Related papers: Comparison of Relativistic Iron Line Models
We extend our recent work on black hole spin in X-ray binary systems to include an analysis of 189 archival NuSTAR observations from 24 sources. Using self-consistent data reduction pipelines, spectral models, and statistical techniques, we…
The black-hole spin parameter, $a_*$, was measured to be close to its maximum value of 1 in many accreting X-ray binaries. In particular, $a_*\gtrsim 0.9$ was found in a number of studies of LMC X-1. These measurements were claimed to take…
Accreting black holes show characteristic 'reflection' features in their X-ray spectra, including the iron K$\alpha$ fluorescence line, which result from X-rays radiated by a compact central corona being reprocessed in the accretion disc…
Measurements of the angular momentum (spin) of astrophysical black holes are extremely important, as they provide information on the black hole formation and evolution. We present simulated observations of a X-ray binary system with the…
In this contribution, I briefly review recent progress in detecting and measuring the properties of relativistic iron lines observed in stellar-mass black hole systems, and the aspects of these lines that are most relevant to studies of…
Recent X-ray spectroscopy made with ASCA have shown broad, skewed iron line emission from Seyfert-1 galaxies. The large extent of the red tail allows probing of the innermost regions of the black hole's accretion disc. A model of line…
The spin of Cygnus X-1 is measured by fitting reflection models to Suzaku data covering the energy band 0.9-400 keV. The inner radius of the accretion disc is found to lie within 2 gravitational radii (r_g=GM/c^2) and a value for the…
I report the discovery of a prominent broad and asymmetrical feature near 6.4 keV in the Seyfert 1 MCG-02-14-009 (z=0.028) with XMM-Newton/EPIC. The present short X-ray observation (PN net exposure time ~5 ks) is the first one above 2 keV…
We discuss constraints on the physics of the inner accretion disk, as well as the properties of the black hole itself, that can be derived by a detailed examination of the relativistically broadened spectral features (especially the…
The bright Seyfert 1 galaxy MCG-6-30-15 has provided some of the best evidence to date for the existence of supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei. Observations with ASCA revealed an X-ray iron line profile shaped by strong…
Cygnus X-1 is a well-studied persistent black hole X-ray binary. Recently, the three parameters needed to estimate the black hole spin of this system, namely the black hole mass $M$, the orbital inclination $i$ and the source distance $D$,…
This paper employs direct spectral fitting of individual orbital data in order to measure rapid X-ray iron K_alpha line and continuum spectral slope variations in Seyfert 1 galaxies with unprecedented temporal resolution. Application of…
Angular momentum, or spin, is a fundamental property of black holes (BHs), yet it is much more difficult to estimate than mass or accretion rate (for actively accreting systems). In recent years, high-quality X-ray observations have allowed…
Accreting black holes often show iron line emission in their X-ray spectra. When this line emission is very broad or variable then it is likely to originate from close to the black hole. The theory and observations of such broad and…
X-ray reflection spectroscopy is a powerful tool for testing the Kerr hypothesis and probing the strong gravity regime around accreting black holes. Most tests of General Relativity (GR) assume that the spacetime around a black hole is…
The reflection spectroscopic model RELXILL is commonly implemented in studying relativistic X-ray reflection from accretion disks around black holes. We present a systematic study of the model's capability to constrain the dimensionless…
We present 3-79 keV NuSTAR observations of the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary 4U 1636-53 in the soft, transitional and hard state. The spectra display a broad emission line at 5-10 keV. We applied several models to fit this line: A…
We have explored spectral line profiles due to spiral patterns in accretion discs around black holes. A parametrization was employed for the shape and emissivity of spiral waves, which can be produced by non-axisymmetric perturbations…
Future X-ray instrumentation is expected to allow us to significantly improve the constraints derivedfrom the Fe K lines in AGN, such as the black-hole angular momentum (spin) and the inclination angle of the putative accretion disk. We…
We provided a comprehensive study of the properties of the black hole in the low-mass X-ray binary system 4U 1543-47, specifically focusing on the 2021 outburst (MJD 59380-59470). Using observations from the \textit{Insight}-HXMT mission,…