We present NuSTAR observations of neutron star (NS) low-mass X-ray binaries: 4U 1636-53, GX 17+2, and 4U 1705-44. We observed 4U 1636-53 in the hard state, with an Eddington fraction, , of 0.01; GX ...17+2 and 4U 1705-44 were in the soft state with fractions of 0.57 and 0.10, respectively. Each spectrum shows evidence for a relativistically broadened Fe K line. Through accretion disk reflection modeling, we constrain the radius of the inner disk in 4U 1636-53 to be ISCO (innermost stable circular orbit), assuming a dimensionless spin parameter , and ISCO for (errors quoted at 1 ). This value proves to be model independent. For and , for example, 1.08 0.06 ISCO translates to a physical radius of km, and the NS would have to be smaller than this radius (other outcomes are possible for allowed spin parameters and masses). For GX 17+2, ISCO for and ISCO for . For and , ISCO translates to km. The inner accretion disk in 4U 1705-44 may be truncated just above the stellar surface, perhaps by a boundary layer or magnetosphere; reflection models give a radius of 1.46-1.64 ISCO for and 1.69-1.93 ISCO for . We discuss the implications our results may have on the equation of state of ultradense, cold matter and our understanding of the innermost accretion flow onto NSs with low surface magnetic fields, and systematic errors related to the reflection models and spacetime metric around less idealized NSs.
PSR J1023+0038 is the first millisecond pulsar discovered to pulsate in the visible band; such a detection took place when the pulsar was surrounded by an accretion disk and also showed X-ray ...pulsations. We report on the first high time resolution observational campaign of this transitional pulsar in the disk state, using simultaneous observations in the optical (Telescopio Nazionale Galileo, Nordic Optical Telescope, Telescopi Joan Oró), X-ray (XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, NICER), infrared (Gran Telescopio Canarias), and UV (Swift) bands. Optical and X-ray pulsations were detected simultaneously in the X-ray high-intensity mode in which the source spends ∼70% of the time, and both disappeared in the low mode, indicating a common underlying physical mechanism. In addition, optical and X-ray pulses were emitted within a few kilometers and had similar pulse shapes and distributions of the pulsed flux density compatible with a power-law relation F ∝ −0.7 connecting the optical and the 0.3-45 keV X-ray band. Optical pulses were also detected during flares with a pulsed flux reduced by one-third with respect to the high mode; the lack of a simultaneous detection of X-ray pulses is compatible with the lower photon statistics. We show that magnetically channeled accretion of plasma onto the surface of the neutron star cannot account for the optical pulsed luminosity (∼1031 erg s−1). On the other hand, magnetospheric rotation-powered pulsar emission would require an extremely efficient conversion of spin-down power into pulsed optical and X-ray emission. We then propose that optical and X-ray pulses are instead produced by synchrotron emission from the intrabinary shock that forms where a striped pulsar wind meets the accretion disk, within a few light cylinder radii away, ∼100 km, from the pulsar.
It is thought that neutron stars in low-mass binary systems can accrete matter and angular momentum from the companion star and be spun-up to millisecond rotational periods. During the accretion ...stage, the system is called a low-mass X-ray binary, and bright X-ray emission is observed. When the rate of mass transfer decreases in the later evolutionary stages, these binaries host a radio millisecond pulsar whose emission is powered by the neutron star's rotating magnetic field. This evolutionary model is supported by the detection of millisecond X-ray pulsations from several accreting neutron stars and also by the evidence for a past accretion disc in a rotation-powered millisecond pulsar. It has been proposed that a rotation-powered pulsar may temporarily switch on during periods of low mass inflow in some such systems. Only indirect evidence for this transition has hitherto been observed. Here we report observations of accretion-powered, millisecond X-ray pulsations from a neutron star previously seen as a rotation-powered radio pulsar. Within a few days after a month-long X-ray outburst, radio pulses were again detected. This not only shows the evolutionary link between accretion and rotation-powered millisecond pulsars, but also that some systems can swing between the two states on very short timescales.
We report the discovery of X-ray pulsations at 105.2 Hz (9.5 ms) from the transient X-ray binary IGR J16597–3704 using NuSTAR and Swift. The source was discovered by INTEGRAL in the globular cluster ...NGC 6256 at a distance of 9.1 kpc. The X-ray pulsations show a clear Doppler modulation that implies an orbital period of ~46 min and a projected semi-major axis of ~5 lt-ms, which makes IGR J16597–3704 an ultracompact X-ray binary system. We estimated a minimum companion mass of 6.5 × 10−10 M⊙, assuming a neutron star mass of 1.4 M⊙, and an inclination angle of <75° (suggested by the absence of eclipses or dips in its light curve). The broad-band energy spectrum of the source is well described by a disk blackbody component (kT ~ 1.4 keV) plus a comptonised power-law with photon index ~2.3 and an electron temperature of ~30 keV. Radio pulsations from the source were unsuccessfully searched for with the Parkes Observatory.
We report on the phase-coherent timing analysis of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar IGR J17591–2342, using Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) data taken during the outburst of ...the source between 2018 August 15 and 2018 October 17. We obtain an updated orbital solution of the binary system. We investigate the evolution of the neutron star spin frequency during the outburst, reporting a refined estimate of the spin frequency and the first estimate of the spin frequency derivative ( ˙ν ∼ −7 × 10−14 Hz s−1), confirmed independently from the modelling of the fundamental frequency and its first harmonic. We further investigate the evolution of the X-ray pulse phases adopting a physical model that accounts for the accretion material torque as well as the magnetic threading of the accretion disc in regions where the Keplerian velocity is slower than the magnetosphere velocity. From this analysis we estimate the neutron star magnetic field Beq = 2.8(3) × 108 G. Finally, we investigate the pulse profile dependence on energy finding that the observed behaviour of the pulse fractional amplitude and lags as a function of energy is compatible with the down-scattering of hard X-ray photons in the disc or the neutron star surface.
We report on the timing analysis of the 2015 outburst of the intermittent accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SAX J1748.9−2021 observed on March 4 by the X-ray satellite XMM–Newton. By phase ...connecting the time of arrivals of the observed pulses, we derived the best-fitting orbital solution for the 2015 outburst. We investigated the energy pulse profile dependence finding that the pulse fractional amplitude increases with energy while no significant time lags are detected. Moreover, we investigated the previous outbursts from this source, finding previously undetected pulsations in some intervals during the 2010 outburst of the source. Comparing the updated set of orbital parameters, in particular the value of the time of passage from the ascending node, with the orbital solutions reported from the previous outbursts, we estimated for the first time the orbital period derivative corresponding with
$\dot{P}_{{\rm orb}}=(1.1\pm 0.3)\times 10^{-10}$
s s−1. We note that this value is significant at 3.5σ confidence level, because of significant fluctuations with respect to the parabolic trend and more observations are needed in order to confirm the finding. Assuming the reliability of the result, we suggest that the large value of the orbital-period derivative can be explained as a result of a highly non-conservative mass transfer driven by emission of gravitational waves, which implies the ejection of matter from a region close to the inner Lagrangian point. We also discuss possible alternative explanations.
We analysed a 115-ks XMM–Newton observation and the stacking of 8 d of INTEGRAL observations, taken during the raise of the 2015 outburst of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SAX J1748.9−2021. ...The source showed numerous type-I burst episodes during the XMM–Newton observation, and for this reason we studied separately the persistent and burst epochs. We described the persistent emission with a combination of two soft thermal components, a cold thermal Comptonization component (∼2 keV) and an additional hard X-ray emission described by a power law (Γ ∼ 2.3). The continuum components can be associated with an accretion disc, the neutron star (NS) surface and a thermal Comptonization emission coming out of an optically thick plasma region, while the origin of the high-energy tail is still under debate. In addition, a number of broad (σ = 0.1–0.4 keV) emission features likely associated with reflection processes have been observed in the XMM–Newton data. The estimated 1.0–50 keV unabsorbed luminosity of the source is ∼5 × 1037 erg s−1, about 25 per cent of the Eddington limit assuming a 1.4 M⊙ NS. We suggest that the spectral properties of SAX J1748.9−2021 are consistent with a soft state, differently from many other accreting X-ray millisecond pulsars which are usually found in the hard state. Moreover, none of the observed type-I burst reached the Eddington luminosity. Assuming that the burst ignition and emission are produced above the whole NS surface, we estimate an NS radius of ∼7–8 km, consistent with previous results.
ABSTRACT
We present the pulsar timing analysis of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SWIFT J1749.4 − 2807 monitored by NICER and XMM–Newton during its latest outburst after almost 11 yr of ...quiescence. From the coherent timing analysis of the pulse profiles, we updated the orbital ephemerides of the system. Large phase jumps of the fundamental frequency phase of the signal are visible during the outburst, consistent with what was observed during the previous outburst. Moreover, we report on the marginally significant evidence for non-zero eccentricity (e ≃ 4 × 10−5) obtained independently from the analysis of both the 2021 and 2010 outbursts and we discuss possible compatible scenarios. Long-term orbital evolution of SWIFT J1749.4 − 2807 suggests a fast expansion of both the NS projected semimajor axis (x), and the orbital period (Porb), at a rate of $\dot{x}\simeq 2.6\times 10^{-13}\, \text{lt-s}\, \text{s}^{-1}$ and $\dot{P}_{\rm orb}\simeq 4 \times 10^{-10}\, \text{s}\, \text{s}^{-1}$, respectively. SWIFT J1749.4 − 2807 is the only accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar, so far, from which the orbital period derivative has been directly measured from appreciable changes on the observed orbital period. Finally, no significant secular deceleration of the spin frequency of the compact object is detected, which allowed us to set a constraint on the magnetic field strength at the polar caps of BPC < 1.3 × 108 G, in line with typical values reported for AMXPs.
We report the detection of X-ray pulsations at 2.1 ms from the known X-ray burster IGR J17379–3747 using XMM-Newton. The coherent signal shows a clear Doppler modulation from which we estimate an ...orbital period of ~1.9 h and a projected semi-major axis of ~8 lt-ms. Taking into account the lack of eclipses (inclination angle of <75°) and assuming a neutron star mass of 1.4 M⊙, we have estimated a minimum companion star of ~0.06 M⊙. Considerations on the probability distribution of the binary inclination angle make the hypothesis of a main-sequence companion star less likely. On the other hand, the close correspondence with the orbital parameters of the accreting millisecond pulsar SAX J1808.4–3658 suggests the presence of a bloated brown dwarf. The energy spectrum of the source is well described by a soft disk black-body component (kT ~ 0.45 keV) plus a Comptonisation spectrum with photon index ~1.9. No sign of emission lines or reflection components are significantly detected. Finally, combining the source ephemerides estimated from the observed outbursts, we obtained a first constraint on the long-term orbital evolution of the order of Ṗorb = (−2.5 ± 2.3) × 10−12 s s−1.
We report the detection of a possible gamma-ray counterpart of the accreting millisecond pulsar SAX J1808.4−3658. The analysis of ∼6 yr of data from the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi ...gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi-LAT) within a region of 15° radius around the position of the pulsar reveals a point gamma-ray source detected at a significance of ∼6σ (test statistic TS = 32), with a position compatible with that of SAX J1808.4−3658 within the 95 per cent confidence level. The energy flux in the energy range between 0.6 and 10 GeV amounts to (2.1 ± 0.5) × 10−12 erg cm−2 s−1 and the spectrum is represented well by a power-law function with photon index 2.1 ± 0.1. We searched for significant variation of the flux at the spin frequency of the pulsar and for orbital modulation, taking into account the trials due to the uncertainties in the position, the orbital motion of the pulsar and the intrinsic evolution of the pulsar spin. No significant deviation from a constant flux at any time-scale was found, preventing a firm identification via time variability. Nonetheless, the association of the LAT source as the gamma-ray counterpart of SAX J1808.4−3658 would match the emission expected from the millisecond pulsar, if it switches on as a rotation-powered source during X-ray quiescence.
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