On The Stable Inner-disk Radius Of BH LMC X-3
Abstract
The black-hole binary system LMC X-3 has been observed by virtually every X-ray satellite since the inception of X-ray astronomy. Among the persistently active Galactic black holes, LMC X-3 is uniquely both habitually soft and highly variable. Using a fully relativistic accretion-disk model, we analyze spectral data spanning 25 years collected from seven X-ray missions and show that consistent measurements of the accretion-disk inner radius are obtained to within a few percent. This study represents the strongest possible evidence for the existence of a stable inner-disk radius, which is presumably tied to the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) that is predicted by general relativity. Our findings establish a firm foundation for the measurement of black-hole spin.
- Publication:
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AAS/High Energy Astrophysics Division #11
- Pub Date:
- March 2010
- Bibcode:
- 2010HEAD...11.2103S