Black holes, neutron stars, white dwarfs and their local environment

    General
    Description

    Accreting black-holes and neutron stars in X-ray binaries provide an ideal laboratory for exploring the physics of compact objects, yielding not only confirmation of the existence of stellar mass black holes via dynamical mass measurements, but also the best opportunity for probing high-gravity environments and the physics of accretion; the most efficient form of energy production known. The latter is an essential physical process to understand the universe, playing a crucial role in galactic and extra-galactic astronomy.

    This project has the following scientific goals:

    - X-ray binaries offer the opportunity to study accretion as its best, since their relevant changes occur on convenient time-scales for human beings. This project focuses on the universal relation between black-hole accretion and ejection processes in the form of collimated jets and wide-angle winds. We will focus on the general properties and astrophysical impact of the cold optical accretion disc wind that our group has discovered. We want to understand how frequent these winds are, which is their impact in the black-hole accretion process, and what is their relation with jets and hot X-ray winds. Likewise, we carry out very detailed X-ray spectral studies on the different accretion states and geometries and their evolution with luminosity.

    - We want to define the mass distribution of black-holes and neutron stars. Thus, we continue our contribution to one of the fundamental experiments in modern astrophysics by measuring dynamical masses in X-ray binaries. We expect to significantly improve the observed mass distribution of compact objects. This will allow testing models of supernovae explosions and close binary evolution as well as setting constraints on the equation of state of nuclear matter. We will measure masses in newly discovered or known transient X-ray binaries. In addition, we will also search for the large number of dormant X-ray binaries expected in the Galaxy and suitable for dynamical studies.

    - To study the structure of accretion discs in different energy bands (optical-X rays). The high energy spectral distribution and time variability during outburst is important to constrain the eruption models and accretion disc properties (e.g. radius of advective disc) as well as to constrain the contribution of the jet to the optical and infrared emission of the system.

     

    see group web page:  https://research.iac.es/proyecto/compactos/pages/en/introduction.php

    Principal investigator
    1. Our team has led the multi-wavelength study of the two 2015 outbursts of the Black-hole transient V404 Cyg. In 2018, we published a global paper which include all the spectroscopy taken during the 1989 and 2015 campaigns.
    2. We have presented solid evidence for the presence of very similar wind to that found in V404 Cyg in another black hole transient, V4641 Sgr.
    3. We published the final paper as well as a pilot study on a novel method developed by the group. It aims at discovering and measuring masses of black hole transient in quiescence. This method has the potential of increasing the known population of these systems by a factor of three.
    4. We measured the mass of the neutron star in PSR J2215+5135 and found it is one of the heaviest known to date.
    5. We presented the first detailed study on the ultra-compact system SLX 1737-282.

    Related publications

    Optical pulsations from the anomalous X-ray pulsar 1E1048.1-5937 2009MNRAS.394L.112D
    Optical/infrared observations of the X-ray burster KS1731-260 in quiescence 2010A&A...512A..26Z
    On the nature of HD 207331: a new δ Scuti variable 2008CoAst.156...27M
    Disentangling jet and disc emission from the 2005 outburst of XTE J1118+480 2010MNRAS.404..908B
    Time-Resolved Optical Photometry of the Ultracompact Binary 4U 0614+091 2008PASP..120..848S
    The First Polarimetric Signatures of Infrared Jets in X-Ray Binaries 2008ApJ...672..510S
    SWIFT J1753.5-0127: A Surprising Optical/X-Ray Cross-Correlation Function 2008ApJ...682L..45D
    Rapid optical and X-ray timing observations of GX339-4: multicomponent optical variability in the low/hard state 2010MNRAS.407.2166G
    Rapid optical and X-ray timing observations of GX 339-4: flux correlations at the onset of a low/hard state 2008MNRAS.390L..29G
    Multiwavelength spectral and high time resolution observations of SWIFTJ1753.5-0127: new activity? 2009MNRAS.392..309D
    GX 9+9: Variability of the X-Ray Orbital Modulation 2009ApJ...696.1987H
    The near-infrared counterpart of 4U 1636-53 2012A&A...539A..53R
    Polarimetry of the transient relativistic jet of GRB 110328/Swift J164449.3+573451 2012MNRAS.421.1942W
    Optical and near-infrared spectroscopy of the black hole GX 339-4 - I. A focus on the continuum in the low/hard and high/soft states 2012MNRAS.422.2202R
    Flares from a candidate Galactic magnetar suggest a missing link to dim isolated neutron stars 2008Natur.455..506C
    Observational properties of accretion discs: Precessing and warped? 2008NewAR..51..768C
    Decade time-scale modulation of low-mass X-ray binaries 2010MNRAS.401..355D
    Correlated optical/X-ray long-term variability in LMXB 4U 1636-536 2011MNRAS.412..120S
    Combined Chandra, XMM-Newton, and Hubble Space Telescope observations of the Galactic globular cluster NGC 2808 2008A&A...490..641S
    The quiescent spectral energy distribution of V404 Cyg 2009MNRAS.399.2239H
    The optical counterparts of accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars during quiescence 2009A&A...508..297D
    The nature of the X-ray transient MAXI J0556-332 2012MNRAS.420.3538C
    The Fast Spiral-in of the Companion Star to the Black Hole XTE J1118+480 2012ApJ...744L..25G
    Swift J1753.5-0127: The Black Hole Candidate with the Shortest Orbital Period 2008ApJ...681.1458Z
    Refined Orbital Solution and Quiescent Variability in the Black Hole Transient GS 1354-64 (= BW Cir) 2009ApJS..181..238C
    Phase-resolved spectroscopy of the accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar SAX J1808.4-3658 during the 2008 outburst 2009A&A...495L...1C
    On the masses and evolutionary status of the black hole binary GX 339-4: a twin system of XTE J1550-564? 2008MNRAS.385.2205M
    On the mass of the neutron star in Cyg X-2 2010MNRAS.401.2517C
    On the binary nature of the γ-ray sources AGL J2241+4454 (= MWC 656) and HESS J0632+057 (= MWC 148) 2012MNRAS.421.1103C
    Observations of the quiescent X-ray transients GRS 1124-684 (=GUMus) and Cen X-4 (=V822Cen) taken with ULTRACAM on the VLT 2010MNRAS.403.2167S
    Observations of the 599 Hz Accreting X-Ray Pulsar IGR J00291+5934 during the 2004 Outburst and in Quiescence 2008ApJ...672.1079T
    High time resolution optical/X-ray cross-correlations for X-ray binaries: anticorrelations and rapid variability 2011MNRAS.410.2329D
    Evidence for a black hole in the X-ray transient XTE J1859+226 2011MNRAS.413L..15C
    Dynamical constraints on the neutron star mass in EXO 0748-676 2009MNRAS.394L.136M
    Doppler tomography of the black hole binary A0620-00 and the origin of chromospheric emission in quiescent X-ray binaries 2010A&A...516A..58G
    Chemical Abundances of the Secondary Star in the Black Hole X-Ray Binary V404 Cygni 2011ApJ...738...95G
    A first catalogue of automatically selected ultraviolet-excess sources from the UVEX survey 2012MNRAS.420.1115V

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