arXiv subjects

A. Nandi

Publications and source records attributed to A. Nandi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2022

The Aditya-L1 mission of ISRO

The Aditya-L1 is the first space-based solar observatory of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The spacecraft will carry seven payloads providing uninterrupted observations of the Sun from the first Lagrangian point. Aditya-L1 comprises four remote sensing instruments, {\it viz.} a coronagraph observing in visible and infrared, a full disk imager in Near Ultra-Violet (NUV), and two full-sun integrated spectrometers in soft X-ray and hard X-ray. In addition, there are three instruments for in-situ measurements, including a magnetometer, to study the magnetic field variations during energetic events. Aditya-L1 is truly a mission for multi-messenger solar astronomy from space that will provide comprehensive observations of the Sun across the electromagnetic spectrum and in-situ measurements in a broad range of energy, including magnetic field measurements at L1.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Performance of the LHCb RICH detectors during LHC Run 2

The performance of the ring-imaging Cherenkov detectors at the LHCb experiment is determined during the LHC Run 2 period between 2015 and 2018. The stability of the Cherenkov angle resolution and number of detected photons with time and running conditions is measured. The particle identification performance is evaluated with data and found to satisfy the requirements of the physics programme.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2018

Broad-band spectral evolution and temporal variability of IGR J17091-3624 during its 2016 outburst : SWIFT and NuSTAR results

We report on the 2016 outburst of the transient Galactic Black Hole candidate IGR J17091-3624 based on the observation campaign carried out with SWIFT and NuSTAR. The outburst profile, as observed with SWIFT-XRT, shows a typical `q'-shape in the Hardness Intensity Diagram (HID). Based on the spectral and temporal evolution of the different parameters, we are able to identify all the spectral states in the q-profile of HID and the Hardness-RMS diagram (HRD). Both XRT and NuSTAR observations show an evolution of low frequency Quasi periodic oscillations (QPOs) during the low hard and hard intermediate states of the outburst rising phase. We also find mHz QPOs along- with distinct coherent class variabilities (heartbeat oscillations) with different timescales, similar to the $ρ$-class (observed in GRS 1915+105). Phenomenological modelling of the broad-band XRT and NuSTAR spectra also reveals the evolution of high energy cut-off and presence of reflection from ionized material during the rising phase of the outburst. Further, we conduct the modelling of X-ray spectra of SWIFT and NuSTAR in 0.5 - 79 keV to understand the accretion flow dynamics based on two component flow model. From this modelling, we constrain the mass of the source to be in the range of 10.62 - 12.33 Msun with 90% confidence, which is consistent with earlier findings.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Accretion Flow Dynamics During 1999 Outburst of XTE J1859+226 - Modeling of Broadband Spectra and Constraining the Source Mass

We examine the dynamical behavior of accretion flow around XTE J1859+226 during the 1999 outburst by analyzing the entire outburst data ($\sim$ 166 days) from RXTE Satellite. Towards this, we study the hysteresis behavior in the hardness intensity diagram (HID) based on the broadband ($3 - 150$ keV) spectral modeling, spectral signature of jet ejection and the evolution of Quasi-periodic Oscillation (QPO) frequencies using the two-component advective flow model around a black hole. We compute the flow parameters, namely Keplerian accretion rate (${\dot m}_d$), sub-Keplerian accretion rate (${\dot m}_h$), shock location ($r_s$) and black hole mass ($M_{bh}$) from the spectral modeling and study their evolution along the q-diagram. Subsequently, the kinetic jet power is computed as $L^{\rm obs}_{\rm jet}\sim 3 - 6 \times 10^{37}$ erg~s$^{-1}$ during one of the observed radio flares which indicates that jet power corresponds to $8-16\%$ mass outflow rate from the disc. This estimate of mass outflow rate is in close agreement with the change in total accretion rate ($\sim 14\%$) required for spectral modeling before and during the flare. Finally, we provide a mass estimate of the source XTE J1859+226 based on the spectral modeling that lies in the range of $5.2 - 7.9 M_{\odot}$ with 90\% confidence.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

SWIFT view of the 2015 outburst of GS 2023+338 (V404 Cyg): complex evolution of spectral and temporal characteristics

We study the spectral and temporal characteristics of the source GS 2023$+$338 (V404 Cyg) during the initial phase of its June 2015 outburst, over the energy range of 0.5 - 150 keV. This is the first detailed study of the characteristics of this source based on {\it SWIFT} observations, being reported. Based on our analysis, we understand that the source existed in the hard, intermediate and soft spectral states. We find that the evolution of the spectral parameters, the hardness intensity diagram and the rms-intensity diagram are not similar to those observed for most of the outbursting black hole sources. We also observe presence of weak peaked components in the power density spectra during the intermediate state of the source. Dramatic changes in the spectral and temporal properties are also exhibited before the ejection of a radio jet suggesting it to be associated with the coronal mass ejection. It seems that may be due to evacuation of the inner part of the Keplerian disc for a short duration, the disc component is not observed after the huge radio flare. The absorption features observed in the low energy spectra suggest the presence of wind emission and the evolution of the characteristics of the variable Fe line emission during both hard and intermediate states, indicate its origin to be probably related to the wind/outflow.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

'Spectro-temporal' variabilities and possible physical mechanism for Jet ejections

In this paper, we attempt to find out the `spectro-temporal' characteristics during the jet ejection, of several outbursting Galactic black hole sources based on RXTE-PCA/HEXTE data in the energy band of 2 - 100 keV. We present results of detailed analysis of these sources during the rising phase of their outburst, whenever simultaneous or near-simultaneous X-ray and Radio observations are `available'. We find that before the peak radio flare (transient jet) a few of the sources (in addition to those reported earlier) exhibit `local' softening within the soft intermediate state itself. Except the duration, all the properties of the `local' softening (QPO not observed, reduction in total rms, soft spectra) are observed to be similar to the canonical soft state. We find similar `local' softening for the recent outburst of V404 Cyg also based on SWIFT observations. Fast changes in the `spectro-temporal' properties during the `local' softening implies that it may not be occurring due to change in Keplerian accretion rate. We discuss these results in the framework of the magnetized two component advective flow model.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2015

Selective observation of Goos-Hänchen and Imbert-Federov shifts in partial reflection via optimized weak measurements in linear and elliptical polarization basis

The spatial and the angular variants of the Goos-Hänchen (GH) and the Imbert-Federov (IF) beam shifts contribute in a complex interrelated way to the resultant beam shift in partial reflection at planar dielectric interfaces. Here, we show that the angular GH and the two variants of the IF effects can be decoupled, amplified and separately observed by weak value amplification and subsequent conversion of spatial$\leftrightarrow$angular nature of the beam shifts using appropriate pre and post selection of polarization states. We experimentally demonstrate such decoupling and illustrate various other intriguing manifestations of weak measurements by employing optimized pre and post selections (based on the eigen polarization states of the shifts) elliptical and / or linear polarization basis. The demonstrated ability to amplify, controllably decouple or combine the beam shifts via weak measurements may prove to be valuable for understanding the different physical contributions of the effects and for their applications in sensing and precision metrology

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

Determination of mass of IGR J17091-3624 from "Spectro-Temporal" variations during onset-phase of the 2011 outburst

The 2011 outburst of the black hole candidate IGR J17091-3624 followed the canonical track of state transitions along with the evolution of Quasi-Periodic Oscillation (QPO) frequencies before it began exhibiting various variability classes similar to GRS 1915+105. We use this canonical evolution of spectral and temporal properties to determine the mass of IGR J17091-3624, using three different methods, viz : Photon Index ($Γ$) - QPO frequency ($ν$) correlation, QPO frequency ($ν$) - Time (day) evolution and broadband spectral modelling based on Two Component Advective Flow. We provide a combined mass estimate for the source using a Naive Bayes based joint likelihood approach. This gives a probable mass range of 11.8 M$_{\odot}$ - 13.7 M$_{\odot}$. Considering each individual estimate and taking the lowermost and uppermost bounds among all three methods, we get a mass range of 8.7 M$_{\odot}$ - 15.6 M$_{\odot}$ with 90% confidence. We discuss the probable implications of our findings in the context of two component accretion flow.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Disk-Jet connection in outbursting Black Hole sources

We explored the `spectro - temporal' behaviour of outbursting Black Hole sources in X-rays, at the time of jet ejections which are observed as radio flares. The energy dependent evolution of the properties of all the sources studied, shows that during the ejections the QPO frequencies `disappear' as well as the disk (thermal) emission increases, implying the soft nature of the spectrum. These results can be understood based on the TCAF model (Chakrabarti & Titarchuk 1995), in the presence of magnetic field.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Nature of GRBs observed by RT-2 on-board CORONAS-PHOTON satellite

The RT-2 Experiment, a low energy gamma-ray telescope, onboard CORONAS-PHOTON satellite is designed to study the temporal, spectral and spatial properties of the hard X-ray solar flares mainly in the energy range of 15 - 100 keV, which is extendable upto 1000 keV. During the operational period of ~ 9 months, it has been able to detect a few solar flares and at least four Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). In this paper, we discuss the properties of the GRBs as observed by RT-2 in the energy band of 15 to ~ 1000 keV. We will present the results of spectral and timing properties of the GRBs (specially for the GRB 090618) using RT-2 detectors. Temporal analysis suggests that all four GRBs belong to the category of long duration bursts.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Spectro-temporal evolution during the onset-phase of the 2011 outburst of IGR J17091-3624. Implications on accretion disk dynamics

We re-analysed the archival data of RXTE / INTEGRAL / Swift satellites at the onset phase of the 2011 outburst of the X-ray source IGR J17091-3624. The evolution of the spectral and temporal properties of the source in this phase clearly exhibits state transition as Hard (HS) to Hard-Intermediate (HIMS) to Soft-Intermediate (SIMS) to Soft (SS) state, before entering the variability phase (VP).We attempt to understand the evolution of X-ray features and the state transitions based on two different types of accreting material (i.e, the Keplerian and sub-Keplerian flow).

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2013

Is the `disappearance' of low-frequency QPOs in the power spectra a general phenomenon for Disk-Jet symbiosis?

One of the best possible ways to look for disk-Jet symbiosis in galactic Black Holes is to study the correlation between X-ray and radio emissions. Beyond this study, is there any alternative way to trace the symbiosis? To answer, we investigated the X-ray features of few black hole candidates based on the archival data of PCA/RXTE. We found evidences of `disappearance' of QPOs in the power density spectra and subsequent spectral softening of the energy spectra during the radio flares (i.e., `transient' Jets). We delve deep into the nature of the accretion dynamics to understand the disk-Jet symbiosis.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2012

A double component in GRB 090618: a proto-black hole and a genuinely long GRB

The joint X and gamma-ray observations of GRB 090618 by a large number of satellites offer an unprecedented possibility of testing crucial aspects of theoretical models. In particular, it allows us to test (a) the formation of an optically thick e+e- baryon plasma self-accelerating to Lorentz factors in the range 200 < g < 3000; (b) its transparency condition with the emission of a component of 10^{53-54} baryons in the TeV region and (c) the collision of these baryons with the circumburst medium clouds, characterized by dimensions of 10^{15-16} cm. In addition, these observations offer the possibility of testing a new understanding of the thermal and power-law components in the early phase of this GRB. We test the fireshell model of GRBs in one of the closest (z = 0.54) and most energetic (Eiso = 2.90 x 10^{53} ergs) GRBs, namely GRB 090618. We analyze its emission using several spectral models, with special attention to the thermal and power-law components. We determine the fundamental parameters of a canonical GRB within the context of the fireshell model. We find evidences of the existence of two different episodes in GRB 090618. The first episode lasts 50 s and is characterized by a spectrum consisting of thermal component, which evolves between kT = 54 keV and kT = 12 keV. The second episode, which lasts for \sim 100s, behaves as a canonical long GRB with a Lorentz gamma factor at transparency of g = 495, a temperature at transparency of 29.22 keV and with characteristic masses of the surrounding clouds of \sim 10^{22-24} g. We support the recently proposed two-component nature of GRB 090618 by using specific theoretical analysis and illustrate that the episode 1 cannot be considered to be either a GRB or a part of a GRB event, but it appears to be related to the progenitor of the collapsing bare core leading to the formation of the black hole which we call a proto-black hole.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2011

A double component in the prompt emission of GRB 090618

GRB 090618 offered an unprecedented opportunity to have coordinated data, by the best of the X and Gamma Ray observatories, of the nearest (z = 0.54) energetic source (10$^{54}$ erg). Using the Fermi-GBM observations of this GRB, we have analyzed this source to explore the possibility of having components yet to be observed in other sources. We show that it is not possible to interpret GRB 090618 within the framework of the traditional single component GRB model. We argue that the observation of the first episode of duration of around 50s could not be a part of a canonical GRB, while the residual emission could be modeled easily with the models existing in literature. In this work we have considered the case of the fireshell scenario.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2010

Detection of GRB 090618 with RT-2 Experiment Onboard the Coronas-Photon Satellite

We present the results of an analysis of the prompt gamma-ray emission from GRB 090618 using the RT-2 Experiment onboard the Coronas-Photon satellite. GRB 090618 shows multiple peaks and a detailed study of the temporal structure as a function of energy is carried out. As the GRB was incident at an angle of 77 degree to the detector axis, we have generated appropriate response functions of the detectors to derive the spectrum of this GRB. We have augmented these results using the publicly available data from the Swift BAT detector and show that a combined spectral analysis can measure the spectral parameters quite accurately. We also attempt a spectral and timing analysis of individual peaks and find evidence for a systematic change in the pulse emission characteristics for the successive pulses. In particular, we find that the peak energy of the spectrum, E_p, is found to monotonically decrease with time, for the successive pulses of this GRB.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2010

RT-2 Detection of Quasi-Periodic Pulsations in the 2009 July 5 Solar Hard X-ray Flare

We present the results of an analysis of hard X-ray observations of the C2.7 solar flare detected by the RT-2 Experiment onboard the Coronas - Photon satellite. We detect hard X-ray pulsations at periods of ~12 s and ~15 s. We find a marginal evidence for a decrease in period with time. We have augmented these results using the publicly available data from the RHESSI satellite. We present a spectral analysis and measure the spectral parameters.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2009

Fresnel zone plate telescopes for X-ray imaging II: numerical simulations with parallel and diverging beams

We present the results of simulations of shadows cast by a zone plate telescope which may have one to four pairs of zone plates. From the shadows we reconstruct the images under various circumstances. We discuss physical basis of the resolution of the telescope and demonstrate this by our simulations. We allow the source to be at a finite distance (diverging beam) as well as at an infinite distance (parallel beam) and show that the resolution is worsened when the source is nearby. By reconstructing the zone plates in a way that both the zone plates subtend the same solid angles at the source, we obtain back high resolution even for sources at a finite distance. We present simulated results for the observation of the galactic center and show that the sources of varying intensities may be reconstructed with accuracy. Results of these simulations would be of immense use in interpreting the X-ray images from recently launched CORONAS-PHOTON satellite.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2009

Fresnel zone plate telescopes for X-ray imaging I: experiments with a quasi-parallel beam

Combination of Fresnel Zone Plates (FZP) can make an excellent telescope for imaging in X-rays. We present here the results of our experiments with several pairs of tungsten made Fresnel Zone plates in presence of an X-ray source kept at a distance of about 45 feet. The quasi-parallel beam allowed us to study sources placed on the axis as well as off the axis of the telescope. We present theoretical study of the fringe patterns produced by the zone plates in presence of a quasi-parallel source. We compare the patterns obtained from experiments with those obtained by our Monte-Carlo simulations. The images are also reconstructed by deconvolution from both the patterns. We compare the performance of such a telescope with other X-ray imaging devices used in space-astronomy.

astro-ph.IM↗