Studies of the Origin of High-Frequency Quasi-Periodic Oscillations of Mass Accreting Black Holes in X-ray Binaries with Next-Generation X-ray Telescopes

TL;DR

This paper investigates the origin of high-frequency quasi-periodic oscillations in accreting black holes using relativistic ray-tracing, focusing on spectral and polarization signatures to distinguish models with next-generation X-ray telescopes.

Contribution

It applies relativistic ray-tracing to analyze spectral and polarization features of HFQPOs in the hotspot model, guiding future observational strategies.

Findings

Spectral signatures could be observed with LOFT-like missions.

Polarization signatures require simultaneous observations with polarimeters and high-count-rate missions.

QPO phase-resolved spectra can reveal the nature of HFQPOs.

Abstract

Observations with RXTE (Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer) revealed the presence of High Frequency Quasi-Periodic Oscillations (HFQPOs) of the X-ray flux from several accreting stellar mass Black Holes. HFQPOs (and their counterparts at lower frequencies) may allow us to study general relativity in the strong gravity regime. However, the observational evidence today does not yet allow us to distinguish between different HFQPO models. In this paper we use a general relativistic ray-tracing code to investigate X-ray timing-spectroscopy and polarization properties of HFQPOs in the orbiting Hotspot model. We study observational signatures for the particular case of the 166 Hz quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) in the galactic binary GRS 1915+105. We conclude with a discussion of the observability of spectral signatures with a timing-spectroscopy experiment like the LOFT (Large Observatory for X-ray Timing) and polarization signatures with space-borne X-ray polarimeters such as IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer), PolSTAR (Polarization Spectroscopic Telescope Array), PRAXyS (Polarimetry of Relativistic X-ray Sources), or XIPE (X-ray Imaging Polarimetry Explorer). A high count-rate mission like LOFT would make it possible to get a QPO phase for each photon, enabling the study of the QPO-phase-resolved spectral shape and the correlation between this and the flux level. Owing to the short periods of the HFQPOs, first-generation X-ray polarimeters would not be able to assign a QPO phase to each photon. The study of QPO-phase-resolved polarization energy spectra would thus require simultaneous observations with a first-generation X-ray polarimeter and a LOFT-type mission.