Spectral Evolution of the Ultraluminous X-Ray Sources M82 X-1 and X-2

Abstract

M82 hosts two well-known ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). X-1, an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) candidate, and X-2, an ultraluminous X-ray pulsar. Here, we present a broadband X-ray spectral analysis of both sources based on 10 simultaneous observations made with Chandra and NuSTAR. Chandra provides the high spatial resolution to resolve the crowded field in the 0.5–8 keV band, and NuSTAR provides the sensitive hard X-ray spectral data, extending the bandpass of our study above 10 keV. These observations, taken in 2015–2016, cover a period of flaring from X-1, allowing us to study the spectral evolution of this source with luminosity. During four of these observations, X-2 was found to be at a low flux level, allowing an unambiguous view of the emission from X-1. We find that the broadband X-ray emission from X-1 is consistent with that seen in other ULXs observed in detail with NuSTAR, with a spectrum that includes a broadened disk-like component and a high-energy tail. We find that the luminosity of the disk scales with inner disk temperature as L ∝ T^(−3/2), contrary to expectations of a standard accretion disk and previous results. These findings rule out a thermal state for sub-Eddington accretion, and therefore do not support M82 X-1 as an IMBH candidate. We also find evidence that the neutral column density of the material in the line of sight increases with L_X, perhaps due to an increased mass outflow with accretion rate. For X-2, we do not find any significant spectral evolution, but we find the spectral parameters of the phase-averaged broadband emission are consistent with the pulsed emission at the highest X-ray luminosities.

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