A Hard Look at the Neutron Stars and Accretion Disks in 4U 1636-53, GX 17+2, and 4U 1705-44 with NuStar
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 1085 South University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107 (United States)
- INAF/Osservatorio Astronomico di Cagliari, via della Scienza 5, I-09047 Selargius (Canada) (Italy)
- Université de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP, Toulouse (France)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Wayne State University, 666 W. Hancock Street, Detroit, MI 48201 (United States)
- Institute of Astronomy, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA (United Kingdom)
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Chimica, Universitá degli Studi di Palermo, via Archirafi 36, I-90123, Palermo (Italy)
- Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica, INAF-IAPS, via del Fosso del Cavaliere, I-00133 Roma (Italy)
- Space Sciences Laboratory, 7 Gauss Way, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-7450 (United States)
- Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, 550 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027 (United States)
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, F{sub Edd}, 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{sub α} line. Through accretion disk reflection modeling, we constrain the radius of the inner disk in 4U 1636-53 to be R{sub in}=1.03±0.03 ISCO (innermost stable circular orbit), assuming a dimensionless spin parameter a{sub ∗}=cJ/GM{sup 2}=0.0, and R{sub in}=1.08±0.06 ISCO for a{sub ∗}=0.3 (errors quoted at 1σ). This value proves to be model independent. For a{sub ∗}=0.3 and M=1.4 M{sub ⊙}, for example, 1.08 ± 0.06 ISCO translates to a physical radius of R=10.8±0.6 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, R{sub in}=1.00--1.04 ISCO for a{sub ∗}=0.0 and R{sub in}=1.03--1.30 ISCO for a{sub ∗}=0.3. For a{sub ∗}=0.3 and M=1.4 M{sub ⊙}, R{sub in}=1.03--1.30 ISCO translates to R=10.3--13.0 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 a{sub ∗}=0.0 and 1.69–1.93 ISCO for a{sub ∗}=0.3. 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.
- OSTI ID:
- 22869352
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 836, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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