Related papers: X-Ray Studies of Redbacks
The Galactic population of rotation-powered (aka radio) millisecond pulsars (MSPs) exhibits diverse X-ray properties. Energetic MSPs show pulsed non-thermal radiation from their magnetospheres. Eclipsing binary MSPs predominantly have X-ray…
In this chapter we give an overview of the properties of X-ray binary systems containing a weakly magnetized neutron star. These are old (Giga-years life-time) semi-detached binary systems containing a neutron star with a relatively weak…
We report the detection of the millisecond pulsar B1257+12 with the Chandra X-ray Observatory. In a 20 ks exposure we detected 25 photons from the pulsar, with energies between 0.4 and 2.0 keV, corresponding to the flux F_X=(4.4+/-…
A plausible model for the Crab Nebula is one in which a particle dominated, highly relativistic wind from the pulsar passes through a shock front in which the particles attain a power law energy distribution. The electrons and positrons…
We present a high-resolution echelle spectrum taken with the Very Large Telescope and analyse archival Hubble Space Telescope photometry of the recently identified companion of the eclipsing millisecond radio pulsar PSR J1740-5340 in the…
Eclipsing pulsar binaries and binaries with a high mass companion are ideal systems for studying and understanding the properties of plasma in magneto-ionic environments. In this work, the first paper of a series, we present MeerKAT…
We perform three-dimensional numerical simulations of surface flows on the companion star in a semi-detached binary system and construct the corresponding Doppler maps. The mass ratio of the binary system, $q=M_2/M_1$, considered here is…
We present preliminary results from our archival Spitzer Space Telescope program aimed at characterizing the mid-IR properties of compact objects, both isolated and in binary systems, i.e. white dwarfs, X-ray binaries, cataclysmic…
We present a detailed NIR/optical/UV study of the transient low mass X-ray binary 1RXS J180408.9-342058 performed during its 2015 outburst, aimed at determining the nature of its companion star. We obtained three optical spectra at the 2.1…
Redbacks are millisecond pulsar binaries with low mass, irradiated companions. These systems have a rich phenomenology that can be used to probe binary evolution models, pulsar wind physics, and the neutron star mass distribution. A number…
Reliable neutron star mass measurements are key to determining the equation-of-state of cold nuclear matter, but these are rare. "Black Widows" and "Redbacks" are compact binaries consisting of millisecond pulsars and semi-degenerate…
PSR J1023+0038 (J1023) is a binary system hosting a neutron star and a low mass companion. J1023 is the best studied transitional pulsar, alternating a faint eclipsing millisecond radio pulsar state to a brighter X-ray active state. At…
The millisecond pulsar PSR J1740-5340 in the globular cluster NGC 6397 shows radio eclipses over ~40% of its binary orbit. A first Chandra observation revealed indications for the X-ray flux being orbit dependent as well. In this work we…
The outbursts of low mass X-ray binaries are prolonged relative to those of dwarf nova cataclysmic variables as a consequence of X-ray irradiation of the disc. We show that the time-scale of the decay light curve and its luminosity at a…
In this Paper we report on optical spectroscopic observations of the low-mass X-ray binary 2S 0921-630 obtained with the Very Large Telescope. We found sinusoidal radial velocity variations of the companion star with a semi-amplitude of…
We present Keck spectroscopic measurements of the millisecond pulsar binary J2215+5135. These data indicate a neutron-star (NS) mass M_NS=1.6Mo, much less than previously estimated. The pulsar heats the companion face to T_D~9000K; the…
XSS J12270-4859 (henceforth J12270) is the first low-mass X-ray binary to exhibit a transition, taking place at the end of 2012, from an X-ray active state to a radio pulsar state. The X-ray emission based on archival XMM-Newton…
We have detected an x-ray nebula around the binary millisecond pulsar B1957+20. A narrow tail, corresponding to the shocked pulsar wind, is seen interior to the known H-alpha bow shock and proves the long-held assumption that the rotational…
We report phase-resolved optical polarimetric, photometric and spectroscopic observations of RX J2115.7-5840 (= EUVE J2115-58.6, Craig 1996) which confirms the system to be a magnetic cataclysmic binary of the polar (AM Herculis) subclass.…
We report the possible optical identification of the companion to the eclipsing millisecond pulsar PSR J1740-5340 in the globular cluster NGC 6397. A bright variable star with an anomalous red colour and optical variability which nicely…