Related papers: Black Hole X-ray Transients
We show that stable disk accretion should be very rare among low-mass X-ray binaries and cataclysmic variables whose evolution is driven by the nuclear expansion of the secondary star on the first giant branch. Stable accretion is confined…
After an X-ray binary experiences a transient jet ejection, it undergoes a phase in which its X-ray light curve is dominated, for some time, by thermal emission from an accretion disk surrounding the black hole. The accretion physics in the…
Stellar-mass black holes (BHs) are mostly found in X-ray transients, a subclass of X-ray binaries that exhibit violent outbursts. None of the 50 Galactic BHs known show eclipses, which is surprising for a random distribution of…
Most accreting black holes emit a substantial fraction of their luminosity in hard X-rays/soft $\gamma$-rays of up to $\sim{\rm few}\times100$ keV. The observations suggest that the radiating gas is very hot, $T>10^9$ K, and optically thin.…
Many distinct classes of high-energy variability have been observed in astrophysical sources, on a range of timescales. The widest range (spanning microseconds-decades) is found in accreting, stellar-mass compact objects, including neutron…
Several physical and astrophysical problems related to accretion onto black holes and neutron stars are shortly reviewed. I discuss the observed differences between these two types of compact objects in quiescent Soft X-ray Transients. Then…
An empirical relation between `canonical' X-ray states in black hole X-ray binaries and radio emission is presented. In the Low/Hard state a quasi-continuous radio-emitting jet is produced. In the the High/Soft state the jet is not…
X-ray signatures of outflowing gas have been detected in several accreting black-hole binaries, always in the soft state. A key question raised by these observations is whether these winds might also exist in the hard state. Here, we carry…
The origins of X-ray and radio emissions during an X-ray binary outburst are comparatively better understood than those of ultraviolet, optical and infrared radiation. This is because multiple competing mechanisms peak in these mid-energy…
Accreting black holes in galactic X-ray sources are surrounded by hot plasma. The innermost part of these systems is likely a corona with different temperatures for ions and electrons. In the so-called low-hard state, hot electrons…
We report on X-ray observations made with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer of the black hole candidate (BHC) transient XTE J1650-500 at the end of its first, and currently only, outburst. By monitoring the source at low luminosities over…
Luminous accreting stellar mass and supermassive black holes produce power-law continuum X-ray emission from a compact central corona. Reverberation time lags occur due to light travel time-delays between changes in the direct coronal…
Simultaneous multiwavelength observations were recently performed for three black hole candidates --- SWIFT J1753.5-0127, GRO J1655-40 and XTE J1720-318. In this paper we test the accretion-jet model originally proposed to XTE J1118+480 by…
The nearby accreting neutron star binary Sco X-1 is the closest example of ongoing relativistic jet production at high Eddington ratios. Previous radio studies have revealed that alongside mildly relativistic, radio-emitting ejecta, there…
The origin of Galactic cosmic rays (CRs) is unknown even though they have traditionally been connected to supernovae based on energetic arguments. In the past decades, Galactic black holes in X-ray binaries (BHXBs) have been proposed as…
Radiation-pressure instability was identified soon after the seminal classical accretion disk models of Shakura-Sunyaev and Novikov-Thorne, yet its full implications remain an active area of investigation. These models form the backbone of…
The high energy radiation emitted by black hole X-ray binaries originates in an accretion disk, hence the variability of the lightcurves mirrors the dynamics of the disc. We study the time evolution of the emitted flux in order to find…
At luminosities below a few percent of Eddington, accreting black holes switch to a hard spectral state which is very different from the soft blackbody-like spectral state that is found at higher luminosities. The hard state 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…
Various types of active galactic nuclei (AGN) are briefly discussed, with an emphasis on the theory of recent X-ray and $\gamma$-ray observations of the subclass, Seyfert 1 galaxies. The large radiation power from AGN is thought to…