Polarized synchrotron emission in quiescent black hole X-ray transients

Abstract

We present near-infrared polarimetric observations of the black hole X-ray binaries Swift J1357.2-0933 and A0620-00. In both sources, recent studies have demonstrated the presence of variable infrared synchrotron emission in quiescence, most likely from weak compact jets. For Swift J1357.2-0933 we find that the synchrotron emission is polarized at a level of 8.0 +- 2.5 per cent (a 3.2 sigma detection of intrinsic polarization). The mean magnitude and rms variability of the flux (fractional rms of 19-24 per cent in K_s-band) agree with previous observations. These properties imply a continuously launched (stable on long timescales), highly variable (on short timescales) jet in the Swift J1357.2-0933 system in quiescence, which has a moderately tangled magnetic field close to the base of the jet. We find that for A0620-00, there are likely to be three components to the optical-infrared polarization; interstellar dust along the line of sight, scattering within the system, and an additional source that changes the polarization position angle in the reddest (H and K_s) wave-bands. We interpret this as a stronger contribution of synchrotron emission, and by subtracting the line-of-sight polarization, we measure an excess of ~ 1.25 +- 0.28 per cent polarization and a position angle of the magnetic field vector that is consistent with being parallel with the axis of the resolved radio jet. These results imply that weak jets in low luminosity accreting systems have magnetic fields which possess similarly tangled fields compared to the more luminous, hard state jets in X-ray binaries.

Accepted to MNRAS

References in corpus (96)

• The u'g'r'i'z' Standard Star Network
• The Wavelength Dependence of Interstellar Extinction from 1.25 to 8.0 microns Using GLIMPSE Data
• Empirical Color Transformations Between SDSS Photometry and Other Photometric Systems
• BlackCAT: A catalogue of stellar-mass black holes in X-ray transients
• MOJAVE: Monitoring of Jets in AGN with VLBA Experiments - I. First-Epoch 15 GHz Linear Polarization Images
• States and transitions in black-hole binaries
• Pixie Dust: The Silicate Features in the Diffuse Interstellar Medium
• Jet-dominated states: an alternative to advection across black hole event horizons in `quiescent' X-ray binaries
• Near-infrared synchrotron emission from the compact jet of GX339-4
• Polarized Gamma-ray Emission from the Galactic Black Hole Cygnus X-1
• Two stellar-mass black holes in the globular cluster M22
• Neutron Star Masses and Radii from Quiescent Low-Mass X-ray Binaries
• New Evidence for Black Hole Event Horizons from Chandra
• Measurement of the Radius of Neutron Stars with High S/N Quiescent Low-mass X-ray Binaries in Globular Clusters
• A radio-emitting outflow in the quiescent state of A0620-00: implications for modelling low-luminosity black hole binaries
• Mass Measurements of Stellar and Intermediate Mass Black-Holes
• A variable mid-infrared synchrotron break associated with the compact jet in GX 339-4
• The Inclination of the Soft X-ray Transient A0620--00 and the Mass of its Black Hole
• The radio/X-ray domain of black hole X-ray binaries at the lowest radio luminosities
• The X-ray Spectral Evolution of Galactic Black Hole X-ray Binaries Toward Quiescence
• A Radio-Selected Black Hole X-ray Binary Candidate in the Milky Way Globular Cluster M62
• The X-ray Spectra of Black Hole X-ray Novae in Quiescence as Measured by Chandra
• Deep radio imaging of 47 Tuc identifies the peculiar X-ray source X9 as a new black hole candidate
• The remarkable rapid X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, and IR variability in the black hole XTE J1118+480
• Rapid optical and X-ray timing observations of GX 339-4: multi-component optical variability in the low/hard state
• Jet spectral breaks in black hole X-ray binaries
• The Quiescent X-Ray Spectrum of the Neutron Star in Cen X-4 Observed with Chandra/ACIS-S
• Evidence for a compact jet dominating the broadband spectrum of the black hole accretor XTE J1550-564
• The spectral energy distribution of quiescent black hole X-ray binaries: new constraints from Spitzer
• Spectral evidence for a powerful compact jet from XTE J1118+480
• A Black Hole Nova Obscured by an Inner Disk Torus
• The spectral energy distribution of compact jets powered by internal shocks
• Evidence for quiescent synchrotron emission in the black hole X-ray transient Swift J1357.2-0933
• An overview of jets and outflows in stellar mass black holes
• X-ray Studies of Two Neutron Stars in 47 Tucanae: Toward Constraints on the Equation of State
• The Black Hole Binary V4641 Sagitarii: Activity in Quiescence & Improved Mass Determinations
• Multiwavelength spectral evolution during the 2011 outburst of the very faint X-ray transient Swift J1357.2-0933
• Mid-Infrared Emission from Dust around Quiescent Low-Mass X-ray Binaries
• The radio spectrum of a quiescent stellar mass black hole
• Near-infrared jet emission in the microquasar XTE J1550-564
• Correlated X-ray and Optical Variability in V404 Cyg in Quiescence
• Jet contributions to the broad-band spectrum of Cyg X-1 in the hard state
• Fast orbital decays of black hole X-ray binaries: XTE J1118+480 and A0620--00
• Radio monitoring of the hard state jets in the 2011 outburst of MAXI J1836-194
• A FWHM-K2 correlation in Black-Hole transients
• Multiwavelength Observations of A0620-00 in Quiescence
• Swift J1357.2-0933: a massive black hole in the Galactic thick disc
• XTE J1752-223 in outburst: a persistent radio jet, dramatic flaring, multiple ejections and linear polarisation
• Strong X-ray variability in the quiescent state of the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary EXO 1745-248
• Events leading up to the June 2015 outburst of V404 Cyg
• The first low-mass black hole X-ray binary identified in quiescence outside of a globular cluster
• A highly polarised radio jet during the 1998 outburst of the black hole transient XTE J1748-288
• Multiple ejections during the 1975 outburst of A0620-00
• Polarised infrared emission from X-ray binary jets
• A deep radio survey of hard state and quiescent black hole X-ray binaries
• Constraints on Relativistic Jets in Quiescent Black Hole X-ray Binaries from Broadband Spectral Modeling
• The multi-wavelength polarization of Cygnus X-1
• Daily, multiwavelength Swift monitoring of the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary Cen X-4: evidence for accretion and reprocessing during quiescence
• Characterizing X-ray and Radio emission in the Black Hole X-Ray Binary V404 Cygni during Quiescence
• The evolving polarised jet of black hole candidate Swift J1745-26
• The X-ray properties of the black hole transient MAXI J1659-152 in quiescence
• The first polarimetric signatures of infrared jets in X-ray binaries
• Time-resolved optical/near-IR polarimetry of V404 Cyg during its 2015 outburst
• Swift J1357.2-0933: the faintest black hole?
• Optical spectroscopy of flares from the black hole X-ray transient A0620-00 in quiescence
• Characterizing the quiescent X-ray variability of the black hole low mass x-ray binary V404 Cyg
• A year in the life of the low-mass X-ray transient Aql X-1
• Constraints on the Size of Extra Dimensions from the Orbital Evolution of the Black-Hole X-Ray Binary XTE J1118+480
• Near-infrared Linear Polarization of Ultracool Dwarfs
• Doppler tomography of the transient X-ray binary Centaurus X-4 in quiescence
• A Clean Sightline to Quiescence: Multiwavelength Observations of the High Galactic Latitude Black Hole X-ray Binary Swift J1357.2-0933
• ULTRACAM observations of the black hole X-ray transient XTE J1118+480 in quiescence
• VLT spectroscopy of the Black Hole Candidate Swift J1357.2-0933 in Quiescence
• A "high-hard" outburst of the black hole X-ray binary GS 1354-64
• As above, so below: exploiting mass scaling in black hole accretion to break degeneracies in spectral interpretation
• Constraints on Braneworld Gravity Models from a Kinematic Limit on the Age of the Black Hole XTE J1118+480
• Dynamical constraints on the neutron star mass in EXO 0748-676
• An anti-correlation between X-ray luminosity and H-alpha equivalent width in X-ray binaries
• The spotty donor star in the X-ray transient Cen X-4
• Hunting the Parent of the Orphan Stream II: The First High-Resolution Spectroscopic Study
• Infrared and optical polarimetry around the low-mass star-forming region NGC 1333 IRAS 4A
• The long-term evolution of the X-ray pulsar XTE J1814-338: a receding jet contribution to the quiescent optical emission?
• Jet-dominated quiescent states in black hole X-ray binaries: the case of V404 Cyg
• Radio Emission from the Be/Black Hole Binary MWC 656
• Polarimetric and spectroscopic optical observations of the ultra-compact X-ray binary 4U 0614+091
• Near-Infrared Spectra of the Black Hole X-Ray Binary, A0620-00
• Particle Acceleration and Magnetic Field Structure in PKS 2155-304: Optical Polarimetric Observations
• Polarized Mid-Infrared Synchrotron Emission in the Core of Cygnus A
• Quiescent X-Ray/Optical Counterparts of the Black Hole Transient H 1705-250
• Multi-wavelength light curve evolution of Swift J1357.2-0933 during its 2011 outburst
• Monitoring LMXBs with the Faulkes Telescopes
• Optical and infrared polarimetry of the transient LMXB Cen X-4 in quiescence
• Mass accretion rate of the galactic black hole A0620-00 in its quiescent state
• Rapid variations of polarization in low-mass X-ray binaries
• Jet-dominated quiescent state in black hole X-ray binaries: the cases of A0620--00 and XTE J1118+480
• Jets at lowest mass accretion rates

Cited by in corpus (11)

• Matter ejections behind the highs and lows of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038
• Optical Precursors to Black Hole X-ray Binary Outbursts: An evolving synchrotron jet spectrum in Swift J1357.2-0933
• Optical and J,K-photometry of black hole X-ray nova A0620-00 in passive and active stages of quiescence
• Optical, J, and K light curves of XTE J1118+480 = KV UMa: the mass of the black hole and the spectrum of the non-stellar component
• Optical and X-ray Correlations During the 2015 Outburst of the Black Hole V404 Cyg
• ALMA observations of A0620-00: fresh clues on the nature of quiescent black hole X-ray binary jets
• Optical polarization signatures of black hole X-ray binaries
• Polarimetry of binary systems: polars, magnetic CVs, XRBs
• An Observational Signature of Sub-Equipartition Magnetic Fields in the Spectra of Black Hole Binaries
• Optical/infrared polarised emission in X-ray binaries
• Scale-invariance of black hole accretion: modeling emission from a black hole X-ray binary with relativistic accretion flow simulations