Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Mar 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008head...10.1401m&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, HEAD meeting #10, #14.01
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
Scientific paper
We are embarked on a program of measuring the spins of stellar-mass black holes, which are located in X-ray binary systems. In principle, the method we use is simple, and it is completely analogous to the method one uses to determine the radius of an ordinary star given its distance, temperature and magnitude. We fit the thermal X-ray spectrum of the black hole to a fully relativistic model of an accretion disk and thereby determine the radius of the inner edge of the disk. We identify this inner disk radius with the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO), whose radius depends only on the mass and spin of the black hole.
Current MHD simulations of black hole accretion disks indicate that the disk extends far inside the ISCO and lacks a sharp edge; we respond to this challenge by reviewing the abundant empirical evidence for the existence of an inner disk radius that is constant over a wide range of X-ray luminosity. For the continuum-fitting method to succeed, one must have accurate measurements of black hole mass and distance, and we are focused on obtaining these data. We have determined the spins of four black holes, and we expect to publish the results of a dozen or more in total during the next few years.
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