A self-consistent approach to the hard and soft states of 4U 1705-44

TL;DR

This study analyzes XMM-Newton observations of 4U 1705-44, revealing how reflection features and accretion disk properties change between its hard and soft states, providing insights into neutron star low-mass X-ray binary behavior.

Contribution

It introduces a self-consistent reflection model tailored for neutron star systems, linking spectral features to accretion geometry in different states.

Findings

Reflection features are consistent with boundary layer emission in soft states.

The accretion disk is truncated at larger radii in the hard state.

The boundary layer radius is approximately twice the neutron star radius.

Abstract

We analyzed two XMM-Newton observations of the bright atoll source 4U 1705-44, which can be considered a prototype of the class of the persistent NS LMXBs showing both hard and soft states. The first observation was performed when the source was in a hard low flux state, the second during a soft, high-flux state. Both the spectra show broad iron emission lines. We fit the spectra using a two-component model, together with a reflection model specifically suited to the case of a neutron star, where the incident spectrum has a blackbody shape. In the soft state, the reflection model, convolved with a relativistic smearing component, consistently describes the broad features present in the spectrum, and we find a clear relation between the temperature of the incident flux and the temperature of the harder X-ray component that we interpret as the boundary layer emission. In this state we find converging evidence that the boundary layer outer radius is ~ 2 times the neutron star radius. In the low flux state, we observe a change in the continuum shape of the spectrum with respect to the soft state. Still, the broad local emission features can be associated with a disk reflecting matter, but in a lower ionization state, and possibly produced in an accretion disk truncated at greater distance. Our analysis provides strong evidence that the reflection component in soft states of LMXBs comes from to hard X-ray thermal irradiation, which we identify with the boundary layer emission, also present in the continuum model. In the hard state, the broad iron line if also produced by reflection, and the continuum disk emission can be self-consistently accounted if the disk is truncated at a greater distance than the soft state.