The Iron Line Profile from Warped Black Hole Accretion Disks. (arXiv:2008.03829v1 [astro-ph.HE])
<a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Abarr_Q/0/1/0/all/0/1">Quincy Abarr</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/astro-ph/1/au:+Krawczynski_H/0/1/0/all/0/1">Henric Krawczynski</a>
The profile of the fluorescent iron line from black hole accretion disks is a
powerful diagnostic of black hole properties, such as spin and inclination. The
state-of-the-art, however, considers an accretion disk whose angular momentum
is aligned with that of the black hole; this is a very constraining assumption
which is unlikely to apply to many or even most astrophysical systems. Here, we
present the first simulation of the reflection spectrum from warped accretion
disks using a realistic model of the reflected emission based on the xillver
code. We present the effects that the radial location of the warp and the tilt
angle have on the line profile, and highlight that the results are highly
dependent on the azimuth position of the observer relative to the tilt angle.
We fit these profiles in XSpec with the standard relxill lamppost model to
quantify the effect that neglecting the disk warps has on the inferred black
hole spins and inclinations. We show that fits with two-component relxill can
be used to derive more accurate spin and inclination estimates.
The profile of the fluorescent iron line from black hole accretion disks is a
powerful diagnostic of black hole properties, such as spin and inclination. The
state-of-the-art, however, considers an accretion disk whose angular momentum
is aligned with that of the black hole; this is a very constraining assumption
which is unlikely to apply to many or even most astrophysical systems. Here, we
present the first simulation of the reflection spectrum from warped accretion
disks using a realistic model of the reflected emission based on the xillver
code. We present the effects that the radial location of the warp and the tilt
angle have on the line profile, and highlight that the results are highly
dependent on the azimuth position of the observer relative to the tilt angle.
We fit these profiles in XSpec with the standard relxill lamppost model to
quantify the effect that neglecting the disk warps has on the inferred black
hole spins and inclinations. We show that fits with two-component relxill can
be used to derive more accurate spin and inclination estimates.
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