Iron line emission from the Alfven shell in X-ray binaries

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics

Scientific paper

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Binary Stars, Emission Spectra, Line Spectra, X Ray Binaries, X Ray Sources, X Ray Spectroscopy, X Ray Stars, Atomic Recombination, Electron Energy, Ion Recombination, Iron, Photoionization, Stellar Models

Scientific paper

The paper presents a model in which the iron line emission at 6-7 keV, discovered in spectra of some X-ray binaries, is interpreted as a reradiation of the X-ray continuum in the gaseous shell at the Alfven surface. The solid angle subtended by the shell, its radius, the Thomson optical thickness and the electron density are treated as free parameters. The temperature and the ionization equilibrium are determined by the interaction with the external X-ray flux. The allowed range of variation of the shell parameters is evaluated from the requirement that the values of the iron line equivalent width predicted by the model agree with the observed ones. The restrictions imposed by such an agreement on the Alfven shell in Her X-1 are shown to be compatible with the limitations deduced from the soft X-ray data. The model predicts a considerable width of the iron line profile, greater than 200 eV. The problem of escape of the line photons from the shell in the course of multiple resonance scattering is discussed in detail. A number of observational consequences and tests are proposed for the model under discussion.

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