Multiepoch Optical Spectropolarimetry of Three Microquasars, Cyg X-1, LS 5039, and LS I +61° 303

Details Multiepoch Optical Spectropolarimetry of Three Microquasars, Cyg X-1, LS 5039, and LS I +61° 303 Multiepoch Optical Spectropolarimetry of Three Microquasars, Cyg X-1, LS 5039, and LS I +61° 303

Mar 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009aj....137.3509n&link_type=abstract

The Astronomical Journal, Volume 137, Issue 3, pp. 3509-3519 (2009).

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

5

Binaries: Close, Circumstellar Matter, Polarization, Stars: Individual: Cyg X-1 Ls 5039 Ls I +61° 303, Stars: Winds, Outflows

Scientific paper

We present optical spectropolarimetric observations of three microquasars, Cyg X-1, LS 5039, and LS I +61° 303. Polarimetry can bring us geometrical information on the innermost part of the circumstellar media. For Cyg X-1, the observed continuum polarization shows sinusoidal time variation (Δ ~ 0.2%) correlated with the orbital phase, as indicated by past studies. The constant component of the polarization has significantly changed (Δ ~ 0.7%) within a few decades, indicating variation of scattering material surrounding the binary. There is no apparent change of polarization across the Hα emission line in Cyg X-1. For LS 5039, the observed polarization shows no significant orbital variation. The wavelength dependence is almost consistent with the typical interstellar polarization (ISP) and we conclude that the ISP is a dominant component of the observed polarization. For LS I +61° 303, the observed polarization is roughly consistent with our previous paper, except for a slight change in the intrinsic polarization and also in the equivalent width of the Hα emission line. These imply a long-term evolution of the Be disk around the mass donor. The position angle of intrinsic polarization at sime25° was constant from 2005 through 2008. Our observations suggest that the optical polarization intrinsic to a microquasar with an high mass donor can be explained by the light scattering in the circumstellar matter around the mass donor. A polarization signal from the vicinity of the compact star (including jet and accretion disk) seems absent.

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