Black hole masses from X-rays
Abstract
We discuss two methods to estimate black hole (BH) masses using X-ray data only: from the X-ray variability amplitude and from the photon index Γ. The first method is based on the anti-correlation between BH mass and X-ray variability amplitude. Using a sample of AGN with BH masses from reverberation mapping, we show that this method shows small intrinsic scatter. The second method is based on the correlation between Γ and both the Eddington ratio L bol/L Edd and the bolometric correction L bol/L 2-10keV.
- Publication:
-
Feeding Compact Objects: Accretion on All Scales
- Pub Date:
- February 2013
- DOI:
- 10.1017/S1743921312020455
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1210.4558
- Bibcode:
- 2013IAUS..290..371Z
- Keywords:
-
- Accretion;
- accretion disks;
- X-rays:binaries;
- X-rays: galaxies;
- Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena;
- Astrophysics - Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 2 pages, to appear in the proceedings of the IAU Symposium 290, "Feeding compact objects: accretion on all scales", Beijing, 20-24 Aug 2012