Probing the polarized emission from the accretion-powered pulsar 4U 1907+09 with IXPE

TL;DR

This paper reports the first high-quality polarization measurements of the accretion-powered pulsar 4U 1907+09 using IXPE, revealing energy-dependent polarization properties and potential polarization angle rotations, providing insights into the pulsar's magnetic geometry.

Contribution

First high-quality polarization measurements of 4U 1907+09 with IXPE, showing energy-dependent polarization and possible polarization angle rotation.

Findings

Polarization degree varies between observations, from 6.0% to 2.2%.

Detected energy-dependent polarization angle with 1.7 sigma significance.

Flares do not significantly alter the polarization properties.

Abstract

We present observations of the accretion-powered X-ray pulsar (XRP) 4U 1907+09, conducted with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) that delivers the first high-quality polarization measurements of this source. 4U 1907+09 was observed twice during its brightest periods close to the periastron. We observe a stronger polarization in the first observation, with the phase-averaged polarization degree (PD) of $6.0 \pm 1.6\%$ and polarization angle (PA) of $69^\circ \pm 8^\circ$. In contrast, the second observation provides weaker constraints on the polarimetric properties, with a PD=$2.2 \pm 1.6\%$ and a PA=$46^\circ \pm 23^\circ$, as determined from the spectral-polarimetric analysis. Combining the data from both observations results in a PD=$3.7 \pm 1.1\%$ and a PA=$63^\circ \pm 9^\circ$. We detect an energy-dependent PA in the phase-averaged analyses with a significance of 1.7 $\sigma$. In the phase-resolved analyses, we observe a potential PA rotation by approximately $90^\circ$ between adjacent energy bands (4--5 and 5--6 keV) within the single phase bin of 0.25--0.375. We also investigate the influence of short flares on the polarization properties of this source. The results suggest that flares do not significantly affect the energy-phase-dependent PA, implying that the pulsar's geometry remains stable during flare events.