No Arabic abstract
We report a detailed spectral study of Swift~J1357.2-0933 low-mass X-ray binary during its 2017 outburst using {it Swift} and {it NuSTAR} observations. We fit the data with two component advective flow (TCAF) model and power-law model. We observe that the source is in hard state during the outburst, where the size of the Compton cloud changes significantly with disc accretion rate. The typical disc accretion rate for this source is $sim 1.5-2.0~%$ of the Eddington accretion rate $(dot M_{Edd})$. The model fitted intermediate shock compression ratio gives an indication of the presence of jet, which is reported in the literature in different energy bands. We also split NuSTAR data into three equal segments and fit with the model. We check spectral stability using color-color diagram and accretion rate ratio (ARR) vs. intensity diagram using different segments of the light curve but do not find any significant variation in the hardness ratio or in the accretion rate ratio. To estimate the mass of the candidate, we use an important characteristics of TCAF that the the model normalization always remains a constant. We found that the mass comes out to be in the range of $4.0-6.8~M_odot$. From the model fitted results, we study the disc geometry and different physical parameters of the flow in each observation. The count rate of the source appears to decay in a time scale of $sim 45 day$.
Swift J1357.2-0933 is the first confirmed very faint black hole X-ray transient and has a short estimated orbital period of 2.8 hr. We observed Swift J1357.2-0933 for ~50 ks with XMM-Newton in 2013 July during its quiescent state. The source is clearly detected at a 0.5-10 keV unabsorbed flux of ~3x10^-15 erg cm-2 s-1. If the source is located at a distance of 1.5 kpc (as suggested in the literature), this would imply a luminosity of ~8x10^29 erg s-1, making it the faintest detected quiescent black hole LMXB. This would also imply that there is no indication of a reversal in the quiescence X-ray luminosity versus orbital period diagram down to 2.8 hr, as has been predicted theoretically and recently supported by the detection of the 2.4 hr orbital period black hole MAXI J1659-152 at a 0.5-10 keV X-ray luminosity of ~ 1.2 x 10^31 erg s-1. However, there is considerable uncertainty in the distance of Swift J1357.2-0933 and it may be as distant as 6 kpc. In this case, its quiescent luminosity would be Lx ~ 1.3 x 10^31 erg s-1, i.e., similar to MAXI J1659-152 and hence it would support the existence of such a bifurcation period. We also detected the source in optical at r ~22.3 mag with the Liverpool telescope, simultaneously to our X-ray observation. The X-ray/optical luminosity ratio of Swift J1357.2-0933 agrees with the expected value for a black hole at this range of quiescent X-ray luminosities.
We present time-resolved optical spectroscopy of the counterpart to the high-inclination black hole low-mass X-ray binary Swift J1357.2-0933 in quiescence. Absorption features from the mass donor star were not detected. Instead the spectra display prominent broad double-peaked Halpha emission and weaker HeI emission lines. From the Halpha peak-to-peak separation we constrain the radial velocity semi-amplitude of the donor star to > 789 km/s. Further analysis through radial velocity and equivalent width measurements indicates that the Halpha line is free of variability due to S-wave components or disc eclipses. From our data and previous observations during outburst, we conclude that long-term radial velocity changes ascribed to a precessing disc were of low amplitude or not present. This implies that the centroid position of the line should closely represent the systemic radial velocity. Using the derived systemic velocity of -150 km/s and the best available limits on the source distance, we infer that the black hole is moving towards the Plane in its current Galactic orbit unless the proper motion is substantial. Finally, the depth of the central absorption in the double peaked profiles adds support for Swift J1357.2-0933 as a high-inclination system. On the other hand, we argue that the low hydrogen column density inferred from X-ray fitting suggests that the system is not seen edge-on.
We report our multiwavelength study of the 2011 outburst evolution of the newly discovered black hole candidate X-ray binary Swift J1357.2-0933. We analysed the Swift X-ray telescope and Ultraviolet/Optical telescope (UVOT) data taken during the ~7 months duration of the outburst. It displayed a 2-10 keV X-ray peak luminosity of ~1E35(D/1.5 kpc)^2 erg s-1 which classifies the source as a very faint X-ray transient. We found that the X-ray spectrum at the peak was consistent with the source being in the hard state, but it softened with decreasing luminosity, a common behaviour of black holes at low luminosities or returning to quiescence from the hard state. The correlations between the simultaneous X-ray and ultraviolet/optical data suggest a system with a black hole accreting from a viscous disc that is not irradiated. The UVOT filters provide the opportunity to study these correlations up to ultraviolet wavelengths a regime so far unexplored. If the black hole nature is confirmed, Swift J1357.2-0933 would be one of the very few established black hole very-faint X-ray transients.
Swift J1357.2-0933 is one of the shortest orbital period black hole X-ray transients (BHTs). It exhibited deep optical dips together with an extremely broad H$alpha$ line during outburst. We present 10.4-m GTC time-resolved spectroscopy during quiescence searching for donor star absorption features. The large contribution of the accretion flow to the total luminosity prevents the direct detection of the companion. Nevertheless, we constrain the non-stellar contribution to be larger than $sim 80%$ of the total optical light, which sets new lower limits to the distance ($d > 2.29, rm{kpc}$) and the height over the Galactic plane ($z>1.75, rm{kpc}$). This places the system in the galactic thick disc. We measure a modulation in the centroid of the H$alpha$ line with a period of $P=0.11pm0.04, rm{d}$ which, combined with the recently presented FWHM-$K_2$ correlation, results in a massive black hole ($M_1>9.3 , rm{M_odot}$) and a $sim$ M2V companion star ($M_2sim 0.4, rm{M_odot}$). We also present further evidence supporting a very high orbital inclination ($igtrsim 80^circ$).
We present rapid, multiwavelength photometry of the low-mass X-ray binary Swift J1357.2-0933 during its 2017 outburst. Using several sets of quasi-simultaneous ULTRACAM/NTT (optical), NuSTAR (X-ray), XRT/Swift (X-ray), SALT (optical) and ATCA (radio) observations taken during outburst decline, we confirm the frequent optical dipping that has previously been noted both in outburst and in quiescence. We also find: 1) that the dip frequency decreases as the outburst decays, similar to what was seen in the previous outburst, 2) that the dips produce a shape similar to that in binary systems with partial disc occultations, 3) that the source becomes significantly bluer during these dips, indicating an unusual geometry compared to other LMXB dippers, and 4) that dip superposition analysis confirms the lack of an X-ray response to the optical dips. These very unusual properties appear to be unique to Swift J1357.2-0933, and are likely the result of a high binary inclination, as inferred from features such as its very low outburst X-ray luminosity. From this analysis as well as X-ray/optical timing correlations, we suggest a model with multi-component emission/absorption features with differing colours. This could include the possible presence of a sporadically occulted jet base and a recessed disc. This source still hosts many puzzling features, with consequences for the very faint X-ray transients population.