X-Ray Astronomy
Faculty Mentor Name
Pragati Pradhan
Format Preference
Poster
Abstract
Measuring the radius of the neutron star is a challenging task owing to its small size and extreme density. While one can indirectly infer the radius by methods of pulsar timing, burst analysis is the most direct of method to make such measurements. There have been debates in literature about the actual radius of these stars as it has implications in understanding their composition. Additionally, while it is not possible to directly image space-time curvature near the neutron star, we will measure gravitational red-shift of the iron line to make estimates as well. The objective of this project is to study the behavior of a Low mass X-ray binary system (LMXB) to determine the size of the neutron star. We will do this by preforming detailed Spectro-timing analysis of the LMXB. This involves downloading and processing spectra from the Chandra telescope into time resolved data during thermonuclear bursts, eclipses, and regular bursts using the software CIAO, DS9 and XSPEC tools, and making a comparison of the plasma temperature and other characteristics. Once the data reduction process is complete we will be able to make conclusions about the source for a future research paper.
X-Ray Astronomy
Measuring the radius of the neutron star is a challenging task owing to its small size and extreme density. While one can indirectly infer the radius by methods of pulsar timing, burst analysis is the most direct of method to make such measurements. There have been debates in literature about the actual radius of these stars as it has implications in understanding their composition. Additionally, while it is not possible to directly image space-time curvature near the neutron star, we will measure gravitational red-shift of the iron line to make estimates as well. The objective of this project is to study the behavior of a Low mass X-ray binary system (LMXB) to determine the size of the neutron star. We will do this by preforming detailed Spectro-timing analysis of the LMXB. This involves downloading and processing spectra from the Chandra telescope into time resolved data during thermonuclear bursts, eclipses, and regular bursts using the software CIAO, DS9 and XSPEC tools, and making a comparison of the plasma temperature and other characteristics. Once the data reduction process is complete we will be able to make conclusions about the source for a future research paper.