Fast X-ray/IR observations of the black hole transient Swift J1753.5–0127: From an IR lead to a very long jet lag

Ulgiati, A.; Vincentelli, F. M.; Casella, P.; Veledina, A.; Maccarone, T. J.; Russell, D. M.; Uttley, P.; Ambrosino, F.; Baglio, M. C.; Imbrogno, M.; Melandri, A.; Motta, S. E.; O’Brien, K.; Sanna, A.; Shahbaz, T.; Altamirano, D.; Fender, R. P.; Maitra, D.; Malzac, J.

Abstract

We report two epochs of simultaneous near-infrared (IR) and X-ray observations of the low-mass X-ray binary black hole candidate Swift J1753.5–0127 with a subsecond time resolution during its long 2005–2016 outburst. Data were collected strictly simultaneously with VLT/ISAAC (KS band, 2.2 μm) and RXTE (2–15 keV) or XMM-Newton (0.7–10 keV). A clear correlation between the X-ray and the IR variable emission is found during both epochs but with very different properties. In the first epoch, the near-IR variability leads the X-ray by ∼130 ms, which is the opposite of what is usually observed in similar systems. The correlation is more complex in the second epoch, with both anti-correlation and correlations at negative and positive lags. Frequency-resolved Fourier analysis allows us to identify two main components in the complex structure of the phase lags: the first component, characterised by a near-IR lag of a few seconds at low frequencies, is consistent with a combination of disc reprocessing and a magnetised hot flow; the second component is identified at high frequencies by a near-IR lag of ≈0.7 s. Given the similarities of this second component with the well-known constant optical/near-IR jet lag observed in other black hole transients, we tentatively interpret this feature as a signature of a longer-than-usual jet lag. We discuss the possible implications of measuring such a long jet lag in a radio-quiet black hole transient.

Citation

Ulgiati, A., Vincentelli, F. M., Casella, P., Veledina, A., Maccarone, T. J., Russell, D. M., Uttley, P., Ambrosino, F., Baglio, M. C., Imbrogno, M., Melandri, A., Motta, S. E., O’Brien, K., Sanna, A., Shahbaz, T., Altamirano, D., Fender, R. P., Maitra, D., & Malzac, J. (2024). Fast X-ray/IR observations of the black hole transient Swift J1753.5–0127: From an IR lead to a very long jet lag. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 690, Article A239. https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202450545

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 28, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Oct 14, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-10
• Deposit Date: Dec 2, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 2, 2024
• Journal: Astronomy & Astrophysics
• Print ISSN: 0004-6361
• Electronic ISSN: 1432-0746
• Publisher: EDP Sciences
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 690
• Article Number: A239
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202450545
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3197708