Abstract
Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer
has a comparatively low background rate, but it is highly variable, and its spectrum must be predicted using measurements unaffected by the science ...target. We describe an empirical, three-parameter model based on observations of seven pointing directions that are void of detectable sources. Two model parameters track different types of background events, while the third is used to predict a low-energy excess tied to observations conducted in sunlight. An examination of 3556 good time intervals (GTIs), averaging 570 s, yields a median rate (0.4–12 keV; 50 detectors) of 0.87 c s
−1
, but in 5% (1%) of cases, the rate exceeds 10 (300) c s
−1
. Model residuals persist at 20%–30% of the initial rate for the brightest GTIs, implying one or more missing model parameters. Filtering criteria are given to flag GTIs likely to have unsatisfactory background predictions. With such filtering, we estimate a detection limit, 1.20 c s
−1
(3
σ
, single GTI) at 0.4–12 keV, equivalent to 3.6 × 10
−12
erg cm
−2
s
−1
for a Crab-like spectrum. The corresponding limit for soft X-ray sources is 0.51 c s
−1
at 0.3–2.0 keV, or 4.3 × 10
−13
erg cm
−2
s
−1
for a 100 eV blackbody. These limits would be four times lower if exploratory GTIs accumulate 10 ks of data after filtering at the level prescribed for faint sources. Such filtering selects background GTIs 85% of the time. An application of the model to a 1 s timescale makes it possible to distinguish source flares from possible surges in the background.
Swift J0243.6+6124 is a newly discovered Galactic Be/X-ray binary, revealed in late 2017 September in a giant outburst with a peak luminosity of 2 × 1039(d/7 kpc)2 erg s−1 (0.1-10 keV), with no ...formerly reported activity. At this luminosity, Swift J0243.6+6124 is the first known galactic ultraluminous X-ray pulsar. We describe Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) and Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) timing and spectral analyses for this source. A new orbital ephemeris is obtained for the binary system using spin frequencies measured with GBM and 15-50 keV fluxes measured with the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory Burst Alert Telescope to model the system's intrinsic spin-up. Power spectra measured with NICER show considerable evolution with luminosity, including a quasi-periodic oscillation near 50 mHz that is omnipresent at low luminosity and has an evolving central frequency. Pulse profiles measured over the combined 0.2-100 keV range show complex evolution that is both luminosity and energy dependent. Near the critical luminosity of L ∼ 1038 erg s−1, the pulse profiles transition from single peaked to double peaked, the pulsed fraction reaches a minimum in all energy bands, and the hardness ratios in both NICER and GBM show a turnover to softening as the intensity increases. This behavior repeats as the outburst rises and fades, indicating two distinct accretion regimes. These two regimes are suggestive of the accretion structure on the neutron star surface transitioning from a Coulomb collisional stopping mechanism at lower luminosities to a radiation-dominated stopping mechanism at higher luminosities. This is the highest observed (to date) value of the critical luminosity, suggesting a magnetic field of B ∼ 1013 G.
The charge transfer inefficiency (CTI) of the X-ray CCDs aboard the Suzaku satellite (X-ray Imaging Spectrometers: XIS) has increased since the launch due to radiation damage, and the energy ...resolution has been degraded. To improve the CTI, we have applied a spaced-row charge injection (SCI) technique to the XIS in orbit; by injecting charges into CCD rows periodically, the CTI is actively decreased. The CTI in the SCI mode depends on the distance between a signal charge and a preceding injected row, and the pulse height shows periodic positional variations. Using in-flight data of onboard calibration sources and of the strong iron line from the Perseus cluster of galaxies, we studied the variation in detail. We developed a new method to correct the variation. By applying the new method, the energy resolution (FWHM) at 5.9 keV in 2008 March is
$\sim$
155 eV for the front-illuminated CCDs and
$\sim$
175 eV for the back-illuminated CCD.
A frame transfer charge-coupled device (CCD) designed for X-ray detection on board the SUZAKU spacecraft includes an input serial register and a charge injection structure which allows a very uniform ...injection of extremely small charge packets into the imaging section of the device. A variation of the fill-and-spill method was implemented to inject charge into the CCD. Very small charge packets (down to just a few electrons) can be reproducibly injected with noise as low as five-electron rms. The operation of the structure is described, and the results of the measurements are compared with the simulations. We have measured electron ldquoevaporationrdquo over potential barrier as a function of time, results being in excellent agreement with our model. By fitting a model to the data, it is possible to determine the internal capacitance of the input node. Charge injection noise as a function of signal charge was measured, and the results are also in agreement with theory. The designed structure can be used as a tool for studying and mitigating radiation damage effects in CCDs.
We have developed a back-illuminated active pixel sensor (APS) which includes an SOI readout circuit and a silicon diode detector array implemented in a separate high-resistivity wafer. Both are ...connected together using a per-pixel 3-D integration technique developed at Lincoln Laboratory. The device was fabricated as part of a program to develop a photon-counting APS for imaging spectroscopy in the soft X-ray (0.3-10-keV) spectral band. Here, we report single-pixel X-ray response with spectral resolution of 181-eV full-width at half-maximum at 5.9 keV. The X-ray data allow us to characterize the responsivity and input-referred noise properties of the device. We measured interpixel crosstalk and found large left-right asymmetry explained by coupling of the sense node to the source follower output. We have measured noise parameters of the SOI transistors and determined factors which limit the device performance.
A charge-injection technique is applied to the X-ray CCD camera, XIS (X-ray Imaging Spectrometer) aboard Suzaku. The charge transfer inefficiency (CTI) in each CCD column (vertical transfer channel) ...is measured by the injection of charge packets into a transfer channel and subsequent readout. This paper reports on the performances of the charge-injection capability based on the ground experiments using a radiation-damaged device, and in-orbit measurements of the XIS. The ground experiments show that charges are stably injected with a dispersion of 91eV in FWHM in a specific column for the charges equivalent to an X-ray energy of 5.1keV. This dispersion width is significantly smaller than that of the X-ray events of 113eV (FWHM) at approximately the same energy. The amount of charge loss during transfer in a specific column, which is measured with the charge-injection capability, is consistent with that measured with the calibration source. These results indicate that the charge-injection technique can accurately measure column-dependent charge losses, rather than the calibration sources. The column-to-column CTI correction to the calibration source spectra significantly reduces the line widths compared to those with a column-averaged CTI correction (from 193eV to 173eV in FWHM on an average at the time of one year after the launch). In addition, this method significantly reduces the low-energy tail in the line profile of the calibration source spectrum.
The X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS) aboard the Suzaku satellite is an X-ray CCD camera system that has superior performance, such as a low background, high quantum efficiency, and good energy ...resolution in the 0.2–12 keV band. Because of radiation damage in orbit, however, the charge-transfer inefficiency (CTI) has increased, and hence the energy scale and resolution of the XIS has been degraded since the launch in 2005 July. The CCD has a charge-injection structure, and the CTI of each column and the pulse-height dependence of the CTI are precisely measured by a checker flag charge-injection (CFCI) technique. Our precise CTI correction improved the energy resolution from 230 eV to 190 eV at 5.9 keV in 2006 December. This paper reports on CTI measurements with the CFCI experiments in orbit. Using the CFCI results, we have implemented the time-dependent energy scale and resolution to the Suzaku calibration database.
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