Statistical evaluation of the flux cross-calibration   of the XMM-<i>Newton</i> EPIC cameras

Mateos, S.; Saxton, R. D.; Read, A. M.; Sembay, S.

doi:10.1051/0004-6361/200811409

Cited by 43 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…While other missions report time variable low energy contamination, we do not think that such a problem exists for the Swift-XRT, because observations of low column density sources show no significant increases in the inferred column density with time. Of interest for our study, Mateos et al (2009) found that on-axis sources returned a MOS1/MOS2 flux that was 5−7% higher than the EPIC-pn flux in the 0.5−1.0 keV band. Stuhlinger et al (2010) conducted a similar analysis after processing the data with SAS v10.0 and compared the EPIC-MOS and EPIC-pn fluxes in several narrow bands using 2XMM sources that were not piled-up.…”

Section: Swift Xrtmentioning

confidence: 89%

SNR 1E 0102.2-7219 as an X-ray calibration standard in the 0.5−1.0 keV bandpass and its application to the CCD instruments aboardChandra,Suzaku,SwiftandXMM-Newton

Plucinsky

Beardmore

Foster

et al. 2016

A&A

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Context. The flight calibration of the spectral response of charge-coupled device (CCD) instruments below 1.5 keV is difficult in general because of the lack of strong lines in the on-board calibration sources typically available. This calibration is also a function of time due to the effects of radiation damage on the CCDs and/or the accumulation of a contamination layer on the filters or CCDs. Aims. We desire a simple comparison of the absolute effective areas of the current generation of CCD instruments onboard the following observatories: Chandra ACIS-S3, XMM-Newton (EPIC-MOS and EPIC-pn), Suzaku XIS, and Swift XRT and a straightforward comparison of the time-dependent response of these instruments across their respective mission lifetimes. Methods. We have been using 1E 0102.2-7219, the brightest supernova remnant in the Small Magellanic Cloud, to evaluate and modify the response models of these instruments. 1E 0102.2-7219 has strong lines of O, Ne, and Mg below 1.5 keV and little or no Fe emission to complicate the spectrum. The spectrum of 1E 0102.2-7219 has been well-characterized using the RGS gratings instrument on XMM-Newton and the HETG gratings instrument on Chandra. As part of the activities of the International Astronomical Consortium for High Energy Calibration (IACHEC), we have developed a standard spectral model for 1E 0102.2-7219 and fit this model to the spectra extracted from the CCD instruments. The model is empirical in that it includes Gaussians for the identified lines, an absorption component in the Galaxy, another absorption component in the SMC, and two thermal continuum components with different temperatures. In our fits, the model is highly constrained in that only the normalizations of the four brightest lines/line complexes (the O vii Heα triplet, O viii Lyα line, the Ne ix Heα triplet, and the Ne x Lyα line) and an overall normalization are allowed to vary, while all other components are fixed. We adopted this approach to provide a straightforward comparison of the measured line fluxes at these four energies. We have examined these measured line fluxes as a function of time for each instrument after applying the most recent calibrations that account for the time-dependent response of each instrument. Results. We performed our effective area comparison with representative, early mission data when the radiation damage and contamination layers were at a minimum, except for the XMM-Newton EPIC-pn instrument which is stable in time. We found that the measured fluxes of the O vii Heα r line, the O viii Lyα line, the Ne ix Heα r line, and the Ne x Lyα line generally agree to within ±10% for all instruments, with 38 of our 48 fitted normalizations within ±10% of the IACHEC model value. We then fit all available observations of 1E 0102.2-7219 for the CCD instruments close to the on-axis position to characterize the time dependence in the 0.5−1.0 keV band. We present the measured line normalizations as a function of time for each CCD instrument so that the users may estimate the un...

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Section: Swift Xrtmentioning

confidence: 89%

SNR 1E 0102.2-7219 as an X-ray calibration standard in the 0.5−1.0 keV bandpass and its application to the CCD instruments aboardChandra,Suzaku,SwiftandXMM-Newton

Plucinsky

Beardmore

Foster

et al. 2016

A&A

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“…For the 3XMM catalogues a simple approach has been adopted. ECFs were computed following the prescription of Mateos et al (2009), for energy bands 1 to 5 (0.2-0.5 keV, 0.5-1.0 keV, 1.0-2.0 keV, 2.0-4.5 keV and 4.5-12.0 keV respectively) and band 9 (0.5-4.5 keV), for full-frame mode, for each EPIC camera, for each of the Thin, Medium and Thick filters. A power-law spectral model with a photon index, Γ = 1.7 and a cold absorbing column density of N H = 3 × 10 20 cm −2 was assumed.…”

Section: Energy Conversion Factors (Ecfs)mentioning

confidence: 99%

TheXMM-Newtonserendipitous survey

Rosen

Webb

Watson

et al. 2016

A&A

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Context. Thanks to the large collecting area (3 × ∼1500 cm 2 at 1.5 keV) and wide field of view (30 across in full field mode) of the X-ray cameras on board the European Space Agency X-ray observatory XMM-Newton, each individual pointing can result in the detection of up to several hundred X-ray sources, most of which are newly discovered objects. Since XMM-Newton has now been in orbit for more than 15 yr, hundreds of thousands of sources have been detected. Aims. Recently, many improvements in the XMM-Newton data reduction algorithms have been made. These include enhanced source characterisation and reduced spurious source detections, refined astrometric precision of sources, greater net sensitivity for source detection, and the extraction of spectra and time series for fainter sources, both with better signal-to-noise. Thanks to these enhancements, the quality of the catalogue products has been much improved over earlier catalogues. Furthermore, almost 50% more observations are in the public domain compared to 2XMMi-DR3, allowing the XMM-Newton Survey Science Centre to produce a much larger and better quality X-ray source catalogue. Methods. The XMM-Newton Survey Science Centre has developed a pipeline to reduce the XMM-Newton data automatically. Using the latest version of this pipeline, along with better calibration, a new version of the catalogue has been produced, using XMM-Newton X-ray observations made public on or before 2013 December 31. Manual screening of all of the X-ray detections ensures the highest data quality. This catalogue is known as 3XMM. Results. In the latest release of the 3XMM catalogue, 3XMM-DR5, there are 565 962 X-ray detections comprising 396 910 unique X-ray sources. Spectra and lightcurves are provided for the 133 000 brightest sources. For all detections, the positions on the sky, a measure of the quality of the detection, and an evaluation of the X-ray variability is provided, along with the fluxes and count rates in 7 X-ray energy bands, the total 0.2-12 keV band counts, and four hardness ratios. With the aim of identifying the detections, a cross correlation with 228 catalogues of sources detected in all wavebands is also provided for each X-ray detection. Conclusions. 3XMM-DR5 is the largest X-ray source catalogue ever produced. Thanks to the large array of data products associated with each detection and each source, it is an excellent resource for finding new and extreme objects.Key words. catalogs -astronomical databases: miscellaneous -surveys -X-rays: general Based on observations obtained with XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and NASA.The catalogue is available at http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/ viz-bin/VizieR?-meta.foot&-source=IX/46

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“…In the soft energy regime below 0.9 keV, where the calibration is known to be least precise (Stuhlinger et al 2008;Mateos et al 2009), we use the isolated neutron star RX J1856.4−3754 to calibrate the EPIC spectra. RX J1856.4−3754 was established as a low-energy calibration target for missions such as Chandra, Suzaku, Swift, and XMM-Newton 1 , and exhibits a high soft X-ray and low optical flux.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

X-ray spectroscopy and photometry of the long-period polar AI Trianguli with XMM-Newton

Traulsen

Reinsch

Schwarz

et al. 2010

A&A

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Context. The energy balance of cataclysmic variables with strong magnetic fields is a central subject in understanding accretion processes on magnetic white dwarfs. With XMM-Newton, we perform a spectroscopic and photometric study of soft X-ray selected polars during their high states of accretion. Aims. On the basis of X-ray and optical observations of the magnetic cataclysmic variable AI Tri, we derive the properties of the spectral components, their flux contributions, and the physical structure of the accretion region in soft polars.Methods. We use multi-temperature approaches in our xspec modeling of the X-ray spectra to describe the physical conditions and the structures of the post-shock accretion flow and the accretion spot on the white-dwarf surface. In addition, we investigate the accretion geometry of the system by completing a timing analysis of the photometric data. Results. Flaring soft X-ray emission from the heated surface of the white dwarf dominates the X-ray flux during roughly 70% of the binary cycle. This component deviates from a single black body and can be described by a superimposition of mildly absorbed black bodies with a Gaussian temperature distribution between kT bb,low := 2 eV and kT bb,high = 43.9 +3.3 −3.2 eV, and N H,ISM = 1.5 +0.8 −0.7 ×10 20 cm −2 . In addition, weaker hard X-ray emission is visible nearly all the time. The spectrum from the cooling post-shock accretion flow is most closely fitted by a combination of thermal plasma mekal models with temperature profiles adapted from prior stationary two-fluid hydrodynamic calculations. The resulting plasma temperatures lie between kT MEKAL,low = 0.8 +0.4 −0.2 keV and kT MEKAL,high = 20.0 +9.9 −6.1 keV; additional intrinsic, partial-covering absorption is on the order of N H,int = 3.3 +2.5 −1.2 × 10 23 cm −2 . The soft X-ray light curves show a dip during the bright phase, which can be interpreted as self-absorption in the accretion stream. Phase-resolved spectral modeling supports the picture of one-pole accretion and self-eclipse. One of the optical light curves corresponds to an irregular mode of accretion. During a short XMM-Newton observation at the same epoch, the X-ray emission of the system is clearly dominated by the soft component.

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Statistical evaluation of the flux cross-calibration of the XMM-Newton EPIC cameras

Cited by 43 publications

References 12 publications

SNR 1E 0102.2-7219 as an X-ray calibration standard in the 0.5−1.0 keV bandpass and its application to the CCD instruments aboardChandra,Suzaku,SwiftandXMM-Newton

SNR 1E 0102.2-7219 as an X-ray calibration standard in the 0.5−1.0 keV bandpass and its application to the CCD instruments aboardChandra,Suzaku,SwiftandXMM-Newton

TheXMM-Newtonserendipitous survey

X-ray spectroscopy and photometry of the long-period polar AI Trianguli with XMM-Newton

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