Quasi-periodic oscillations under wavelet microscope: the application of Matching Pursuit algorithm

DOI10.1051/0004-6361/200913144zbMATH Open1213.85024arXiv0908.2740OpenAlexW3104490520WikidataQ68678102 ScholiaQ68678102MaRDI QIDQ3003121FDOQ3003121

P. Lachowicz, Chris Done

Publication date: 25 May 2011

Published in: Astronomy and Astrophysics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Abstract: We zoom in on the internal structure of the low-frequency quasi-periodic oscillation (LF QPO) often observed in black hole binary systems to investigate the physical nature of the lack of coherence in this feature. We show the limitations of standard Fourier power spectral analysis for following the evolution of the QPO with time and instead use wavelet analysis and a new time-frequency technique -Matching Pursuit algorithm- to maximise the resolution with which we can follow the QPO behaviour. We use the LF QPO seen in a very high state of XTE J1550-564 to illustrate these techniques and show that the best description of the QPO is that it is composed of multiple independent oscillations with a distribution of lifetimes but with constant frequency over this duration. This rules out models where there is continual frequency modulation, such as multiple blobs spiralling inwards. Instead it favours models where the QPO is excited by random turbulence in the flow.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/0908.2740

zbMATH Keywords

accretion disks accretion methods: data analysis techniques: miscellaneous

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Nontrigonometric harmonic analysis involving wavelets and other special systems (42C40) Numerical methods for wavelets (65T60) Equations of motion in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C10) Galactic and stellar dynamics (85A05) Black holes (83C57) Galactic and stellar structure (85A15)

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