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arXiv 0706.4080astro-ph
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关于活动恒星日冕中的X射线光学厚度

On X-ray Optical Depth in the Coronae of Active Stars

Paola Testa, Jeremy J. Drake, Giovanni Peres, David P. Huenemoerder

摘要:

利用Chandra高能透射光栅光谱仪观测到的大量活动恒星的高分辨X射线谱,研究了日冕等离子体的光学厚度。特别是,我们探讨了存在显着的共振散射的强莱曼系线所产生的氢类氧和氖离子。活跃的RS CVn型双星II Peg和IM Peg和单个M矮EV Lac显示出显着的光学深度。对于这些活跃的日冕,Lya/Lyb比显着耗尽与理论预测相比,在类似的活动恒星中观察到相同的比例。解释这些递减线光子的共振散射的视线,我们能够得到一个估计的典型大小的日冕结构,并从这些我们也得到估计的日冕填充因子。对于所有三个来源,我们发现,无论是作为恒星半径的分数的光子路径长度,和隐含的表面填充因子是非常小的,最多的百分之几。测得的Lya/Lyb比与APED理论预测吻合得很好,从而表明在我们的样品中的其他源的光学深度可以忽略不计。我们讨论了日冕结构和热通量的要求的影响。对于整个恒星样品,数据表明Lya相对于Lyb的猝灭随着L_x/L_bol和密度敏感的MgXI禁戒线与互组合线比率的变化而增加,这是通常可以预期的。

英文摘要:

We have investigated the optical thickness of the coronal plasma through the analysis of high-resolution X-ray spectra of a large sample of active stars observed with the High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer on Chandra. In particular, we probed for the presence of significant resonant scattering in the strong Lyman series lines arising from hydrogen-like oxygen and neon ions. The active RS CVn-type binaries II Peg and IM Peg and the single M dwarf EV Lac show significant optical depth. For these active coronae, the Lya/Lyb ratios are significantly depleted as compared with theoretical predictions and with the same ratios observed in similar active stars. Interpreting these decrements in terms of resonance scattering of line photons out of the line-of-sight, we are able to derive an estimate for the typical size of coronal structures, and from these we also derive estimates of coronal filling factors. For all three sources we find that the both the photon path length as a fraction of the stellar radius, and the implied surface filling factors are very small and amount to a few percent at most. The measured Lya/Lyb ratios are in good agreement with APED theoretical predictions, thus indicating negligible optical depth, for the other sources in our sample. We discuss the implications for coronal structuring and heating flux requirements. For the stellar sample as a whole, the data suggest increasing quenching of Lya relative to Lyb as function of both L_x/L_bol and the density-sensitive MgXI forbidden to intercombination line ratio, as might generally be expected.

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