BeppoSAX detection of highly ionized emission and absorption features in M81

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

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Spiral Galaxies, X-Ray Sources, X-Ray Bursts, Galactic Nuclei, Circumnuclear Matter, And Bulges, Infall, Accretion, And Accretion Disks

Scientific paper

The LINER nucleus of the nearby spiral galaxy M81 was pointed by BeppoSAX, which caught it at the highest (2-10) keV flux level observed so far. The LECS, MECS and PDS data (extending over 0.1-100 keV) are used to investigate the similarities and differences between LINERs and AGNs. The continuum is well fitted by a power law of photon index Γ~1.84, modified by little absorption due to cold material; signs of reflection from the optically thick material of an accretion disk are not observed. Instead, BeppoSAX detects a 6.7 keV emission line (confirming an ASCA result), and an absorption edge at ~8.6 keV. Both spectral features are consistent with being produced by iron at the same high ionization level, and possibly also with the same column density. We suggest that they come from transmission through a highly photoionized medium. The origin of the continuum emission is uncertain, since typical signatures of a standard accretion disk are absent, and the steep spectrum observed over (0.1-100) keV requires Compton scattering to dominate the X-ray emission even in a modeling via advection dominated accretion. .

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