| 1. |
- Feroci, M., et al.
(författare)
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The Large Observatory for X-ray Timing (LOFT)
- 2012
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Ingår i: Experimental Astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 34:2, s. 415-444
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- High-time-resolution X-ray observations of compact objects provide direct access to strong-field gravity, to the equation of state of ultradense matter and to black hole masses and spins. A 10 m(2)-class instrument in combination with good spectral resolution is required to exploit the relevant diagnostics and answer two of the fundamental questions of the European Space Agency (ESA) Cosmic Vision Theme "Matter under extreme conditions", namely: does matter orbiting close to the event horizon follow the predictions of general relativity? What is the equation of state of matter in neutron stars? The Large Observatory For X-ray Timing (LOFT), selected by ESA as one of the four Cosmic Vision M3 candidate missions to undergo an assessment phase, will revolutionise the study of collapsed objects in our galaxy and of the brightest supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei. Thanks to an innovative design and the development of large-area monolithic silicon drift detectors, the Large Area Detector (LAD) on board LOFT will achieve an effective area of similar to 12 m(2) (more than an order of magnitude larger than any spaceborne predecessor) in the 2-30 keV range (up to 50 keV in expanded mode), yet still fits a conventional platform and small/medium-class launcher. With this large area and a spectral resolution of < 260 eV, LOFT will yield unprecedented information on strongly curved spacetimes and matter under extreme conditions of pressure and magnetic field strength.
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| 2. |
- Cristina Baglio, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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A Wildly Flickering Jet in the Black Hole X-Ray Binary MAXI J1535-571
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 1538-4357 .- 0004-637X. ; 867:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the results of optical, near-infrared (NIR), and mid-infrared observations of the black hole X-ray binary candidate (BHB) MAXI J1535-571 during its 2017/2018 outburst. During the first part of the outburst (MJD 58004-58012), the source shows an optical-NIR spectrum that is consistent with an optically thin synchrotron power law from a jet. After MJD 58015, however, the source faded considerably, the drop in flux being much more evident at lower frequencies. Before the fading, we measure a dereddened flux density of 100 mJy in the mid-infrared, making MAXI J1535-571 one of the brightest mid-infrared BHBs known so far. A significant softening of the X-ray spectrum is evident contemporaneous with the infrared fade. We interpret it as being due to the suppression of the jet emission, similar to the accretion-ejection coupling seen in other BHBs. However, MAXI J1535-571 did not transition smoothly to the soft state, instead showing X-ray hardness deviations associated with infrared flaring. We also present the first mid-IR variability study of a BHB on minute timescales, with a fractional rms variability of the light curves of ∼15%-22%, which is similar to that expected from the internal shock jet model, and much higher than the optical fractional rms (≲7%). These results represent an excellent case of multiwavelength jet spectral timing and demonstrate how rich, multiwavelength time-resolved data of X-ray binaries over accretion state transitions can help in refining models of the disk-jet connection and jet launching in these systems.
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| 3. |
- Paice, J. A., et al.
(författare)
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A black hole X-ray binary at similar to 100 Hz : multiwavelength timing of MAXIJ1820+070 with HiPERCAM and NICER
- 2019
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : OXFORD UNIV PRESS. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966 .- 1745-3925 .- 1745-3933. ; 490:1, s. L62-L66
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on simultaneous sub-second optical and X-ray timing observations of the low-mass X-ray binary black hole candidate MAXI J1820+070. The bright 2018 outburst rise allowed simultaneous photometry in five optical bands (ugrizs) with HiPERCAM/GTC (Optical) at frame rates over 100 Hz, together with NICER/ISS observations (X-rays). Intense (factor of 2) red flaring activity in the optical is seen over a broad range of time-scales down to similar to 10 ms. Cross-correlating the bands reveals a prominent anticorrelation on time-scales of similar to seconds, and a narrow sub-second correlation at a lag of approximate to+165 ms (optical lagging X-rays). This lag increases with optical wavelength, and is approximately constant over Fourier frequencies of similar to 0.3-10 Hz. These features are consistent with an origin in the inner accretion flow and jet base within similar to 5000 Gravitational radii. An additional similar to+5 s lag feature may be ascribable to disc reprocessing. MAXI J1820+070 is the third black hole transient to display a clear similar to 0.1 s optical lag, which may be common feature in such objects. The sub-second lag variation with wavelength is novel, and may allow constraints on internal shock jet stratification models.
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| 4. |
- Paice, J. A., et al.
(författare)
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The evolution of rapid optical/X-ray timing correlations in the initial hard state of MAXIJ1820+070
- 2021
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 505:3, s. 3452-3469
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on a multiepoch campaign of rapid optical/X-ray timing observations of the superbright 2018 outburst of MAXIJ1820+070, a black hole low-mass X-ray binary system. The observations spanned 80 d in the initial hard state and were taken with NTT/ULTRACAM and GTC/HiPERCAM in the optical (u(s)g(s)r(s)i(s)z(s) filters at time resolutions of 8-300Hz) and with ISS/NICER in X-rays. We find (i) a growing anticorrelation between the optical and X-ray light curves, (ii) a steady, positive correlation at an optical lag of similar to 0.2s (with a longer lag at longer wavelengths) present in all epochs, and (iii) a curious positive correlation at negative optical lags in the last, X-ray softest epoch, with longer wavelengths showing a greater correlation and a more negative lag. To explain these, we postulate the possible existence of two synchrotron-emitting components - a compact jet and a hot flow. In our model, the significance of the jet decreases over the outburst, while the hot flow remains static (thus, relatively, increasing in significance). We also discuss a previously discovered quasi-periodic oscillation and note how it creates coherent optical time lags, stronger at longer wavelengths, during at least two epochs.
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| 5. |
- Vincentelli, F. M., et al.
(författare)
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Fast infrared variability from the black hole candidate MAXI J1535-571 and tight constraints on the modelling
- 2021
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 503:1, s. 614-624
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the results regarding the analysis of the fast X-ray/infrared (IR) variability of the black hole transient MAXI J1535-571. The data studied in thiswork consist of two strictly simultaneous observations performed with XMM-Newton (X-rays: 0.7-10 keV), VLT/HAWK-I (K-s band, 2.2 mu m) andVLT/VISIR (Mand PAH2 2 bands, 4.85 and 11.88 mu m, respectively). The cross-correlation function between the X-ray and near-IR light curves shows a strong asymmetric anticorrelation dip at positive lags. We detect a near-IR QPO (2.5 sigma) at 2.07 +/- 0.09 Hz simultaneously with an X-ray QPO at approximately the same frequency (f(0) = 2.25 +/- 0.05). From the cross-spectral analysis, a lag consistent with zero was measured between the two oscillations. We also measure a significant correlation between the average near-IR and mid-IR fluxes during the second night, but find no correlation on short time-scales. We discuss these results in terms of the two main scenarios for fast IR variability (hot inflow and jet powered by internal shocks). In both cases, our preliminary modelling suggests the presence of a misalignment between the disc and jet.
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