Soft X-ray observations of helmet structures from SXT/Yohkoh

We present soft X-ray observations of helmet structures in solar active regions obtained from SXT/Yohkoh. These helmet structures are observed to form in the flare decay phase and to be associated with active region loop interactions. Their morphology is similar to the much larger scale helmet streamers that appear in the outer corona as shown in optical images of solar eclipse. The observed X-ray helmet structures appear to be in quasi-equilibrium with lifetimes greater than the MHD time scale. Using the filter ratio method for the X-ray observations, we find that the cusp region has lower temperature and higher density than that in the stalk region above it. The plasma pressure in the cusp region is about the same or slightly higher than that in the stalk region.     

Indicators of black-hole mass and Eddington accretion ratio from QSO X-ray and UV spectra

The evolution of luminous QSOs is linked to the evolution of massive galaxies. We know this because the relic black-holes found locally have masses dependent on the properties of the host galaxy’s bulge. An important way to explore this evolution would be to measure dependences of black-hole masses and Eddington accretion ratios over a range of redshifts, i.e., with cosmological age. For low redshift QSOs (and their lower luminosity Seyfert galaxy counterparts) it has been possible to infer black-hole masses from the luminosities and velocity dispersions of their host-galaxy bulges. These masses agree with those virial black-hole masses calculated from the Doppler widths of the broad Hβ emission lines. The latter method can then be extended to more distant and luminous QSOs, up to redshifts of 0.6 with ground-based optical observations. We discuss ways to extend these explorations to higher redshifts – up to 3 using the widths of QSOs’ broad UV emission lines, and in principle, and to redshifts near 4 from ground-based infrared observations of rest-frame Hβ at 2.5 μm. We discuss the possibility of investigating the accretion history of the higher redshift QSOs using measures of Eddington accretion ratio – the soft X-ray spectral index and the eigenvectors of Principal Components Analyses of QSOs’ UV emission-line spectra.     

GaInP2外延膜中施主—受主对复合发光带的能量关量

通过变温与变激发强度的近红外光致发光研究了用ＭＯＣＶＤ方法、生长在ＧａＡｓ衬底上的Ｇａ０．５Ｉｎ０．５Ｐ（ＧａＩｎＰ２）外延薄膜的１．１７ｅＶ发射带的发光特性。１．１７ｅＶ发光带性质与０．９９ｅＶ及０．８５ｅＶ发光带的性质有着明显的差别。１．１７ｅＶ发光带的机理可用施主－受主对的复合发光来解释，其中施主－受主对系白处在Ｇａ格位上的Ｓｉ（ＳｉＧａ）及其最邻近的Ｇａ空位（ＶＧａ）所组成，记作ＳｉＧａ－ＶＧａ。考虑到ＧａＩｎＰ２中存在着很强的电子－格子耦合作用及其Ⅲ族子格子为部分有序，所以在施主－受主对复合发光中应计及Ｆｒａｎｃｋ－Ｃｏｎｄｏｎ位移△ＦＣ及该对在等效的部分有序势场中的相互作用能Ｅｓ（ＤＡＰ）。Ｘ—射线衍射实验表明，部分有序结构相当于成分调制，因而可用Ｋｒｏｎｉｇ－Ｐｅｎｎｅｙ模型来计算Ｅｓ（ＤＡＰ）值。这样，我们就导出了施主－受主对复合发光的新的能量表示式。     

X-Ray Emission from Flare Collapsing Trap

An acceleration process in the collapsing magnetic trap, formed in the flare with cusp magnetic field topology, is described. Computations show that high-energy electrons are accumulated in the central part of the collapsing magnetic trap due to an increase of their pitch angles. The effect explains in a natural way the formation of X-ray loop-top sources. Then, using the model with the collapsing trap and considering only the adiabatic heating process, a possible explanation for the motion of the X-ray loop-top source observed at the beginning of some cusp-type flares is presented.     

Overview of QPOs in neutron-star low-mass X-ray binaries

Some aspects of the rapid X-ray variability of low magnetic-field neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries are briefly summarized.     

Evolution of binaries with chemically peculiar primaries

The chemically peculiar (CP) stars are classified into subgroups based on the type of peculiarities. A significant fraction of these are known to be binaries. The faster evolution of the massive component leads to a white dwarf or a neutron star. Further evolution of the binary is analysed taking into consideration, the orbital parameters, effect of magnetic field, spectroscopic peculiarities and finally the statistics of CP binaries and Low Mass X-ray Binaries (LMXB).

The possible consequences of the evolution to lead to the formation of Magnetic Cataclysmic Variables (MCV) and LMXB are discussed.     

Near infrared studies of the massive X-ray binary 2S 0114+65

We present near-infrared spectroscopy of the massive X-ray binary 2S 0114+650. These observations covering the spectral range 1.08–2.35 μm span the region where Paschen and Brackett series recombination lines of hydrogen are expected to be seen, namely, Paβ , Brγ and Br 10–17 lines. The absence of any of these lines in emission supports earlier inferences that the optical component in 2S 0114+650 is unlikely to be a Be star but rather a B type supergiant. Near-IR photometry gives J = 8.78, H = 8.53 and K = 7.96; these values show marginal variations from earlier reported measurements.     

Orbital evolution studies of two HMXB pulsars

High mass X-ray binary (HMXB) pulsars are of two types, persistent and transient. 4U1538−52 is a persistent HMXB whose orbit was previously measured to be circular but the RXTE observations revealed an eccentric orbit. We observed this system with RXTE-PCA in August 2003 and our timing analysis supports the eccentric orbit of the system. However, we do not find any evidence for orbital evolution.

Rotational and tidal interactions between the stars of a closed binary system result in apsidal motion which can be measured in systems with eccentric orbit. 4U0115+63 is a Be-transient HMXB whose eccentric orbit was well-determined during its 1978 outburst. We report preliminary results from analysis of data obtained during the 1999 outburst of this source with the RXTE-PCA.     

Effects of the photo-ionized absorber on the continuum spectra of EXO 0748–676

We report on the analysis of XMM-Newton archival data of EXO 0748–676. We studied changes of the continuum spectra due to the presence of photo-ionized plasma on the line of sight. We show that the ionization degree of the plasma could change largely during the X-ray bursts and the dips. These changes can significantly modify the soft-band spectrum, which was in fact observed from EXO 0748–676. We discuss the effect of the photo-ionized plasma on the continuum spectra in comparison with a frequently used model such as partial covering absorption.     

Superclustering of galaxies and X-ray sources

An attempt is made to compare optical properties of Abell clusters with X-ray sources.