arXiv subjects

M. Freyberg

Publications and source records attributed to M. Freyberg.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

Studying the merging cluster Abell 3266 with eROSITA

Abell 3266 is one of the X-ray brightest galaxy clusters in the sky and is a well-known merging system. Using the ability of the eROSITA telescope onboard SRG (Spectrum Röntgen Gamma) to observe a wide field with a single pointing, we analysed a new observation of the cluster out to a radius of R_200. The X-ray images highlight sub-structures present in the cluster, including the north-east--south-west merger seen in previous ASCA, Chandra, and XMM-Newton data, a merging group towards the north-west, and filamentary structures between the core and one or more groups towards the west. We compute spatially resolved spectroscopic maps of the thermodynamic properties of the cluster, including the metallicity. The merging subclusters are seen as low entropy material within the cluster. The filamentary structures could be the rims of a powerful outburst of an active galactic nucleus, or most likely material stripped from the western group(s) as they passed through the cluster core. Seen in two directions is a pressure jump at a radius of 1.1 Mpc, which is consistent with a shock with a Mach number of ~1.5-1.7. The eROSITA data confirm that the cluster is not a simple merging system, but it is made up of several subclusters which are merging or will shortly merge. We computed a hydrostatic mass from the eROSITA data, finding good agreement with a previous XMM-Newton result. With this pointing we detect several extended sources, where we find secure associations between z=0.36-1.0 for seven of them, that is background galaxy groups and clusters, highlighting the power of eROSITA to find such systems.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2021

The eROSITA Final Equatorial-Depth Survey (eFEDS): The variability catalogue and multi-epoch comparison

The 140 square degree Final Equatorial-Depth Survey (eFEDS) field, observed with the extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array (eROSITA) aboard the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission, provides a first look at the variable eROSITA sky. We analyze the intrinsic X-ray variability of the eFEDS sources, provide X-ray light curves and tables with variability test results in the 0.2-2.3 keV (soft) and 2.3-5.0 keV (hard) bands. respectively. We perform variability tests using the normalized excess variance and maximum amplitude variability methods as performed for the 2RXS catalogue and add results from the Bayesian excess variance and the Bayesian block methods. In total 65 sources have been identified as being significantly variable in the soft band. In the hard band only one source is found to vary significantly. For the most variable sources fits to stellar flare events reveal extreme flare properties. A few highly variable AGN have also been detected. About half of the variable eFEDS sources have been detected at X-rays with eROSITA for the first time. Comparison with 2RXS and XMM observations provide variability information on timescales of years to decades.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

A giant X-ray dust scattering ring around the black hole transient MAXI J1348-630 discovered with SRG/eROSITA

We report the discovery of a giant dust scattering ring around the Black Hole transient MAXI J1348-630 with SRG/eROSITA during its first X-ray all-sky survey. During the discovery observation in February 2020 the ring had an outer diameter of 1.3 deg, growing to 1.6 deg by the time of the second all sky survey scan in August 2020. This makes the new dust ring the by far largest X-ray scattering ring observed so far. Dust scattering halos, in particular the rings found around transient sources, offer the possibility of precise distance measurements towards the original X-ray sources. We combine data from SRG/eROSITA, XMM-Newton, MAXI, and Gaia to measure the geometrical distance of MAXI J1348-630. The Gaia data place the scattering dust at a distance of 2050 pc, from the measured time lags and the geometry of the ring, we find MAXI J1348-630 at a distance of 3390 pc with a statistical uncertainty of only 1.1% and a systematic uncertainty of 10% caused mainly by the parallax offset of Gaia. This result makes MAXI J1348-630 one of the black hole transients with the best determined distances. The new distance leads to a revised mass estimate for the black hole of 11+-2 solar masses, the transition to the soft state during the outburst occurred when the bolometric luminosity of MAXI J1348-630 had reached 1.7% of its Eddington luminosity.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The Abell 3391/95 galaxy cluster system: A 15 Mpc intergalactic medium emission filament, a warm gas bridge, infalling matter clumps, and (re-) accelerated plasma discovered by combining SRG/eROSITA data with ASKAP/EMU and DECam data

We used dedicated SRG/eROSITA X-ray, ASKAP/EMU radio, and DECam optical observations of a 15 sq.deg region around the interacting galaxy cluster system A3391/95 to study the warm-hot gas in cluster outskirts and filaments, the surrounding large-scale structure and its formation process. We relate the observations to expectations from cosmological hydrodynamic simulations from the Magneticum suite. We trace the irregular morphology of warm-hot gas of the main clusters from their centers out to well beyond their characteristic radii, $r_{200}$. Between the two main cluster systems, we observe an emission bridge; thanks to eROSITA's unique soft response and large field of view, we discover tantalizing hints for warm gas. Several matter clumps physically surrounding the system are detected. For the "Northern Clump," we provide evidence that it is falling towards A3391 from the hot gas morphology and radio lobe structure of its central AGN. Many of the extended sources in the field detected by eROSITA are known clusters or new clusters in the background, including a known SZ cluster at redshift z=1. We discover an emission filament north of the virial radius, $r_{100}$, of A3391 connecting to the Northern Clump and extending south of A3395 towards another galaxy cluster. The total projected length of this continuous warm-hot emission filament is 15 Mpc, running almost 4 degrees across the entire eROSITA observation. The DECam galaxy density map shows galaxy overdensities in the same regions. The new datasets provide impressive confirmation of the theoretically expected structure formation processes on the individual system level, including the surrounding warm-hot intergalactic medium distribution compared to the Magneticum simulation. Our spatially resolved findings show that baryons indeed reside in large-scale warm-hot gas filaments with a clumpy structure.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

Detection of large-scale X-ray bubbles in the Milky Way halo

The halo of the Milky Way provides a laboratory to study the properties of the shocked hot gas that is predicted by models of galaxy formation. There is observational evidence of energy injection into the halo from past activity in the nucleus of the Milky Way; however, the origin of this energy (star formation or supermassive-black-hole activity) is uncertain, and the causal connection between nuclear structures and large-scale features has not been established unequivocally. Here we report soft-X-ray-emitting bubbles that extend approximately 14 kiloparsecs above and below the Galactic centre and include a structure in the southern sky analogous to the North Polar Spur. The sharp boundaries of these bubbles trace collisionless and non-radiative shocks, and corroborate the idea that the bubbles are not a remnant of a local supernova but part of a vast Galaxy-scale structure closely related to features seen in gamma-rays. Large energy injections from the Galactic centre are the most likely cause of both the γ-ray and X-ray bubbles. The latter have an estimated energy of around 10$^{56}$ erg, which is sufficient to perturb the structure, energy content and chemical enrichment of the circumgalactic medium of the Milky Way.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

The ROSAT Raster Survey in the North-Ecliptic Pole Field: X-ray Catalogue and Optical Identifications

The North-Ecliptic Pole is an important region for extragalactic surveys. Deep/wide contiguous surveys are being performed by several space observatories. We analyse all ROSAT pointed and survey observations within 40 deg2 around the NEP, restricting the field-of-view to the inner 30' radius. We obtain an X-ray catalogue of 805 sources with 0.5-2 keV fluxes >2.9E-15 cgs, a factor of three deeper than the ROSAT All-Sky Survey in this field. The sensitivity and angular resolution of our data are comparable to the eROSITA All-Sky Survey expectations. We use HEROES optical and near-infrared imaging photometry from Subaru and CFHT telescopes together with literature catalogues and a new deep and wide Spitzer survey in the field to identify X-ray sources and calculate photometric redshifts for the candidate counterparts. In particular we utilize mid-IR colours to identify AGN X-ray counterparts. Despite relatively large error circles and faint counterparts, confusion and systematic errors, we obtain a rather reliable catalogue of 766 optical counterparts, redshifts and optical classifications. We find a new population of luminous absorbed X-ray AGN at large redshifts, not recognized in previous X-ray surveys, but identified in our work due to the unique combination of survey solid angle, X-ray sensitivity and multiwavelength photometry. We also use the WISE and Spitzer photometry to identify a sample of 185 AGN selected purely through mid-IR colours, most of which are not detected by ROSAT. Their redshifts and upper limits to X-ray luminosity and X-ray to optical flux ratios are even higher than for the new class of X-ray selected luminous AGN2. This unique dataset is important as reference for future deep surveys in the NEP region. Most of the absorbed distant AGN should be readily picked up by eROSITA, but they require sensitive mid-IR imaging to be recognized as optical counterparts.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

The eROSITA X-ray telescope on SRG

eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) is the primary instrument on the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission, which was successfully launched on July 13, 2019, from the Baikonour cosmodrome. After the commissioning of the instrument and a subsequent calibration and performance verification phase, eROSITA started a survey of the entire sky on December 13, 2019. By the end of 2023, eight complete scans of the celestial sphere will have been performed, each lasting six months. At the end of this program, the eROSITA all-sky survey in the soft X-ray band (0.2--2.3\,keV) will be about 25 times more sensitive than the ROSAT All-Sky Survey, while in the hard band (2.3--8\,keV) it will provide the first ever true imaging survey of the sky. The eROSITA design driving science is the detection of large samples of galaxy clusters up to redshifts $z>1$ in order to study the large-scale structure of the universe and test cosmological models including Dark Energy. In addition, eROSITA is expected to yield a sample of a few million AGNs, including obscured objects, revolutionizing our view of the evolution of supermassive black holes. The survey will also provide new insights into a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, including X-ray binaries, active stars, and diffuse emission within the Galaxy. Results from early observations, some of which are presented here, confirm that the performance of the instrument is able to fulfil its scientific promise. With this paper, we aim to give a concise description of the instrument, its performance as measured on ground, its operation in space, and also the first results from in-orbit measurements.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The XMM-Newton serendipitous survey IX. The fourth XMM-Newton serendipitous source catalogue

Sky surveys produce enormous quantities of data on extensive regions of the sky. The easiest way to access this information is through catalogues of standardised data products. {\em XMM-Newton} has been surveying the sky in the X-ray, ultra-violet, and optical bands for 20 years. The {\em XMM-Newton} Survey Science Centre has been producing standardised data products and catalogues to facilitate access to the serendipitous X-ray sky. Using improved calibration and enhanced software, we re-reduced all of the 14041 {\em XMM-Newton} X-ray observations, of which 11204 observations contained data with at least one detection and with these we created a new, high quality version of the {\em XMM-Newton} serendipitous source catalogue, 4XMM-DR9. 4XMM-DR9 contains 810795 detections down to a detection significance of 3 $σ$, of which 550124 are unique sources, which cover 1152 degrees$^{2}$ (2.85\%) of the sky. Filtering 4XMM-DR9 to retain only the cleanest sources with at least a 5 $σ$ detection significance leaves 433612 detections. Of these detections, 99.6\% have no pileup. Furthermore, 336 columns of information on each detection are provided, along with images. The quality of the source detection is shown to have improved significantly with respect to previous versions of the catalogues. Spectra and lightcurves are also made available for more than 288000 of the brightest sources (36\% of all detections).

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

The XMM-Newton serendipitous survey. VII. The third XMM-Newton serendipitous source catalogue

Thanks to the large collecting area (3 x ~1500 cm$^2$ at 1.5 keV) and wide field of view (30' across in full field mode) of the X-ray cameras on board the European Space Agency X-ray observatory XMM-Newton, each individual pointing can result in the detection of hundreds of X-ray sources, most of which are newly discovered. Recently, many improvements in the XMM-Newton data reduction algorithms have been made. These include enhanced source characterisation and reduced spurious source detections, refined astrometric precision, greater net sensitivity and the extraction of spectra and time series for fainter sources, with better signal-to-noise. Further, almost 50\% more observations are in the public domain compared to 2XMMi-DR3, allowing the XMM-Newton Survey Science Centre (XMM-SSC) to produce a much larger and better quality X-ray source catalogue. The XMM-SSC has developed a pipeline to reduce the XMM-Newton data automatically and using improved calibration a new catalogue version has been produced from XMM-Newton data made public by 2013 Dec. 31 (13 years of data). Manual screening ensures the highest data quality. This catalogue is known as 3XMM. In the latest release, 3XMM-DR5, there are 565962 X-ray detections comprising 396910 unique X-ray sources. For the 133000 brightest sources, spectra and lightcurves are provided. For all detections, the positions on the sky, a measure of the quality of the detection, and an evaluation of the X-ray variability is provided, along with the fluxes and count rates in 7 X-ray energy bands, the total 0.2-12 keV band counts, and four hardness ratios. To identify the detections, a cross correlation with 228 catalogues is also provided for each X-ray detection. 3XMM-DR5 is the largest X-ray source catalogue ever produced. Thanks to the large array of data products, it is an excellent resource in which to find new and extreme objects.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2015

Soft Proton Scattering Efficiency Measurements on X-Ray Mirror Shells

In-orbit experience has shown that soft protons are funneled more efficiently through focusing Wolter-type optics of X-ray observatories than simulations predicted. These protons can degrade the performance of solid-state X-ray detectors and contribute to the instrumental background. Since laboratory measurements of the scattering process are rare, an experiment for grazing angles has been set up at the accelerator facility of the University of Tübingen. Systematic measurements at incidence angles ranging from 0.3° to 1.2° with proton energies around 250 keV, 500 keV, and 1 MeV have been carried out. Parts of spare mirror shells of the eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) instrument have been used as scattering targets. This publication comprises a detailed description of the setup, the calibration and normalization methods, and the scattering efficiency and energy loss results. A comparison of the results with a theoretical scattering description and with simulations is included as well.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2012

eROSITA Science Book: Mapping the Structure of the Energetic Universe

eROSITA is the primary instrument on the Russian SRG mission. In the first four years of scientific operation after its launch, foreseen for 2014, it will perform a deep survey of the entire X-ray sky. In the soft X-ray band (0.5-2 keV), this will be about 20 times more sensitive than the ROSAT all sky survey, while in the hard band (2-10 keV) it will provide the first ever true imaging survey of the sky at those energies. Such a sensitive all-sky survey will revolutionize our view of the high-energy sky, and calls for major efforts in synergic, multi-wavelength wide area surveys in order to fully exploit the scientific potential of the X-ray data. The design-driving science of eROSITA is the detection of very large samples (~10^5 objects) of galaxy clusters out to redshifts z>1, in order to study the large scale structure in the Universe, test and characterize cosmological models including Dark Energy. eROSITA is also expected to yield a sample of around 3 millions Active Galactic Nuclei, including both obscured and un-obscured objects, providing a unique view of the evolution of supermassive black holes within the emerging cosmic structure. The survey will also provide new insights into a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, including accreting binaries, active stars and diffuse emission within the Galaxy, as well as solar system bodies that emit X-rays via the charge exchange process. Finally, such a deep imaging survey at high spectral resolution, with its scanning strategy sensitive to a range of variability timescales from tens of seconds to years, will undoubtedly open up a vast discovery space for the study of rare, unpredicted, or unpredictable high-energy astrophysical phenomena. In this living document we present a comprehensive description of the main scientific goals of the mission, with strong emphasis on the early survey phases.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2012

Accelerator experiments with soft protons and hyper-velocity dust particles: application to ongoing projects of future X-ray missions

We report on our activities, currently in progress, aimed at performing accelerator experiments with soft protons and hyper-velocity dust particles. They include tests of different types of X-ray detectors and related components (such as filters) and measurements of scattering of soft protons and hyper-velocity dust particles off X-ray mirror shells. These activities have been identified as a goal in the context of a number of ongoing space projects in order to assess the risk posed by environmental radiation and dust and qualify the adopted instrumentation with respect to possible damage or performance degradation. In this paper we focus on tests for the Silicon Drift Detectors (SDDs) used aboard the LOFT space mission. We use the Van de Graaff accelerators at the University of Tübingen and at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (MPIK) in Heidelberg, for soft proton and hyper-velocity dust tests respectively. We present the experimental set-up adopted to perform the tests, status of the activities and some very preliminary results achieved at present time.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2010

eROSITA on SRG: a X-ray all-sky survey mission

eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) is the core instrument on the Russian Spektrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission which is scheduled for launch in late 2012. eROSITA is fully approved and funded by the German Space Agency DLR and the Max-Planck-Society. The design driving science is the detection of 50 - 100 thousands Clusters of Galaxies up to redshift z ~ 1.3 in order to study the large scale structure in the Universe and test cosmological models, especially Dark Energy. This will be accomplished by an all-sky survey lasting for four years plus a phase of pointed observations. eROSITA consists of seven Wolter-I telescope modules, each equipped with 54 Wolter-I shells having an outer diameter of 360 mm. This would provide and effective area at 1.5 keV of ~ 1500 cm2 and an on axis PSF HEW of 15" which would provide an effective angular resolution of 25"-30". In the focus of each mirror module, a fast frame-store pn-CCD will provide a field of view of 1 deg in diameter for an active FOV of ~ 0.83 deg^2. At the time of writing the instrument development is currently in phase C/D.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2009

Simbol-X Hard X-ray Focusing Mirrors: Results Obtained During the Phase A Study

Simbol-X will push grazing incidence imaging up to 80 keV, providing a strong improvement both in sensitivity and angular resolution compared to all instruments that have operated so far above 10 keV. The superb hard X-ray imaging capability will be guaranteed by a mirror module of 100 electroformed Nickel shells with a multilayer reflecting coating. Here we will describe the technogical development and solutions adopted for the fabrication of the mirror module, that must guarantee an Half Energy Width (HEW) better than 20 arcsec from 0.5 up to 30 keV and a goal of 40 arcsec at 60 keV. During the phase A, terminated at the end of 2008, we have developed three engineering models with two, two and three shells, respectively. The most critical aspects in the development of the Simbol-X mirrors are i) the production of the 100 mandrels with very good surface quality within the timeline of the mission; ii) the replication of shells that must be very thin (a factor of 2 thinner than those of XMM-Newton) and still have very good image quality up to 80 keV; iii) the development of an integration process that allows us to integrate these very thin mirrors maintaining their intrinsic good image quality. The Phase A study has shown that we can fabricate the mandrels with the needed quality and that we have developed a valid integration process. The shells that we have produced so far have a quite good image quality, e.g. HEW <~30 arcsec at 30 keV, and effective area. However, we still need to make some improvements to reach the requirements. We will briefly present these results and discuss the possible improvements that we will investigate during phase B.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2008

Time variability of X-ray sources in the M 31 centre field

We present an extension to our XMM-Newton X-ray source catalogue of M 31, containing 39 newly found sources. In order to classify and identify more of the sources we search for X-ray time variability in XMM-Newton archival data of the M 31 centre field. As a source list we used our extended catalogue based on observations covering the time span from June 2000 to July 2004. We then determined the flux or at least an upper limit at the source positions for each observation. Deriving the flux ratios for the different observations and searching for the maximum flux difference we determined variability factors. We also calculated the significance of the flux ratios. Using hardness ratios, X-ray variability and cross correlations with catalogues in the X-ray, optical, infrared and radio regimes, we detected three super soft source candidates, one supernova remnant and six supernova remnant candidates, one globular cluster candidate, three X-ray binaries and four X-ray binary candidates. Additionally we identified one foreground star candidate and classified fifteen sources with hard spectra, which may either be X-ray binaries or Crab-like supernova remnants in M 31 or background active galactic nuclei. The remaining five sources stay unidentified or without classification. Based on the time variability results we suggest six sources, which were formerly classified as "hard", to be X-ray binary candidates. The classification of one other source (XMMM31 J004236.7+411349) as a supernova remnant, has to be rejected due to the distinct time variability we found. We now classify this source as a foreground star.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

The XMM-Newton serendipitous survey IV. The AXIS X-ray source counts and angular clustering

AXIS (An XMM-Newton International Survey) is a survey of 36 high Galactic latitude XMM-Newton observations covering 4.8 deg2 and containing 1433 serendipitous X-ray sources detected with 5-sigma significance. We have studied the X-ray source counts in four energy bands soft (0.5-2 keV), hard (2-10 keV), XID (0.5-4.5 keV) and ultra-hard (4.5-7.5 keV). We have combined this survey with shallower and deeper surveys. Our source counts results are compatible with most previous samples in the soft, XID, ultra-hard and hard bands. The fractions of the XRB resolved in the surveys used in this work are 87%, 85%, 60% and 25% in the soft, hard, XID and ultra-hard bands, respectively. Extrapolation of our source counts to zero flux are not enough to saturate the XRB intensity. Only galaxies and/or absorbed AGN may be able contribute the remaining unresolved XRB intensity. Our results are compatible, within the errors, with recent revisions of the XRB intensity in the soft and hard bands. The maximum fractional contribution to the XRB comes from fluxes within about a decade of the break in the source counts (~1e-14 cgs), reaching ~50% of the total in the soft and hard bands. Using only AXIS sources, we have studied the angular correlation in those bands using a novel robust technique. Angular clustering (widely distributed over the sky and not confined to a few deep fields) is detected at 99-99.9% significance in the soft and XID bands, with no detection in the hard and ultra-hard band (probably due to the smaller number of sources). We cannot confirm the detection of significantly stronger clustering in the hard-spectrum hard sources. Medium depth surveys such as AXIS are essential to determine the evolution of the X-ray emission in the Universe below 10 keV.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

Multiwavelength appearance of Vela Jr.: Is it up to expectations?

Vela Jr. is one of the youngest and likely nearest among the known galactic supernova remnants (SNRs). Discovered in 1997 it has been studied since then at quite a few wavelengths, that spread over almost 20 decades in energy. Here we present and discuss Vela Jr. properties revealed by these multiwavelength observations, and confront them with the SNR model expectations. Questions that remained unanswered at the time of publication of the paper of Iyudin et al. (2005), e.g. what is the nature of the SNR's proposed central compact source CXOU J085201.4-461753, and why is the ISM absorption column density apparently associated with RX J0852.0-4622 much greater than the typical column of the Vela SNR, can be addressed using the latest radio and X-ray observations of Vela Jr.. These, and other related questions are addressed in the following.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2005

Status of the XMM-Newton cross-calibration with SASv6.5.0

Further achievements of the XMM-Newton cross-calibration - XMM internal as well as with other X-ray missions - are presented. We explain the major changes in the new version SASv6.5 of the XMM-Newton science analysis system. The current status of the cross-calibration of the three EPIC cameras is shown. Using a large sample of blazars, the pn energy redistribution at low energy could be further calibrated, correcting the overestimation of fluxes in the lowest energy regime. In the central CCDs of the MOSs, patches were identified at the bore-sight positions, leading to an underestimation of the low energy fluxes. The further improvement in the understanding of the cameras resulted in a good agreement of the EPIC instruments down to lowest energies. The latest release of the SAS software package already includes corrections for both effects as shown in several examples of different types of sources. Finally the XMM internal cross-calibration is completed by the presentation of the current cross-calibration status between EPIC and RGS instruments. Major efforts have been made in cross-calibrations with other X-ray missions, most importantly with Chandra, of course, but also with currently observing satellites like Swift.

astro-ph↗