arXiv subjects

Michal Dovčiak

Publications and source records attributed to Michal Dovčiak.

71 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

The X-ray Polarization View of Mrk~421 in an Average Flux State as Observed by the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer

Particle acceleration mechanisms in supermassive black hole jets, such as shock acceleration, magnetic reconnection, and turbulence, are expected to have observable signatures in the multi-wavelength polarization properties of blazars. The recent launch of the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) enables us, for the first time, to use polarization in the X-ray band (2-8 keV) to probe the properties of the jet synchrotron emission in high-frequency-peaked BL Lac objects (HSPs). We report the discovery of X-ray linear polarization (degree $Π_{\rm x}=15\pm$2\% and electric-vector position angle $Ψ_{\rm x}=35^\circ\pm4^\circ$) from the jet of the HSP Mrk~421 in an average X-ray flux state. At the same time, the degree of polarization at optical, infrared, and millimeter wavelengths was found to be lower by at least a factor of 3. During the IXPE pointing, the X-ray flux of the source increased by a factor of 2.2, while the polarization behavior was consistent with no variability. The higher level of $Π_{\rm x}$ compared to longer wavelengths, and the absence of significant polarization variability, suggest a shock as the most likely X-ray emission site in the jet of Mrk 421 during the observation. The multiwavelength polarization properties are consistent with an energy-stratified electron population, where the particles emitting at longer wavelengths are located farther from the acceleration site, where they experience a more disordered magnetic field.

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arXiv2022

The X-ray polarimetry view of the accreting pulsar Cen X-3

Cen X-3 is the first X-ray pulsar discovered 50 years ago. Radiation from such objects is expected to be highly polarized due to birefringence of plasma and vacuum associated with propagation of photons in presence of the strong magnetic field. Here we present results of the observations of Cen X-3 performed with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer. The source exhibited significant flux variability and was observed in two states different by a factor of ~20 in flux. In the low-luminosity state no significant polarization was found either in pulse phase-averaged (with the 3$σ$ upper limit of 12%) or phase-resolved data (the 3$σ$ upper limits are 20-30%). In the bright state the polarization degree of 5.8$\pm$0.3% and polarization angle of $49.6°\pm1.5°$ with significance of about 20$σ$ was measured from the spectro-polarimetric analysis of the phase-averaged data. The phase-resolved analysis showed a significant anti-correlation between the flux and the polarization degree as well as strong variations of the polarization angle. The fit with the rotating vector model indicates a position angle of the pulsar spin axis of about 49$°$ and a magnetic obliquity of 17$°$. The detected relatively low polarization can be explained if the upper layers of the neutron star surface are overheated by the accreted matter and the conversion of the polarization modes occurs within the transition region between the upper hot layer and a cooler underlying atmosphere. A fraction of polarization signal can also be produced by reflection of radiation from the neutron star surface and the accretion curtain.

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arXiv2022

Simultaneous space and phase resolved X-ray polarimetry of the Crab Pulsar and Nebula

The Crab pulsar and its nebula are among the most studied astrophysical systems, and constitute one of the most promising environments where high energy processes and particle acceleration can be investigated. They are the only objects for which previous X-ray polarisation has been reported. We present here the first Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) observation of the Crab pulsar and nebula. The total pulsar pulsed emission in the [2-8] keV energy range is unpolarised. Significant polarisation up to 15% is detected only in the core of the main peak. The nebula has a total space integrated polarised degree of 20% and polarisation angle of 145deg. The polarised maps show a large variation in the local polarisation, and regions with polarised degree up to 45-50%. The polarisation pattern suggests a predominantly toroidal magnetic field.

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arXiv2022

Limits on X-ray Polarization at the Core of Centaurus A as Observed with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer

We present measurements of the polarization of X-rays in the $2-8 \thinspace \mathrm{keV}$ band from the nucleus of the radio galaxy Centaurus A (Cen A), using a 100ks observation from the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE). Nearly simultaneous observations of Cen A were also taken with the Swift, NuSTAR, and INTEGRAL observatories. No statistically significant degree of polarization is detected with IXPE. These observations have a minimum detectable polarization at $99 \%$ percent confidence (MDP$_{99}$) of $6.5 \%$ using a weighted, spectral model-independent calculation in the $2-8 \thinspace \mathrm{keV}$ band. The polarization angle $ψ$ is consequently unconstrained. Spectral fitting across three orders of magnitude in X-ray energy ($0.3-400 \thinspace \mathrm{keV}$) demonstrates that the SED of Cen A is well described by a simple power law with moderate intrinsic absorption ($N_H \sim 10^{23} \thinspace \mathrm{cm}^{-2}$) and a Fe K$α$ emission line, although a second unabsorbed power law is required to account for the observed spectrum at energies below $2 \thinspace \mathrm{keV}$. This spectrum suggests that the reprocessing material responsible for this emission line is optically thin and distant from the central black hole. Our upper limits on the X-ray polarization are consistent with the predictions of Compton scattering, although the specific seed photon population responsible for production of the X-rays cannot be identified. The low polarization degree, variability in the core emission, and the relative lack of variability in the Fe K$α$ emission line support a picture where electrons are accelerated in a region of highly disordered magnetic fields surrounding the innermost jet.

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arXiv2022

A physical model for the UV/optical power spectra of AGN

The UV/optical variability of AGN has long been thought to be driven by the X-ray illumination of the accretion disk. However, recent multi-wavelength campaigns of nearby Seyfert galaxies seem to challenge this paradigm, with an apparent discrepancy between observations and the underlying theory. In order to further probe the connection between the UV/optical and X-ray variability in AGN we developed a physical model to reproduce the UV/optical power spectra (PSDs) of AGN assuming the thermal reprocessing of the X-rays in the disk. This model offers a novel way to probe the innermost regions of AGN. We use our model to study the variability of NGC 5548 and we infer that the X-ray and UV/optical PSDs as well as the interband UV/optical time lags are all well reproduced. We also derive constraints on the source physical parameters, such as the X-ray corona height and the accretion rate. Our results suggest that X-ray disk reprocessing accounts for the full variability properties of this AGN, within the considered time scales. Using earlier data of NGC 5548, we also show that our model can reproduce its PSD in different epochs, establishing the feasibility of using PSD modelling to investigate the time evolution of a source.

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arXiv2022

Investigating the X-ray polarization of lamp-post coronae in BHXRB

High-sensitivity X-ray polarimetric observations of black hole X-ray binaries, which will soon become available with the launches of space-borne X-ray observatories with sensitive X-ray polarimeters, will be able to put independent constraints on the black hole as well as the accretion flow, and possibly break degeneracies that cannot be resolved by spectral/timing observations alone. In this work we perform a series of general relativistic Monte-Carlo radiative transfer simulations to study the expected polarization properties of X-ray radiation emerging from lamp-post coronae in black hole X-ray binaries. We find that the polarization degree of the coronal emission of black hole X-ray binaries is sensitive to the spin of the black hole, the height of the corona, and the dynamics of the corona.

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arXiv2022

Polarized x-rays from a magnetar

We report on the first detection of linearly polarized x-ray emission from an ultra-magnetized neutron star with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE). The IXPE 35 observations of the anomalous x-ray pulsar 4U 0142+61 reveal a linear polarization degree of $(12\pm 1)\%$ throughout the IXPE 2--8 keV band. We detect a substantial variation of the polarization with energy: the degree is $(14\pm 1)\%$ at 2--4 keV and $(41\pm 7)\%$ at 5.5--8 keV, while it drops below the instrumental sensitivity around 4--5 keV, where the polarization angle swings by $\sim 90^\circ$. The IXPE observations give us completely new information about the properties of the neutron star surface and magnetosphere and lend further support to the presence of the quantum mechanical effect of vacuum birefringence.

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arXiv2020

Multiwavelength power-spectrum analysis of NGC 5548

NGC 5548 was recently monitored intensively from NIR to X-rays as part of the STORM campaign. Its disc emission was found to lag behind the observed X-rays, while the measured time lag was increasing with wavelength. These results are consistent with the assumption that short term variability in AGN emission is driven by the X-ray illumination of the accretion disc. In this work, we studied the power spectrum of UV/optical and X-ray emission of NGC 5548, using the data of the STORM campaign as well as previous Swift data, in order to investigate the relation between the UV/optical and X-ray variability and to examine its consistency with the above picture. We demonstrate that even the power spectrum results are compatible with a standard disc being illuminated by X-rays, with low accretion rates, but the details are not entirely consistent with the results from the modelling of the "τ vs λ" relation. The differences indicate that the inner disc might be covered by a "warm corona" which does not allow the detection of UV/optical emission from the inner disc. Finally, we found strong evidence that the UV emission of NGC 5548 is not stationary.

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arXiv2020

Towards a complete description of spectra and polarization of black hole accretion disks: albedo profiles and returning radiation

Accretion disks around stellar-mass black holes (BHs) emit radiation peaking in the soft X-rays when the source is in the thermal state. The emerging photons are polarized and, for symmetry reasons, the polarization integrated over the source is expected to be either parallel or perpendicular to the (projected) disk symmetry axis, because of electron scattering in the disk. However, due to General Relativity effects photon polarization vectors will rotate with respect to their original orientation, by an amount depending on both the BH spin and the observer's inclination. Hence, X-ray polarization measurements may provide important information about strong gravity effects around these sources. Along with the spectral and polarization properties of radiation which reaches directly the observer once emitted from the disk, in this paper we also include the contribution of returning radiation, i.e. photons that are bent by the strong BH gravity to return again on the disk, where they scatter until eventually escaping to infinity. A comparison between our results and those obtained in previous works by different authors show an overall good agreement, despite the use of different code architectures. We finally consider the effects of absorption in the disk material by including more realistic albedo profiles for the disk surface. Our findings in this respect show that considering also the ionization state of the disk may deeply modify the behavior of polarization observables.

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arXiv2019

Probing the Bardeen-Petterson effect in tidal disruption events with spectral line reverberation mapping

For an inclined accretion flow around a rotating black hole, the combined effect of the Lense-Thirring precession and viscous torque tends to align the inner part of the flow with the black hole spin, leading to the formation of a warped disc, known as the Bardeen-Petterson effect (Bardeen & Petterson 1975). In tidal disruption events (TDEs) in which a super-massive black hole starts to accrete the bound debris, if the black hole is spinning, in general the stellar orbit is inclined with the black hole spin. So is the accretion disc formed following circularization and radiative cooling of the debris. Xiang-Gruess et al. (2016) studied in detail the stellar debris evolution and disc formation in TDEs when the stellar orbit is inclined, and found that a warped disc would form under certain conditions. In this work we investigate properties of time-resolved fluorescent iron line originating from a warped disc that is irradiated by the initial X-ray flare. We find that the time-resolved spectrum shows distinct features before and after a critical time. This critical time depends on the Bardeen-Petterson radius $r_{\rm BP}$, i.e., the outer boundary of the inner aligned disc; while the line width during the later stage of the X-ray flare is sensitive to the inclination of the outer disc flow. This demonstrates that time-resolved X-ray spectroscopy can be a powerful tool to probe the Bardeen-Petterson effect in TDE flares and can be used to measure the Bardeen-Petterson radius as well as put constraint on the black hole mass and spin.

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arXiv2019

Constraining the size of the corona with fully relativistic calculations of spectra of extended corona. I - the Monte Carlo radiative transfer code

The size and geometry of the X-ray emitting corona in AGNs are still not well constrained. Dovčiak & Done (2016) proposed a method based on calculations assuming a point-like lamp-post corona. To perform more self-consistent calculations of energy spectra of extended coronae, we develop monk, a Monte Carlo radiative transfer code dedicated to calculations of Comptonised spectra in the Kerr spacetime. In monk we assume Klein-Nishina scattering cross section and include all general relativistic effects. We find that for a corona located above the disc, the spectrum is not isotropic, but with harder and less luminous spectra towards observers at lower inclinations, owing to anisotropic illumination of the seed photons. This anisotropy also leads to an underestimated size of the corona if we assume the corona to be a point-like, isotropic source located on the black hole rotation axis, demonstrating the necessity of more self-consistent calculations. We also inspect the effect of motion and geometry of the corona on the emergent spectrum. Finally, we discuss the implication of anisotropic corona emission for the reflection spectrum in AGNs as well as black hole X-ray binaries (BHXRBs). We find that by assuming the corona emission to be isotropic, one may underestimate the soft excess in AGNs and the reflection continuum and iron K fluorescent line flux in BHXRBs.

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arXiv2018

Accretion in Strong Field Gravity with eXTP

In this paper we describe the potential of the enhanced X-ray Timing and Polarimetry (eXTP) mission for studies related to accretion flows in the strong field gravity regime around both stellar-mass and supermassive black-holes. eXTP has the unique capability of using advanced 'spectral-timing-polarimetry' techniques to analyze the rapid variations with three orthogonal diagnostics of the flow and its geometry, yielding unprecedented insight into the inner accreting regions, the effects of strong field gravity on the material within them and the powerful outflows which are driven by the accretion process.

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arXiv2018

MoCA: A Monte Carlo code for Comptonisation in Astrophysics. I. Description of the code and first results

We present a new Monte Carlo code for Comptonisation in Astrophysics (MoCA). To our knowledge MoCA is the first code that uses a single photon approach in a full special relativity scenario, and including also Klein-Nishina effects as well as polarisation. In this paper we describe in detail how the code works, and show first results from the case of extended coronae in accreting sources Comptonising the accretion disc thermal emission. We explored both a slab and a spherical geometry, to make comparison with public analytical codes more easy. Our spectra are in good agreement with those from analytical codes for low/moderate optical depths, but differ significantly, as expected, for optical depths larger than a few. Klein-Nishina effects become relevant above 100 keV depending on the optical thickness and thermal energy of the corona. We also calculated the polarisation properties for the two geometries, which show that X-ray polarimetry is a very useful tool to discriminate between them.

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arXiv2018

On the high energy cut-off of accreting sources: is GR relevant?

The hard X-ray emission observed in accreting compact sources is believed to be produced by inverse Compton scattering of soft photons arising from the accretion disc by energetic electrons thermally distributed above the disc, the so-called X-ray corona. Many independent observations suggest that such coronae should be compact and located very close to the black hole. In this case general relativistic (GR) effects should play an important role to the continuum X-ray emission from these sources, and in particular in the observed high energy cut-off, which is a measure of the intrinsic temperature of the corona. Our results show that the energy shift between the observed and intrinsic high energy cut-off due to GR effects can be as large as 2 - 8 times, depending on the geometry and size of the corona as well as its inclination. We provide estimates of this energy shift in the case of a lamp-post and a flat, rotating corona, around a Kerr and a Schwartzschild black hole, for various inclinations, and coronal sizes. These values could be useful to correct the observed high energy cut-off and/or coronal temperatures, either in the case of individual or large sample of objects.

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arXiv2017

Nature of the Galactic centre NIR-excess sources. I. What can we learn from the continuum observations of the DSO/G2 source?

The Dusty S-cluster Object (DSO/G2) orbiting the supermassive black hole (Sgr A*) in the Galactic centre has been monitored in both near-infrared continuum and line emission. There has been a dispute about the character and the compactness of the object: interpreting it as either a gas cloud or a dust-enshrouded star. A recent analysis of polarimetry data in $K_{\rm s}$-band ($2.2\,{\rm μm}$) allows us to put further constraints on the geometry of the DSO. The purpose of this paper is to constrain the nature and the geometry of the DSO. We compare 3D radiative transfer models of the DSO with the NIR continuum data including polarimetry. In the analysis, we use basic dust continuum radiative transfer theory implemented in the 3D Monte Carlo code Hyperion. Moreover, we implement analytical results of the two-body problem mechanics and the theory of non-thermal processes. We present a composite model of the DSO -- a dust-enshrouded star that consists of a stellar source, dusty, optically thick envelope, bipolar cavities, and a bow shock. This scheme can match the NIR total as well as polarized properties of the observed spectral energy distribution (SED). The SED may be also explained in theory by a young pulsar wind nebula that typically exhibits a large linear polarization degree due to magnetospheric synchrotron emission. The analysis of NIR polarimetry data combined with the radiative transfer modelling shows that the DSO is a peculiar source of compact nature in the S cluster $(r \lesssim 0.04\,{\rm pc})$. It is most probably a young stellar object embedded in a non-spherical dusty envelope, whose components include optically thick dusty envelope, bipolar cavities, and a bow shock. Alternatively, the continuum emission could be of a non-thermal origin due to the presence of a young neutron star and its wind nebula.

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arXiv2015

Eclipsing the innermost X-ray emitting regions in AGN

Variable X-ray absorption has been observed in active galactic nuclei (AGN) on several time scales. Observations allow us to identify the absorber with clouds associated either with the clumpy torus (parsec scales, long timescales) or with the broad line region (BLR) (short timescales). In the latter, the cloud size has been estimated to be of the order of few gravitational radii from the observed absorption variability. Such small cloud sizes are comparable to the X-ray emitting regions so that a detailed modeling of occultation events in AGN has the potential of enabling us to infer accurately the geometry of the system. We have developed a relativistic X-ray spectral model for occultation events and we present here theoretical predictions on the different observables that can be inferred by studying X-ray eclipses in simulated XMM-Newton data. These include the size of the X-ray emitting regions as well as more fundamental parameters such as the black hole spin and the system inclination. We find that absorption varies as a function of the energy range and that its maximum takes place when the approaching part of the accretion disc is covered. Therefore we study the hard-to-soft (H/S) ratio light curves produced during an eclipse and use them to characterise the properties of the inner accretion disc in a new model-independent way.

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arXiv2012

Origin of the X-ray disc-reflection steep radial emissivity

X-ray reflection off the accretion disc surrounding a black hole, together with the associated broad iron K$α$ line, has been widely used to constrain the innermost accretion-flow geometry and black hole spin. Some recent measurements have revealed steep reflection emissivity profiles in a number of active galactic nuclei and X-ray binaries. We explore the physically motivated conditions that give rise to the observed steep disc-reflection emissivity profiles. We perform a set of simulations based on the configuration of a possible future high-resolution X-ray mission. Computations are carried out for typical X-ray bright Seyfert-1 galaxies. We find that steep emissivity profiles with $q\sim 4-5$ (where the emissivity is $ε(r) \propto r^{-q}$) are produced considering either i) a lamp-post scenario where a primary compact X-ray source is located close to the black hole, or ii) the radial dependence of the disc ionisation state. We also highlight the role of the reflection angular emissivity: the radial emissivity index $q$ is overestimated when the standard limb-darkening law is used to describe the data. Very steep emissivity profiles with $q \geq 7$ are naturally obtained by applying reflection models that take into account radial profile $ξ(r)$ of the disc ionisation induced by a compact X-ray source located close to the central black hole.

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