arXiv subjects

E. Gallo

Publications and source records attributed to E. Gallo.

81 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2004

Quenched millimetre emission from Cygnus X-1 in a soft X-ray state

We present millimetre wavelength observations of the black hole candidate X-ray binary Cygnus X-1 which indicate a suppression, or quenching, of the emission as the source switches to a softer X-ray state. Combining the data with those for another black hole candidate, XTE J1118+480, we demonstrate that the millimetre emission shows the same coupling to X-rays as the radio emission, although with a much stronger sensitivity to spectral shape. We therefore confirm the association of the millimetre emission with the jets in low/hard state black hole candidate X-ray binaries.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2004

Radio and X-ray observations during the outburst decay of the Black Hole Candidate XTE J1908+094

Obtaining simultaneous radio and X-ray data during the outburst decay of soft X-ray transients is a potentially important tool to study the disc - jet connection. Here we report results of the analysis of (nearly) simultaneous radio (VLA or WSRT) and Chandra X-ray observations of XTE J1908+094 during the last part of the decay of the source after an outburst. The limit on the index of a radio - X-ray correlation we find is consistent with the value of 0.7 which was found for other black hole candidates in the low/hard state. Interestingly, the limit we find seems more consistent with a value of 1.4 which was recently shown to be typical for radiatively efficient accretion flow models. We further show that when the correlation-index is the same for two sources one can use the differences in normalisation in the radio - X-ray flux correlation to estimate the distance towards the sources if the distance of one of them is accurately known (assuming black hole spin and mass and jet Lorentz factor differences are unimportant or minimal). Finally, we observed a strong increase in the rate of decay of the X-ray flux. Between March 23, 2003 and April 19, 2003 the X-ray flux decayed with a factor ~5 whereas between April 19, 2003 and May 13, 2003, the X-ray flux decreased by a factor ~750. The source (0.5-10 keV) luminosity at the last Chandra observation was L~3x10^32 (d/8.5 kpc)^2 erg s^-1.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

The Connection Between Radio Quiet AGN and the High/Soft State of X-Ray Binaries

A large sample of AGN studied here shows a ``quenching'' of the radio emission occurs when the luminosity is at a few percent to about 10% of the Eddington rate, just as is seen in the high/soft state of X-ray binaries. The result holds even when the sample of AGN includes no Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxies (the systems most commonly suggested to be the analog of the high/soft state). This adds substantially to the body of evidence that AGN show the same spectral state phenomenology and related disc-jet coupling as the stellar mass accreting black holes. That the power law correlation between X-ray and radio luminosity is the same in both AGN and X-ray binaries and extends below $10^{-7} L_{EDD}$ strengthens the argument that there is no fundamental difference between the low/hard state and the so-called quiescent state in X-ray binaries. We also discuss possible reasons for the scatter in the radio to X-ray luminosity correlation in the AGN.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

Jet-dominated states: an alternative to advection across black hole event horizons in `quiescent' X-ray binaries

We demonstrate that at relatively low mass accretion rates, black hole candidate (BHC) X-ray binaries (XRBs) should enter `jet-dominated' states, in which the majority of the liberated accretion power is in the form of a (radiatively inefficient) jet and not dissipated as X-rays in the accretion flow. This result follows from the empirically established non-linear relation between radio and X-ray power from low/hard state BHC XRBs, which we assume also to hold for neutron star (NS) XRBs. Conservative estimates of the jet power indicate that all BHC XRBs in `quiescence' should be in this jet-dominated regime. In combination with an additional empirical result, namely that BHC XRBs are more `radio loud' than NS XRBs, we find that in quiescence NS XRBs should be up to two orders of magnitude more luminous in X-rays than BHC XRBs, without requiring any significant advection of energy into a black hole. This ratio is as observed, and such observations should therefore no longer be considered as direct evidence for the existence of black hole event horizons. Furthermore, even if BHCs do contain black holes with event horizons, this work demonstrates that there is no requirement for the advection of significant amounts of accretion energy across the horizon.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2002

Chandra imaging spectroscopy of 1E 1740.7 - 2942

We have observed the black hole candidate 1E 1740.7 - 2942, the brightest persistent hard X-ray source within a few degrees of the Galactic centre, for 10 ksec with Chandra (ACIS-I) on August 2000. Attempting to compensate for pile-up effects we found the spectra were well-fit by an absorbed power law, with photon indices Gamma = 1.54 ^{+0.42}_{-0.37} (readout streak) and Gamma = 1.42^{+0.14}_{-0.14} (annulus), consistent with a black hole low/hard state. We have analysed a public observation performed by Chandra which utilised short frames in order to avoid severe pile-up effects: subtracting the core point spread function from the whole image, we did not find evidence for any elongated feature perpendicular to the radio jet axis, as reported in a recent analysis of the same data. Moreover, comparing the radial profiles with those of an unscattered X-ray point source, we found indication of an extended, previously undetected, X-ray scattering halo. The measured halo fractional intensity at 3 keV is between 30 and 40 percent within 40 arcsec but drops below detectable levels at 5 keV. Finally, by placing a limit on the X-ray flux from the radio emitting lobe which has been identified as the hot spot at the end of the northern jet of 1E 1740.7 - 2942, we are able to constrain the magnetic energy density in that region.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2002

On the correlation between radio and X-ray flux in Low/Hard state Black Holes

Radio emission from X-ray binary systems (XRBs) has developed in recent years from being peculiar phenomenon to being recognised as an ubiquitous property of several classes of XRBs. In this scenario the synchrotron emission is interpreted as the radiative signature of jet-like outflows, some or all of which may possess relativistic bulk motion. We have analysed a collection of quasi-simultaneous radio/X-ray observations of Black Holes in the Low/Hard X-ray state, finding evidence of a clear correlation between their fluxes over many orders of magnitude in luminosity. Given that the correlation extends down to GX 339-4 and V404 Cyg in quiescence, we can confidently assert that even at accretion rates as low as ~ 10^{-5} dot{m}_{Edd} a powerful jet is being formed. The normalisation of the correlation is very similar across a sample of nine sources, implying that it is nearly independent of jet inclination angle. Remarkably, V 404 Cyg is the second source (after GX 339-4) to show the correlation S_{radio} proportional to S_{X}^{+0.7} from quiescent level up to close to the High/Soft state transition. Moreover, assuming the same physics and accretion:outflow coupling for all of these systems, the simplest interpretation for the observed scenario is that outflows in Low/Hard state do not have large bulk Lorentz factors.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

The effects of a comptonizing corona on the appearance of the reflection components in accreting black hole spectra

We discuss the effects of a comptonizing corona on the appearance of the reflection components, and in particular of the reflection hump, in the X-rays spectra of accreting black holes. Indeed, in the framework of a thermal corona model, we expect that part (or even all, depending on the coronal covering factor) of the reflection features should cross the hot plasma, and thus suffer Compton scattering, before being observed. We have studied in detail the dependence of these effects on the physical (i.e. temperature and optical depth) and geometrical (i.e. inclination angle) parameters of the corona, concentrating on the slab geometry . Due to the smoothing and shifting towards high energies of the comptonized reflection hump, the main effects on the emerging spectra appear above 100 keV. We have also investigated the importance of such effects on the interpretation of the results obtained with the standard fitting procedures. We found that fitting Comptonization models, taking into account comptonized reflection, by the usual cut-off power law + uncomptonized reflection model, may lead to an underestimation of the reflection normalization and an overestimation of the high energy cut-off. We discuss and illustrate the importance of these effects by analysing recent observational results as those of the galaxy NGC 4258. We also find that the comptonizing corona can produce and/or emphasize correlations between the reflection features characteristics (like the iron line equivalent width or the covering fraction) and the X-ray spectral index similar to those recently reported in the literature. We also underline the importance of these effects when dealing with accurate spectral fitting of the X-ray background.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1997

Diffraction

This report summarizes recent results on diffraction obtained at HERA, at the Tevatron and by the fixed target experiment E665. The measurements include vector meson production, inclusive diffraction at HERA and the pomeron structure function as inferred from the HERA and the Tevatron data.

hep-ex↗

arXiv1996

Diffractive Interactions

The general framework of diffractive deep inelastic scattering is introduced and reports given in the session on diffractive interactions at the International Workshop on Deep-Inelastic Scattering and Related Phenomena, Rome, April 1996, are presented.

hep-ex↗