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تسجيل مستخدم جديدThe imprint of carbon combustion on a superburst from the accreting neutron star 4U 1636-536
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Superbursts are hours-long X-ray flares attributed to the thermonuclear runaway burning of carbon-rich material in the envelope of accreting neutron stars. By studying the details of the X-ray light curve, properties of carbon combustion can be determined. In particular, we show that the shape of the rise of the light curve is set by the the slope of the temperature profile left behind by the carbon flame. We analyse RXTE/PCA observations of 4U 1636-536 and separate the direct neutron star emission from evolving photoionized reflection and persistent spectral components. This procedure results in the highest quality light curve ever produced for the superburst rise and peak, and interesting behaviour is found in the tail. The rising light curve between 100 and 1000 seconds is inconsistent with the idea that the fuel burned locally and instantaneously everywhere, as assumed in some previous models. By fitting improved cooling models, we measure for the first time the radial temperature profile of the superbursting layer. We find $dln T/dln P=1/4$. Furthermore, 20% of the fuel may be left unburned. This gives a new constraint on models of carbon burning and propagation in superbursts.
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Recent studies have shown that runaway thermonuclear burning of material accreted onto neutron stars, i.e. Type I X-ray bursts, may affect the accretion disk. We investigate this by performing a detailed time-resolved spectral analysis of the superbu
rst from 4U 1636-536 observed in 2001 with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. Superbursts are attributed to the thermonuclear burning of carbon, and are approximately 1000 times more energetic than the regular short Type I bursts. This allows us to study detailed spectra for over 11 ks, compared to at most 100 s for regular bursts. A feature is present in the superburst spectra around 6.4 keV that is well fit with an emission line and an absorption edge, suggestive of reflection of the superburst off the accretion disk. The line and edge parameters evolve over time: the edge energy decreases from 9.4 keV at the peak to 8.1 keV in the tail, and both features become weaker in the tail. This is only the second superburst for which this has been detected, and shows that this behavior is present even without strong radius expansion. Furthermore, we find the persistent flux to almost double during the superburst, and return to the pre-superburst level in the tail. The combination of reflection features and increased persistent emission indicates that the superburst had a strong impact on the inner accretion disk, and it emphasizes that X-ray bursts provide a unique probe of accretion physics.
When a thermonuclear X-ray burst ignites on an accreting neutron star, the accretion disk undergoes sudden strong X-ray illumination, which can drive a range of processes in the disk. Observations of superbursts, with durations of several hours, prov
ide the best opportunity to study these processes and to probe accretion physics. Using detailed models of ionized reflection, we perform time resolved spectroscopy of the superburst observed from 4U 1636-536 in 2001 with RXTE. The spectra are consistent with a blackbody reflecting off a photoionized accretion disk, with the ionization state dropping with time. The evolution of the reflection fraction indicates that the initial reflection occurs from a part of the disk at larger radius, subsequently transitioning to reflection from an inner region of the disk. Even though this superburst did not reach the Eddington limit, we find that a strong local absorber develops during the superburst. Including this event, only two superbursts have been observed by an instrument with sufficient collecting area to allow for this analysis. It highlights the exciting opportunity for future X-ray observatories to investigate the processes in accretion disks when illuminated by superbursts.
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