binary systems reported in recent work reveal that the ionizing feedback of the X-ray irradiation leads to the existence of two stable states with either a soft or a hard spectrum. Aims. We discuss the observed radiation of Cygnus X-1 in the soft and hard state in the context of mass flow in the corona and disk, as predicted by the recent application of a condensation model. Methods. The rates of gas condensation from the corona to the disk for Cygnus X-1 are determined, and the spectra of the hard and soft radiation are computed. The theoretical results are compared with the MAXI observations of Cygnus X-1 from 2009 to 2018. In particular, we evaluate the hardness-intensity diagrams (HIDs) for its ten episodes of soft and hard states which show that Cygnus X-1 is distinct in its spectral changes as compared to those found in the HIDs of low-mass X-ray binaries. Results. The theoretically derived values of photon counts and hardness are in approximate agreement with the observed data in the HID. However, the scatter in the diagram is not reproduced. Improved agreement could result from variations in the viscosity associated with clumping in the stellar wind and corresponding changes of the magnetic fields in the disk. The observed dipping events in the hard state may also contribute to the scatter and to a harder spectrum than predicted by the model.


2020 ◽  
Vol 638 ◽  
pp. A107
Author(s):  
Y. Herrera ◽  
G. Sala ◽  
J. José

Context. Photospheric radius expansion during X-ray bursts can be used to measure neutron star radii and help constrain the equation of state of neutron star matter. Understanding the stellar wind dynamics is important for interpreting observations, and therefore stellar wind models, though studied in past decades, have regained interest and need to be revisited with updated data and methods. Aims. Here, we study the radiative wind model in the context of X-ray bursts with modern techniques and physics input. We focus on characterization of the solutions and the study of observable magnitudes as a function of free model parameters. Methods. We implemented a spherically symmetric nonrelativistic wind model in a stationary regime, with updated opacity tables and modern numerical techniques. Total mass and energy outflows (Ṁ, Ė) were treated as free parameters. Results. A high-resolution parameter-space exploration was performed to allow better characterization of observable magnitudes. High correlation was found between different photospheric magnitudes and free parameters. For instance, the photospheric ratio of gravitational energy outflow to radiative luminosity is directly proportional to the photospheric wind velocity. Conclusions. The correlations found here could help determine the physical conditions of the inner layers, where nuclear reactions take place, by means of observable photospheric values. Further studies are needed to determine the range of physical conditions in which the correlations are valid.


2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 1188-1191 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. M. Zhou ◽  
Y. S. Feng ◽  
L. D. Zhang

Large-scale single-crystal cubic PbS nanorods were successfully achieved by using ultrasound irradiation in certain ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) solutions, particularly in the solution of Pb:EDTA = 1:1. The obtained PbS nanorods were characterized using x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersed x-ray spectrometry, selected area electronic diffraction, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The results reveal that the PbS nanorods with straight and uniform structure have a diameter of about 70–80 nm and length of about 1000 nm, where the growth mechanism is tentatively discussed. The successful synthesis of these cubic structure semiconductor PbS nanorods may open up new possibilities for using these materials as building blocks to create functional two-dimensional or three-dimensional nanostructured materials.


1977 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-153
Author(s):  
E.P.J. van den Heuvel ◽  
G.J. Savonije

The most important recent observational discoveries in the field of X-ray binaries are probably those of the slow pulsars and of the winds of normal early-type main-sequence stars. These facts yield key information on the evolutionary history of the X-ray binaries and on the rotational slow-down mechanism for a neutron star in a stellar wind, as will be pointed out in section 3. In the theoretical field, the X-ray binaries have triggered much fundamental work, notably on the detailed processes of mass transfer and on tidal evolution, which will be considered in sections 2, 4 and 5.


1977 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
George W. Clark

Most of the variable phenomena of high-luminosity (≳1036erg s−1) stellar X-ray sources can be explained, at least qualitatively, within the general framework of binary accretion models in which thermal X-rays are emitted in the vicinity of a neutron star or blackhole by plasma that has flowed downhill from the surface of a nuclear burning companion and been heated by conversion of its gravitational potential energy. The yield of X-ray energy in this process is so high, exceeding in some cases 0.1c2per unit mass, that X-ray luminosities in excess of 104L⊙can be generated with accretion rates of only ˜10−BM⊙per year. Since the transfer process depends strongly on many parameters that specify the relevant properties of two stars and their interaction, one finds a remarkable variety and range of X-ray phenomena. If the compact object is a magnetized neutron star, rotation will cause its X-ray emission pattern to sweep over a distant observer and thereby produce regular pulsations like those observed with periods in the range from 1 to 103seconds. Orbital motions can cause regular eclipses and absorption dips like those observed with periods in the range from hours to days. Changes in the rate of mass loss by the nuclear burning star or in the transfer efficiency can account for the variations in intrinsic X-ray luminosities that appear as flares, novae and on-off transitions. Irregularities in the flow of plasma near the compact star can also affect the intrinsic luminosity and appear as erratic fluctuations, spikes and shot-noise in the observed intensity.


IUCrJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia M. Casadei ◽  
Ching-Ju Tsai ◽  
Anton Barty ◽  
Mark S. Hunter ◽  
Nadia A. Zatsepin ◽  
...  

Previous proof-of-concept measurements on single-layer two-dimensional membrane-protein crystals performed at X-ray free-electron lasers (FELs) have demonstrated that the collection of meaningful diffraction patterns, which is not possible at synchrotrons because of radiation-damage issues, is feasible. Here, the results obtained from the analysis of a thousand single-shot, room-temperature X-ray FEL diffraction images from two-dimensional crystals of a bacteriorhodopsin mutant are reported in detail. The high redundancy in the measurements boosts the intensity signal-to-noise ratio, so that the values of the diffracted intensities can be reliably determined down to the detector-edge resolution of 4 Å. The results show that two-dimensional serial crystallography at X-ray FELs is a suitable method to study membrane proteins to near-atomic length scales at ambient temperature. The method presented here can be extended to pump–probe studies of optically triggered structural changes on submillisecond timescales in two-dimensional crystals, which allow functionally relevant large-scale motions that may be quenched in three-dimensional crystals.


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