Support for the standard picture of thermal X-rays in the wind of ζ Puppis from dielectronic recombination of He-like ions

Abstract

We use the line ratios of resolved X-ray resonance and satellite line pairs from Si xiii and Mg xi ions to test the widely held assumption that the shocked plasma in the wind of hot stars is in collisional ionization equilibrium. We specifically apply this test to the prototypical O supergiant ζ Puppis, as its line ratios are well resolved in its total 813 ks Chandra observation. This satellite-to-resonance line ratio is known to be a reliable diagnostic of plasma temperature but has yet to be applied to hot stars due to needing a long exposure time to see both lines above the continuum. In testing the assumed plasma state, we also provide evidence against significant ionization and excitation from proton collisions. Since dielectronic recombination (DR) allows somewhat lower energy free electrons to excite resonance lines than by the usual collisional pathways, we also use the DR flux ratios to extend diagnostics of the ionization fraction of the parent ion to lower temperatures than any other method can achieve. Also, the DR ratio supports a concept of an average free electron temperature, for each target ion used, which can constrain heating models.