Precise mass and spin measurements for a stellar-mass black hole through X-ray timing: the case of GRO J1655−40

Motta, S.; Belloni, T.; Stella, L.; Muñoz-Darias, T.; Fender, R. P.

doi:10.1093/mnras/stt2068

Cited by 231 publications

(321 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…Also, based on the average power spectra of the background sky and a sample of accreting super-massive black holes monitored by the proportional counter array in the same epoch as M82, we rule out an instrumental origin for these oscillations 3 & 4). This leaves M82 X-1, persistently the brightest source in the field of view, as the most likely source associated with the 3:2 ratio quasi-periodic oscillation pair.We estimated M82 X-1's black hole mass, assuming the 1/M (mass) scaling of stellarmass black holes and the relativistic precession model 19,20 , to be 428±105 M ⊙ and 415±63M ⊙ , respectively (Fig. 2a,b).…”

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confidence: 99%

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A 400-solar-mass black hole in the galaxy M82

Pasham

Strohmayer

Mushotzky

2014

Nature

199

197

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The brightest X-ray source in M82 has been thought to be an intermediatemass black hole (10 2−4 solar masses, M ⊙ ) because of its extremely high luminosity and variability characteristics 1−6 , although some models suggest that its mass may be only ∼ 20 M ⊙ 3,7 . The previous mass estimates are based on scaling relations which use low-frequency characteristic timescales which have large intrinsic uncertainties 8,9 . In stellar-mass black holes we know that the high frequency quasi-periodic oscillations that occur in a 3:2 ratio (100-450 Hz) are stable and scale inversely with black hole mass with a reasonably small dispersion 10−15 . The discovery of such stable oscillations thus potentially offers an alternative and less ambiguous mass determination for intermediate-mass black holes, but has hitherto not been realized. Here, we report stable, twin-peak (3:2 frequency ratio) X-ray quasi-periodic oscillations from M82 X-1 at the frequencies of 3.32±0.06Hz and 5.07±0.06 Hz. Assuming that we can scale the stellar-mass relationship, we estimate its black hole mass to be 428±105 M ⊙ . In addition, we can estimate the mass using the relativistic precession model, from which we get a value ofOscillations arising from general relativistic effects should scale inversely with the black hole mass if they arise from orbital motion near the innermost stable circular orbit in the We detected two power spectral peaks at 3.32±0.06 Hz (coherence, Q = centroid frequency (ν)/width(∆ν) > 27) and 5.07±0.06 Hz (Q > 40) consistent with a 3:2 frequency ratio ( Fig. 1a, b). The combined statistical significance of the detection is greater than 4.7σ (see Methods for details).The proportional counter array's field of view (1 • ×1 • ) of M82 includes a number of accreting X-ray sources in addition to M82 X-1 18 . The remarkable stability of the two quasiperiodic oscillations on timescales of a few years (Movies 1 & 2), their 3:2 frequency ratio and their high oscillation luminosities strongly suggest they are not low-frequency quasi-periodic oscillations from a contaminating stellar-mass black hole (see Methods for details). Also a pulsar origin is very unlikely for several reasons. First, a pulsar signal would be much more coherent than that of the observed quasi-periodic oscillations, which clearly have a finite width. Second, based on the observed high quasi-periodic oscillation luminosities it is extremely implausible that they originate from a pulsar (see Methods for details). Finally, it would be highly coincidental to have two pulsars in the same field of view with spins in the 3:2 ratio. Also, based on the average power spectra of the background sky and a sample of accreting super-massive black holes monitored by the proportional counter array in the same epoch as M82, we rule out an instrumental origin for these oscillations 3 & 4). This leaves M82 X-1, persistently the brightest source in the field of view, as the most likely source associated with the 3:2 ratio quasi-periodic oscillation pair.We estimated M82 X-1's black hole ...

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We estimated M82 X-1's black hole mass, assuming the 1/M (mass) scaling of stellarmass black holes and the relativistic precession model 19,20 , to be 428±105 M ⊙ and 415±63…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A 400-solar-mass black hole in the galaxy M82

Pasham

Strohmayer

Mushotzky

2014

Nature

199

197

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“…6 we have used mass estimate which does not come from QPOs data. For completeness we have repeated the test using the alternative mass estimate for the same object given in Motta (2014). The latter mass estimate comes from QPOs data.…”

Section: Gro 1655-40mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The orbital frequency and the epicyclic frequencies take too high values in the vicinity of the ISCO to be associated with the LFQPOs. Several models (Stella & Vietri 1998;Ingram et al 2009;Altamirano et al 2012;Motta 2014;Casella et al 2005) relate the LFQPOs (the horizontalbranch QPOs in the case of Z-type neutron-star sources and the C-type QPOs in the case of black holes) to frame dragging of off-equatorial orbits and Lense-Thirring (LT) precession 1 . The idea that LF QPOs occur due to orbital precession was proposed for the first time in the papers of Stella & Vietri (1998) and Stella et al (1999) and it has later been further exploited.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Confronting models for the high-frequency QPOs with Lense–Thirring precession

Stefanov

2014

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

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Quasiperiodic oscillations (QPOs) have been observed in the power-density spectra of some low-mass X-ray binaries(LMXB) containing a black hole. The two major groups of QPOs -low-frequency (LF) and high-frequency (HF)-have rather different properties. That is why they are usually studied separately. In the literature one can find a large number of models for the high-frequency QPOs but not so many for the low-frequency ones. HF QPOs have attracted significant research efforts due to their potential to provide indispensable information for the properties of the black hole, for its accretion disc and for strong field gravity in general. However, in order to interpret the data for the HF QPOs of the observed objects we have to fix a model. Here we propose a simple test which could allow us to sift the models. The test is based on five rather general assumptions concerning the nature of the central object in black-hole binaries and the mechanism for the generation of the LF QPOs observed in the PDS of such objects. In other words we combine facts that we know about the LF and the HF QPOs of several objects and search for conflicts. As a result we single out a model for the HF QPOs -the 3 : 2 nolinear resonance model. As a byproduct of this study we propose loose constraints on the mass of the LMXB H 1743-322.

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“…The squares, giving the frequency of type C QPOs plotted against itself, illustrate the range of frequencies (and thus radii) over which these QPOs are seen. The red line marks the ISCO radius and nodal frequency; and the red vertical band indicates its corresponding 3σ uncertainty (after Motta et al 2014a). …”

Section: Disk Oscillation Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fast Variability from Black-Hole Binaries

Belloni¹,

Stella²

2014

The Physics of Accretion Onto Black Holes

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Currently available information on fast variability of the X-ray emission from accreting collapsed objects constitutes a complex phenomenology which is difficult to interpret. We review the current observational standpoint for black-hole binaries and survey models that have been proposed to interpret it. Despite the complex structure of the accretion flow, key observational diagnostics have been identified which can provide direct access to the dynamics of matter motions in the close vicinity of black holes and thus to the some of fundamental properties of curved spacetimes, where strong-field general relativistic effects can be observed.

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Precise mass and spin measurements for a stellar-mass black hole through X-ray timing: the case of GRO J1655−40

Cited by 231 publications

References 64 publications

A 400-solar-mass black hole in the galaxy M82

A 400-solar-mass black hole in the galaxy M82

Confronting models for the high-frequency QPOs with Lense–Thirring precession

Fast Variability from Black-Hole Binaries

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