Optical properties of Small Magellanic Cloud X-ray binaries

Coe, M. J.; Edge, W. R. T.; Galache, J. L.; McBride, V. A.

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2004.08467.x

Cited by 114 publications

(229 citation statements)

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“…Description Liu et al (2005) HMXB catalogue of the Magellanic Clouds Coe et al (2005) Optical properties of HMXBs in the SMC Shtykovskiy & Gilfanov (2005) HMXBs in archival XMM-Newton data McGowan et al (2008b) Chandra SMC Wing survey Galache et al (2008) RXTE observations of SMC pulsars McBride et al (2008) Optical spectroscopy of BeXRB pulsars in the SMC New BeXRBs from XMM-Newton observations in Antoniou et al (2009b Optical identification of Chandra sources Antoniou et al (2009a) Optical spectroscopy of BeXRBs in the SMC Laycock et al (2010) Catalogue of SMC sources from deep Chandra observations a Rajoelimanana et al (2011b) Long-term optical variability of HMXB pulsars in the SMC Sturm et al (2013c) XMM-Newton survey of the SMC Coe & Kirk (2015) BeXRB pulsars in the SMC Notes. (a) Includes detections down to two net counts.…”

Section: Referencementioning

confidence: 99%

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High-mass X-ray binaries in the Small Magellanic Cloud

Haberl

Sturm

2016

A&A

157

176

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Aims. The last comprehensive catalogue of high-mass X-ray binaries in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) was published about ten years ago. Since then new such systems were discovered, mainly by X-ray observations with Chandra and XMM-Newton. For the majority of the proposed HMXBs in the SMC no X-ray pulsations were discovered as yet, and unless other properties of the X-ray source and/or the optical counterpart confirm their HMXB nature, they remain only candidate HMXBs. Methods. From a literature search we collected a catalogue of 148 confirmed and candidate HMXBs in the SMC and investigated their properties to shed light on their real nature. Based on the sample of well-established HMXBs (the pulsars), we investigated which observed properties are most appropriate for a reliable classification. We defined different levels of confidence for a genuine HMXB based on spectral and temporal characteristics of the X-ray sources and colour-magnitude diagrams from the optical to the infrared of their likely counterparts. We also took the uncertainty in the X-ray position into account. Results. We identify 27 objects that probably are misidentified because they lack an infrared excess of the proposed counterpart. They were mainly X-ray sources with a large positional uncertainty. This is supported by additional information obtained from more recent observations. Our catalogue comprises 121 relatively high-confidence HMXBs (the vast majority with Be companion stars). About half of the objects show X-ray pulsations, while for the rest no pulsations are known as yet. A comparison of the two subsamples suggests that long pulse periods in excess of a few 100 s are expected for the "non-pulsars", which are most likely undetected because of aperiodic variability on similar timescales and insufficiently long X-ray observations. The highest X-ray variability together with the lowest observed minimum fluxes for short-period pulsars indicate that in addition to the eccentricity of the orbit, its inclination against the plane of the Be star circum-stellar disc plays a major role in determining the outburst behaviour. Conclusions. The large population of HMXBs in the SMC, in particular Be X-ray binaries, provides the largest homogeneous sample of such systems for statistical population studies.

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Section: Referencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Spectral types and the strength of the Hα emission were determined and can be found in the literature (e.g. Coe et al 2005;McBride et al 2008). Therefore, class I objects can be used to define a representative sample.…”

Section: Confidence Classes Of Hmxbs and Candidatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

High-mass X-ray binaries in the Small Magellanic Cloud

Haberl

Sturm

2016

A&A

157

176

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“…This source exhibits most of the characteristics of Be/X-ray binary systems, revealing both a binary period of 17d (Coe et al, 2013c) and an X-ray pulse period of 5.05s (Coe et al, 2013d). Because of this pulse period we will refer to the system as SXP 5.05 throughout this paper (following the naming convention of Coe et al, 2005). Unusually, the neutron star in this system is clearly occulted by the Be star's circumstellar disk.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SXP 5.05 = IGR J00569-7226: using X-rays to explore the structure of a Be star's circumstellar disc

Coe

Bartlett

Bird

et al. 2015

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

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On MJD 56590-1 (2013 Oct 25-26) observations of the Magellanic Clouds by the INTErnational Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL) observatory discovered a previously-unreported bright, flaring X-ray source. This source was initially given the identification IGR J00569-7226. Subsequent multi-wavelength observations identified the system as new Be/X-ray binary system in the Small Magellanic Cloud. Follow-up X-ray observations by Swift and XMM-Newton revealed an X-ray pulse period of 5.05s and that the system underwent regular occulation/eclipse behaviour every 17d. This is the first reported eclipsing Be/X-ray binary system in the SMC, and only the second such system known to date. Furthermore, the nature of the occultation makes it possible to use the neutron star to "X-ray" the circumstellar disk, thereby, for the first time, revealing direct observational evidence for its size and clumpy structure. Swift timing measurements allowed for the binary solution to be calculated from the Doppler shifted X-ray pulsations. This solution suggests this is a low eccentricity binary relative to others measured in the SMC. Finally it is interesting to note that the mass determined from this dynamical method for the Be star (∼ 13.0M ⊙ ) is significantly different from that inferred from the spectroscopic classification of B0.2Ve (∼ 16.0M ⊙ ) -an effect that has been noted for some other high mass X-ray binary (HMXB) systems.

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“…One of the first XMM-Newton observations of the SMC survey revealed the new high-mass X-ray binary pulsar XMMU J004814.0-732204 with a pulse period of 11.866 s (following Coe et al 2005, we give it the alternative name SXP11.87). Its X-ray behaviour and the properties of the optical counterpart (star with OGLE-III ID 14688) are typical of a Be -neutron star binary system.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

TheXMM-Newtonsurvey of the Small Magellanic Cloud: discovery of the 11.866 s Be/X-ray binary pulsar XMMU J004814.0-732204(SXP11.87)

Sturm

Haberl

Coe

et al. 2011

A&A

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Aims. One of the goals of the XMM-Newton survey of the Small Magellanic Cloud is the study of the Be/X-ray binary population. During one of our first survey observations a bright new transient − XMMU J004814.0-732204 − was discovered. Methods. We present the analysis of the EPIC X-ray data together with optical observations, to investigate the spectral and temporal characteristics of XMMU J004814.0-732204. Results. We found coherent X-ray pulsations in the EPIC data with a period of (11.86642 ± 0.00017) s. The X-ray spectrum can be modelled by an absorbed power-law with indication for a soft excess. Depending on the modelling of the soft X-ray spectrum, the photon index ranges between 0.53 and 0.66. We identify the optical counterpart as a B = 14.9mag star which was monitored during the MACHO and OGLE-III projects. The optical light curves show regular outbursts by ∼0.5 mag in B and R and up to 0.9 mag in I which repeat with a time scale of about 1000 days. The OGLE-III optical colours of the star are consistent with an early B spectral type. An optical spectrum obtained at the 1.9 m telescope of the South African Astronomical Observatory in December 2009 shows Hα emission with an equivalent width of 3.5 ± 0.6 Å. Conclusions. The X-ray spectrum and the detection of pulsations suggest that XMMU J004814.0-732204 is a new high mass X-ray binary pulsar in the SMC. The long term variability and the Hα emission line in the spectrum of the optical counterpart identify it as a Be/X-ray binary system.

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Optical properties of Small Magellanic Cloud X-ray binaries

Cited by 114 publications

References 41 publications

High-mass X-ray binaries in the Small Magellanic Cloud

High-mass X-ray binaries in the Small Magellanic Cloud

SXP 5.05 = IGR J00569-7226: using X-rays to explore the structure of a Be star's circumstellar disc

TheXMM-Newtonsurvey of the Small Magellanic Cloud: discovery of the 11.866 s Be/X-ray binary pulsar XMMU J004814.0-732204(SXP11.87)

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