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Register a new userThe Orbital Parameters of the Eclipsing High-Mass X-ray Binary Pulsar IGR J16493-4348 from Pulsar Timing
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IGR J16493-4348 is an eclipsing supergiant high-mass X-ray binary (sgHMXB), where accretion onto the compact object occurs via the radially outflowing stellar wind of its early B-type companion. We present an analysis of the systems X-ray variability and periodic modulation using pointed observations (2.5-25 keV) and Galactic bulge scans (2-10 keV) from the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) Proportional Counter Array (PCA), along with Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) 70-month snapshot (14-195 keV) and transient monitor (15-50 keV) observations. The orbital eclipse profiles in the PCA bulge scans and BAT light curves are modeled using asymmetric and symmetric step and ramp functions. We obtain an improved orbital period measurement of 6.7828 $pm$ 0.0004 days from an observed minus calculated (O-C) analysis of mid-eclipse times derived from the BAT transient monitor and PCA scan data. No evidence is found for the presence of a strong photoionization or accretion wake. We refine the superorbital period to 20.067 $pm$ 0.009 days from the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) of the BAT transient monitor light curve. A pulse period of 1093.1036 $pm$ 0.0004 s is measured from a pulsar timing analysis using pointed PCA observations spanning $sim$1.4 binary orbits. We present pulse times of arrival (ToAs), circular and eccentric timing models, and calculations of the systems Keplerian binary orbital parameters. We derive an X-ray mass function of $f_{x}(M)$ $=$ 13.2$^{+2.4}_{-2.5}$ $M_{odot}$ and find a spectral type of B0.5 Ia for the supergiant companion through constraints on the mass and radius of the donor. Measurements of the eclipse half-angle and additional parameters describing the system geometry are provided.
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We report on Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR), Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory (Swift) X-ray Telescope (XRT) and Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) observations of IGR J16493-4348, a wind-fed Supergiant X-ray Binary (SGXB) showing significant superorbital variability. From a discrete Fourier transform of the BAT light curve, we refine its superorbital period to be 20.058 $pm$ 0.007 days. The BAT dynamic power spectrum and a fractional root mean square analysis both show strong variations in the amplitude of the superorbital modulation, but no observed changes in the period were found. The superorbital modulation is significantly weaker between MJD 55,700 and MJD 56,300. The joint NuSTAR and XRT observations, which were performed near the minimum and maximum of one cycle of the 20 day superorbital modulation, show that the flux increases by more than a factor of two between superorbital minimum and maximum. We find no significant changes in the 3-50 keV pulse profiles between superorbital minimum and maximum, which suggests a similar accretion regime. Modeling the pulse-phase averaged spectra we find a possible Fe K$alpha$ emission line at 6.4 keV at superorbital maximum. The feature is not significant at superorbital minimum. While we do not observe any significant differences between the pulse-phase averaged spectral continua apart from the overall flux change, we find that the hardness ratio near the broad main peak of the pulse profile increases from superorbital minimum to maximum. This suggests the spectral shape hardens with increasing luminosity. We discuss different mechanisms that might drive the observed superorbital modulation.
With recent and archival Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) X-ray measurements of the heavily obscured X-ray pulsar IGR J16393-4643, we carried out a pulse timing analysis to determine the orbital parameters. Assuming a circular orbit, we phase-connected data spanning over 1.5 years. The most likely orbital solution has a projected semi-major axis of 43 +- 2 lt-s and an orbital period of 3.6875 +- 0.0006 days. This implies a mass function of 6.5 +- 1.1 M_sun and confirms that this INTEGRAL source is a High Mass X-ray Binary (HMXB) system. By including eccentricity in the orbital model, we find e < 0.25 at the 2 sigma level. The 3.7 day orbital period and the previously known ~910 s pulse period place the system in the region of the Corbet diagram populated by supergiant wind accretors, and the low eccentricity is also consistent with this type of system. Finally, it should be noted that although the 3.7 day solution is the most likely one, we cannot completely rule out two other solutions with orbital periods of 50.2 and 8.1 days.
We present the results obtained from analysis of two AstroSat observations of the high mass X-ray binary pulsar OAO 1657-415. The observations covered 0.681-0.818 and 0.808-0.968 phases of the $sim$10.4 day orbital period of the system, in March and July 2019, respectively. Despite being outside the eclipsing regime, the power density spectrum from the first observation lacks any signature of pulsation or quasi-periodic oscillations. However, during July observation, X-ray pulsations at a period of 37.0375 s were clearly detected in the light curves. The pulse profiles from the second observation consist of a broad single peak with a dip-like structure in the middle across the observed energy range. We explored evolution of the pulse profile in narrow time and energy segments. We detected pulsations in the light curves obtained from 0.808--0.92 orbital phase range, which is absent in the remaining part of the observation. The spectrum of OAO 1657-415 can be described by an absorbed power-law model along with an iron fluorescent emission line and a blackbody component for out-of-eclipse phase of the observation. Our findings are discussed in the frame of stellar wind accretion and accretion wake at late orbital phases of the binary.
Redback millisecond pulsars (MSPs) typically show pronounced orbital variability in their X-ray emission due to our changing view of the intrabinary shock (IBS) between the pulsar wind and stellar wind from the companion. Some redbacks (transitional MSPs) have shown dramatic changes in their multiwavelength properties, indicating a transition from a radio pulsar state to an accretion-powered state. The redback MSP 47 Tuc W showed clear X-ray orbital variability in the Chandra ACIS-S observations in 2002, which were not detectable in the longer Chandra HRC-S observations in 2005-06, suggesting that it might have undergone a state transition. However, the Chandra observations of 47 Tuc in 2014-15 show similar X-ray orbital variability as in 2002. We explain the different X-ray light-curves from these epochs in terms of two components of the X-ray spectrum (soft X-rays from the pulsar, vs. harder X-rays from the IBS), and different sensitivities of the X-ray instruments observing in each epoch. However, when we use our best-fit spectra with HRC response files to model the HRC light-curve, we expect a more significant and shorter dip than that observed in the 2005-06 Chandra data. This suggests an intrinsic change in the IBS of the system. We use the ICARUS stellar modelling software, including calculations of heating by an IBS, to model the X-ray, optical, and UV light-curves of 47 Tuc W. Our best-fitting parameters point towards a high-inclination system (i~60 deg), which is primarily heated by the pulsar radiation, with an IBS dominated by the companion wind momentum.
IGR J16195-4945 is a hard X-ray source discovered by INTEGRAL during the Core Program observations performed in 2003. We analyzed the X-ray emission of this source exploiting the Swift-BAT survey data from December 2004 to March 2015, and all the available Swift-XRT pointed observations. The source is detected at a high significance level in the 123-month BAT survey data, with an average 15-150 keV flux of the source of ~1.6 mCrab. The timing analysis on the BAT data reveals with a significance higher than 6 standard deviations the presence of a modulated signal with a period of 3.945 d, that we interpret as the orbital period of the binary system. The folded light curve shows a flat profile with a narrow full eclipse lasting ~3.5% of the orbital period. We requested phase-constrained XRT observations to obtain a more detailed characterization of the eclipse in the soft X-ray range. Adopting resonable guess values for the mass and radius of the companion star, we derive a semi-major orbital axis of ~31 R_sun, equivalent to ~1.8 times the radius of the companion star. From these estimates and from the duration of the eclipse we derive an orbital inclination between 55 and 60 degrees. The broad band time-averaged XRT+BAT spectrum is well modeled with a strongly absorbed flat power law, with absorbing column N_H=7x 10^22 cm^(-2) and photon index Gamma=0.5, modified by a high energy exponential cutoff at E_cut=14 keV.
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