Radio polarimetry as a probe of unresolved jets: the 2013 outburst of XTE J1908+094

• Author(s) / Creator(s)

  • Curran, P. A.
  • Miller-Jones, James C. A.
  • Rushton, Anthony P.
  • Pawar, Devraj D.
  • Anderson, G. E.
  • Altamirano, Diego
  • Krimm, H. A.
  • Broderick, J. W.
  • Belloni, Thomaso M.
  • Fender, Rob P.
  • Körding, E. G.
  • Maitra, D.
  • Markoff, Sera
  • Migliari, Simone
  • Rumsey, C.
  • Rupen, Michael P.
  • Russell, D. M.
  • Russell, Thomas D.
  • Sarazin, Craig L.
  • Sivakoff, Gregory Robert
  • Soria, Roberto
  • Tetarenko, Alexandra Jean
  • Titterington, David
  • Tudose, Valeriu

• XTE J1908+094 is an X-ray transient black hole candidate in the Galactic plane that was observed in outburst in 2002 and 2013. Here we present multifrequency radio and X-ray data, including radio polarimetry, spanning the entire period of the 2013 outburst. We find that the X-ray behaviour of XTE J1908+094 traces the standard black hole hardness–intensity path, evolving from a hard state, through a soft state, before returning to a hard state and quiescence. Its radio behaviour is typical of a compact jet that becomes quenched before discrete ejecta are launched during the late stages of X-ray softening. The radio and X-ray fluxes, as well as the light-curve morphologies, are consistent with those observed during the 2002 outburst of this source. The polarization angle during the rise of the outburst infers a jet orientation in agreement with resolved observations but also displays a gradual drift, which we associate with observed changes in the structure of the discrete ejecta. We also observe an unexpected 90° rotation of the polarization angle associated with a second component.

• Date created

  2015-01-01

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Stars: Individual: Xte J1908+094
  • Binaries: Close
  • X-Rays: Binaries
  • X-Rays: Bursts

• Type of Item

  Article (Published)

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-dv5y-1x58

• License

  This article has been accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society ©: 2015 The Author(s) Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.