Long Term X-Ray Spectral Variations of the Seyfert-1 Galaxy Mrk 279

We present the results from a long term X-ray analysis of Mrk 279 during the period 2018–2020.We use data from multiple missions–AstroSat,NuSTAR and XMM-Newton,for the purpose.The X-ray spectrum can be modeled as a double Comptonization along with the presence of neutral Fe Kαline emission,at all epochs.We determined the source’s X-ray flux and luminosity at these different epochs.We find significant variations in the source’s flux state.We also investigate the variations in the source’s spectral components during the observation period.We find that the photon index and hence the spectral shape follow the variations only over longer time periods.We probe the correlations between fluxes of different bands and their photon indices,and found no significant correlations between the parameters.

Broadband Spectral Properties of MAXI J1348-630 using AstroSat Observations

We present broadband X-ray spectral analysis of the black hole X-ray binary MAXI J1348-630,performed using five AstroSat observations.The source was in the soft spectral state for the first three observations and in the hard state for the last two.The three soft state spectra were modeled using a relativistic thin accretion disk with reflection features and thermal Comptonization.Joint fitting of the soft state spectra constrained the spin parameter of the black hole a_(*)>0.97 and the disk inclination angle i=32.9_(-0.6)^(+4.1)degrees.The bright and faint hard states had bolometric flux a factor of~6 and~10 less than that of the soft state respectively.Their spectra were fitted using the same model except that the inner disk radius was not assumed to be at the last stable orbit.However,the estimated values do not indicate large truncation radii and the inferred accretion rate in the disk was an order of magnitude lower than that of the soft state.Along with earlier reported temporal analysis,AstroS at data provide a comprehensive picture of the evolution of the source.

Log-normal flux distribution of bright Fermi blazars

We present the results of the γ-ray flux distribution study on the brightest blazars which were observed by Fermi-LAT. We selected 50 of the brightest blazars based on the maximum number of detections reported in the Third LAT AGN Catalog. We performed standard unbinned maximum likelihood analysis on the LAT data during the period between August 2008 and December 2016, in order to obtain the average monthly flux. After quality cuts, blazars for which at least 90% of the total flux had survived were selected for further study, and this included 19 FSRQs and 19 BL Lacs. The Anderson-Darling and χ2 tests suggest that the integrated monthly flux follows a log-normal distribution for all sources, except for three FSRQs for which neither a normal nor a log-normal distribution was preferred. A double log-normal flux distribution tendency was observed in these sources, though this has to be confirmed with improved statistics. We also found that the standard deviation of the log-normal flux distribution increases with the mean spectral index of the blazar, and can be fitted with a line of slope 0.24±0.04. We repeat our study on three additional brightest unclassified blazars to identify their flux distribution properties. Based on the features of their log-normal flux distribution, we infer these unclassified blazars may be closely associated with FSRQs. We also highlight that considering the lognormal behavior of the flux distribution of blazars, averaging their long term flux on a linear scale can largely underestimate the nominal flux and this discrepancy can propagate down to the estimation of source parameters through spectral modeling.

AstroSat observation of GX 5–1: spectral and timing evolution

We report on the first analysis of an AstroSat observation of the Z-source GX 5–1 on 2017 February 26-27. The hardness-intensity plot reveals that the source traced out the horizontal and normal branches. The 0.8-20 keV spectra from simultaneous SXT and LAXPC data at different locations of the hardness-intensity plot can be described well by disk emission and a thermal Comptonized component. The ratio of the disk flux to the total flux, i.e., the disk flux ratio, increases monotonically along the horizontal branch to the normal one. Thus, the difference between the normal and horizontal branches is that in the normal branch, the disk dominates the flux while in the horizontal one it is the Comptonized component which dominates. The disk flux scales with the inner disk temperature as Tin5.5 and not as Tin4 , suggesting that either the inner radius changes dramatically or that the disk is irradiated by the thermal component changing its hardness factor. The power spectra reveal a quasi-periodic oscillation(QPO) whose frequency changes from 30 Hz to 50 Hz. The frequency is found to correlate well with the disk flux ratio. In the 3-20 keV LAXPC band, the r.m.s. of the QPO increases with energy(r.m.s. ∝ E0.8), while the harder X-rays seem to lag the soft ones with a time-delay of milliseconds. The results suggest that the spectral properties of the source are characterized by the disk flux ratio and that the QPO has its origin in the corona producing the thermal Comptonized component.

Long term optical variability of bright X-ray point sources in elliptical galaxies

We present long term optical variability studies of bright X-ray sources in four nearby elliptical galaxies with the Chandra Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer array （ACIS-S） and observations from the Hubble Space Telescope （HST） Advanced Camera for Surveys. Out of the 46 bright （X-ray counts 〉 60） sources that are in the common field of view of the Chandra and HST observations, 34 of them have potential optical counterparts, while the rest of them are optically dark. After taking into account systematic errors, estimated using optical sources in the field as a reference, we find that four of the X-ray sources （three in NGC 1399 and one in NGC 1427） have variable optical counterparts at a high level of significance. The X-ray luminosities of these sources are ～10^38 erg S^-1 and are also variable on similar time scales. The optical variability implies that the optical emission is asso- ciated with the X-ray source itself rather than being the integrated light from a host globular cluster. For one source, the change in optical magnitude is 〉 0.3, which is one of the highest reported for this class of X-ray sources and this suggests that the optical variability is induced by the X-ray activity. However, the optically variable sources in NGC 1399 have been reported to have blue colors （g - z 〉 1）. All four sources have been detected in the infrared （IR） by Spitzer as point sources, and their ratios of 5.8 to 3.6 μm flux are 〉 0.63, indicating that their IR spectra are like those of Active Galactic Nuclei （AGNs）. While spectroscopic confirmation is required, it is likely that all four sources are background AGNs. We find none of the X-ray sources having opticalfiR colors different from AGNs to be optically variable.

Broadband spectral fitting of blazars using XSPEC

The broadband spectral energy distribution（SED） of blazars is generally interpreted as radiation arising from synchrotron and inverse Compton mechanisms. Traditionally,the underlying source parameters responsible for these emission processes,like particle energy density,magnetic field,etc.,are obtained through simple visual reproduction of the observed fluxes. However,this procedure is incapable of providing confidence ranges for the estimated parameters. In this work,we propose an efficient algorithm to perform a statistical fit of the observed broadband spectrum of blazars using different emission models. Moreover,we use the observable quantities as the fit parameters,rather than the direct source parameters which govern the resultant SED. This significantly improves the convergence time and eliminates the uncertainty regarding initial guess parameters. This approach also has an added advantage of identifying the degenerate parameters,which can be removed by including more observable information and/or additional constraints. A computer code developed based on this algorithm is implemented as a user-defined routine in the standard X-ray spectral fitting package,XSPEC. Further,we demonstrate the efficacy of the algorithm by fitting the well sampled SED of blazar 3 C 279 during its gamma ray flare in 2014.

Systematic analysis of low/hard state RXTE spectra of GX 339–4 to constrain the geometry of the system

One of the popular models for the low/hard state of black hole binaries is that the standard accretion disk is truncated and the hot inner region produces, via Comptonization, hard X-ray flux.This is supported by the value of the high energy photon index, which is often found to be small,～ 1.7（〈 2）, implying that the hot medium is starved of seed photons. On the other hand, the suggestive presence of a broad relativistic Fe line during the hard state would suggest that the accretion disk is not truncated but extends all the way to the innermost stable circular orbit. In such a case, it is a puzzle why the hot medium would remain photon starved. The broad Fe line should be accompanied by a broad smeared reflection hump at ～ 30 ke V and it may be that this additional component makes the spectrum hard and the intrinsic photon index is larger, i.e. 〉2. This would mean that the medium is not photon deficient, reconciling the presence of a broad Fe line in the observed hard state. To test this hypothesis,we have analyzed the RXTE observations of GX 339–4 from the four outbursts during 2002–2011 and identify observations when the system was in the hard state and showed a broad Fe line. We have then attempted to fit these observations with models, which include smeared reflection, to understand whether the intrinsic photon index can indeed be large. We find that, while for some observations the inclusion of reflection does increase the photon index, there are hard state observations with a broad Fe line that have photon indices less than 2.

UV and X-ray variability of the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy Ark 564

We analyze eight XMM-Newton observations of the bright Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxy Arakelian 564（Ark 564）. These observations, separated bye^6 days, allow us to look for correlations between the simultaneous ultraviolet（UV） emission（from th Optical Monitor） with not only the X-ray flux but also with different X-ray spectral parameters. The X-ray spectra from all the observations are found to be adequately fitted by a double Comptonization model where the soft excess and the hard X-ray power law are represented by thermal Comptonization in a low temperature plasma and hot corona, respectively. Apart from the fluxes of each component, the hard X-ray power law index is found to be variable. These results suggest that the variability is associated with changes in the geometry of the inner region. The UV emission is found to be variable and well correlated with the high energy index while the correlations with the fluxes of each component are found to be weaker. Using viscous timescale arguments we rule out the possibility that the UV variation is due to the fluctuating accretion rate in the outer disk. If the UV variation is driven by X-ray reprocessing, then our results indicate that the strength of the X-ray reprocessing depends more on the geometry of the X-ray producing inner region rather than on the X-ray luminosity alone.

AstroSat observation of the Be/X-ray binary Pulsar 3A 0726–260(4U 0728–25)

Results on timing and spectral properties of the Be/X-ray binary pulsar 3A 0726-260(4U 0728-25)are presented.The binary was observed on 2016 May 6-7 with the Large Area X-ray Proportional Counter(LAXPC)and Soft X-ray Telescope(SXT)instruments onboard the AstroSat satellite.During this observation,the source was in non-flaring persistent state at a flux level of^8.6±0.3×10^-11 erg cm^-2 s^-1in 0.4-20 keV.Strong X-ray pulsations with a period of 103.144±0.001 s are detected in 0.3-7 keV with the SXT and in 3-40 keV with the LAXPC.The pulse profile is energy dependent,and there is an indication that the pulse shape changes from a broad single pulse to a double pulse at higher energy.At energies above20 keV,we report the first time detection of pulsation period 103.145±0.001 s and the double peaked pulse profile from the source.The energy spectrum of the source is derived from the combined analysis of the SXT and LAXPC spectral data in 0.4-20 keV.The best spectral fit is obtained by a power law model with a photon index(1.7±0.03)with high energy spectral cut-off at 12.9±0.7 keV.A broad iron line at^6.3 keV is detected in the energy spectrum.We briefly discuss the implications of these results.

On the reality of broad iron L lines from the narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies 1H0707–495 and IRAS 13224–3809

We performed time resolved spectroscopy of 1H0707-495 and IRAS 13224-3809 using long XMM-Newton observations. These are strongly variable narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies and show broad features around 1 keV that have been interpreted as relativistically broad Fe Lc~ lines. Such features are not clearly observed in other active galactic nuclei despite sometimes having high iron abundance required by the best fitted blurred reflection models. Given the importance of these lines, we explore whether the rapid variability of spectral parameters may introduce broad bumps/dips artificially in the time averaged spectrum, which may then be mistaken as broadened lines. We tested this hypothesis by performing time resolved spectroscopy using long （〉 100 ks） XMM-Newton observations and by dividing them into segments with typical exposures of a few ks. We extracted spectra from each such segment and modeled them using a two component phenomenological model consisting of a power law to represent the hard component and a black body to represent the soft emission. As expected, both the sources showed variations in the spectral parameters. Using these variation trends, we simulated model spectra for each segment and then co-added to get a combined simulated spectrum. In the simulated spectra, we found no broad features below 1 keV and in particular no deviation near 0.9 keV as seen in the real averaged spectra. This implies that the broad Fe Lα line that is seen in the spectra of these sources is not an artifact of the variation of spectral components and, hence, provides evidence that the line is indeed genuine.

Comprehensive spectral analysis of Cyg X-1 using RXTE data

We analyze a large number （〉 500） of pointed Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer （RXTE） observations of Cyg X- 1 and model the spectrum of each one. A subset of the observations for which there is a simultaneous reliable measure of the hardness ratio by the All Sky Monitor shows that the sample covers nearly all the spectral shapes of Cyg X-1. Each observation is fitted with a generic empirical model consisting of a disk black body spectrum, a Comptonized component whose input photon shape is the same as the disk emission, a Gaussian to represent the iron line and a reflection feature. The relative strength, width of the iron line and the reflection parameter are in general correlated with the high energy photon spectral index F. This is broadly consistent with a geometry where for the hard state （low F ~ 1.7） there is a hot in- ner Comptonizing region surrounded by a truncated cold disk. The inner edge of the disk moves inwards as the source becomes softer till finally in the soft state （high F 〉 2.2） the disk fills the inner region and active regions above the disk produce the Comptonized component. However, the reflection parameter shows non-monotonic behavior near the transition region （F ~ 2）, which suggests a more complex geometry or physical state of the reflector. In addition, the inner disk temperature, during the hard state, is on average higher than in the soft one, albeit with large scatter. These inconsistencies could be due to limitations in the data and the empirical model used to fit them. The flux of each spectral component is well correlated with F, which shows that unlike some other black hole systems, Cyg X- 1 does not show any hysteresis be- havior. In the soft state, the flux of the Comptonized component is always similar to the disk one, which confirms that the ultra-soft state （seen in other brighter black hole systems） is not exhibited by Cyg X-1. The rapid variation of the Compton amplifica- tion factor with F naturally explains the absence of spectra with lP 〈 1.6, despite a large number having F ~ 1.65. This comprehensive analysis lays the framework by which more detailed and sophisticated broadband observations may be understood.

Nonlinear time series analysis of the light curves from the black hole system GRS1915+105

GRS 1915＋105 is a prominent black hole system exhibiting variability over a wide range of time scales and its observed light curves have been classified into 12 temporal states. Here we undertake a complete analysis of these light curves from all the states using various quantifiers from nonlinear time series analysis, such as the correlation dimension （D2）, the correlation entropy （K2）, singular value decomposition （SVD） and the multifractal spectrum （f（α） spectrum）. An important aspect of our analysis is that, for estimating these quantifiers, we use algorithmic schemes which we have recently proposed and successfully tested on synthetic as well as practical time series from various fields. Though the schemes are based on the conventional delay embedding technique, they are automated so that the above quantitative measures can be computed using conditions prescribed by the algorithm and without any intermediate subjective analysis. We show that nearly half of the 12 temporal states exhibit deviation from randomness and their complex temporal behavior could be approximated by a few （three or four） coupled ordinary nonlinear differential equations. These results could be important for a better understanding of the processes that generate the light curves and hence for modeling the temporal behavior of such complex systems. To our knowledge, this is the first complete analysis of an astrophysical object （let alone a black hole system） using various techniques from nonlinear dynamics.

Time-resolved spectral analysis of prompt emission from long gamma-ray bursts with GeV emission

We performed detailed time-resolved spectroscopy of bright tong gamma- ray bursts （GRBs） which show significant GeV emissions （GRB 080916C, GRB 090902B and GRB 090926A）. In addition to the standard Band model, we also use a model consisting of a black body and a power law to fit the spectra. We find that for the latter model there are indications of an additional soft component in the spectra. While previous studies have shown that such models are required for GRB 090902B, here we find that a composite spectral model consisting of two blackbodies and a power law adequately fits the data of all the three bright GRBs. We investigate the evolution of the spectral parameters and find several interesting features that appear in all three GRBs, like （a） temperatures of the blackbodies are strongly correlated with each other, （b） fluxes in the black body components are strongly correlated with each other, （c） the temperatures of the black body trace the profile of the individual pulses of the GRBs, and （d） the characteristics of power law components like the spectral index and the delayed onset bear a close similarity to the emission characteristics in the GeV regions. We discuss the implications of these results and the possibility of identifying the radiation mechanisms during the prompt emission of GRBs.

The kilosecond variability of X-ray sources in nearby galaxies

Chandra observations of 17 nearby galaxies were analyzed and 166 bright sources with X-ray counts 〉 100 were chosen for temporal analysis. Fractional root mean square （rms） variability amplitudes were estimated for light curves, binned at 4 kilosecond （ks）, with length 〈 40 ks. While there are nine ultra-luminous X- ray sources （ULXs） with unabsorbed luminosity （in the 0.3-8.0 keV band） L 〉 1039 erg s-1 in the sample for which the fractional rms variability is constrained to be 〈 10%, only two of them show variability. One of the variable ULXs exhibits a secular transition and has an ultra-soft spectrum with temperature - 0.3 keV while the other is a rapidly varying source in NGC 0628, which has previously been com- pared to the Galactic microquasar GRS 1915＋105. These results seem to indicate that ULXs are typically not highly variable on ks timescales, except for some ultra-soft ones. Among the relatively low luminosity sources （L - 10^38 erg s-1）, we find five of them to be variable. Apart from an earlier known source in NGC 1569, we identify a source in NGC 2403 that exhibits persistent high amplitude fluctuations. In general, the variability of the sources does not seem to be correlated with hardness, which indicates that they may not be due to variations in any absorbing material, but instead could reflect instabilities in the inner accretion disk.