Measuring the cosmic X-ray background accurately
Abstract
Synthesis models of the diffuse Cosmic X-ray Background (CXB) suggest that it can be resolved into discrete sources, primarily Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs). Measuring the CXB accurately offers a unique probe to study the AGN population in the nearby Universe. Current hard X-ray instruments suffer from the time-dependent background and cross-calibration issues. As a result, their measurements of the CXB normalization have an uncertainty of the order of ∼15%. In this paper, we present the concept and simulated performances of a CXB detector, which could be operated on different platforms. With a 16-Unit CubeSat mission running for more than two years in space, such a detector could measure the CXB normalization with ∼1% uncertainty.
- Publication:
-
Experimental Astronomy
- Pub Date:
- August 2023
- DOI:
- 10.1007/s10686-023-09896-7
- arXiv:
- arXiv:2307.04238
- Bibcode:
- 2023ExA....56..141L
- Keywords:
-
- Instrumentation;
- Detectors;
- X-rays;
- Diffuse background;
- Astrophysics - Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- doi:10.1007/s10686-023-09896-7