High Mass X-ray Binaries in Nearby Star-forming Galaxies
Abstract
High Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs), in which a compact object, either black hole or neutron star, is accreting material from a young, massive donor star, often dominate the high-energy emission from nearby star-forming galaxies. These high mass pairs are believed to form in star clusters, where most massive star formation takes place, but to become displaced from their parent clusters either because they are dynamically ejected or because their parent cluster has dissolved. We have conducted a systematic study of the formation and evolution of bright HMXBs in eight nearby galaxies, by detecting HMXBs from their X-ray emission in Chandra X-ray Observatory observations, and identifying their parent clusters and donor stars in optical observations taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. We use the X-ray and optical properties of these systems to determine the ages of the binaries, whether the compact objects are black holes or neutron stars, and to constrain the masses of the donor stars.
- Publication:
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Ph.D. Thesis
- Pub Date:
- 2012
- Bibcode:
- 2012PhDT.......224R
- Keywords:
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- Physics, Astrophysics;Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics