Related papers: Transient Black Hole Binaries
The outburst cycles of black hole X-ray transients are now generally understood as caused by a thermal instability in the accretion disk, the same mechanism as in dwarf novae outbursts. During quiescence the accretion occurs via a cool disk…
Accreting black-hole binaries change their properties during evolution, passing through two main luminous states, dominated by either hard or soft X-rays. In the hard state, steady compact jets emitting multiwavelength radiation are…
Black hole and neutron star X-ray binary systems routinely show quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) in their X-ray flux. Despite being strong, easily measurable signals, their physical origin has long remained elusive. However, recent…
Aims: We summarize the current observational picture of the outbursts of black-hole X-ray transients (BHTs), based on the evolution traced in a hardness-luminosity diagram (HLD), and we offer a physical interpretation. Methods: The basic…
In this paper we study the relation of radio emission to X-ray spectral and variability properties for a large sample of black hole X-ray binary systems. This is done to test, refine and extend -- notably into the timing properties -- the…
Accretion onto black holes often leads to the launch of outflows that significantly influence their surrounding environments. The two primary forms of these outflows are X-ray disk winds-hot, ionized gases ejected from the accretion…
Black hole X-ray binaries (BHXBs) show rich phenomenology in the spectral and timing properties. We collected the spectral data of 20 BHXBs from the literature across different spectral states. The spectral properties are studied in the…
Studies of the observed characteristics of black-hole (BH) X-ray binaries can be provide us with valuable information about the process of BH formation. In this paper I address some of the aspects of our current understanding of BH…
The X-ray signal from active galactic nuclei and black hole X-ray binaries is highly variable on a range of timescales. This variability can be exploited to map the region of interest close to the black hole, which is far too small to…
A framework for the interpretation of the spectral states of black hole X-ray transients based on the diversity of accretion disk models is introduced. Depending on the mass accretion rate, it is proposed that the accretion disk is…
Spectral features can arise by reflection of coronal X-rays on a black hole accretion disc. The resulting profile bears various imprints of strong gravitational field acting on the light emitting gas. The observed shape of the reflection…
X-ray binaries, as bright local sources with short variability timescales for a wide range of accretion processes, represent ideal targets for high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy. In this chapter, we present a high-resolution X-ray spectral…
The most plausible mechanism for triggering the outburst of black hole candidate X-ray transients is the ionization thermal instability. The disk instability models can give the observed mass flow in quiescence, but not the X-ray spectrum.…
In this review, I summarize the main X-ray/hard X-ray properties of the accretion flows around black holes and neutron stars based on recent broad-band spectral and timing observations performed by the BeppoSAX and Rossi X-ray Timing…
We review the likely population, observational properties, and broad implications of stellar-mass black holes and ultraluminous x-ray sources. We focus on the clear empirical rules connecting accretion and outflow that have been established…
Optical outburst spectra of low-mass X-ray binaries enable studies of extreme accretion and ejection phenomena. While some of their spectroscopic features have been analysed in detail, the appearance of broad absorptions in the optical…
Multiwavelength variability data, combined with spectral-timing analysis techniques, provides information about the causal relationship between different physical components in accreting black holes. Using fast-timing data and long-term…
Long-term observations have shown that black hole X-ray binaries exhibit strong, aperiodic variability on time-scales of a few milliseconds to seconds. The observed light curves display various characteristic features like a log-normal…
With their relatively fast variability time-scales, Galactic X-ray binaries provide an excellent laboratory to explore the physics of accretion and related phenomena, most notably outflows, over different regimes. After comparing the…
We explore the evolution in power of black holes of all masses, and their associated jets, within the scheme of an accretion rate-dependent state transition. Below a critical value of the accretion rate all systems are assumed to undergo a…