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Published June 2019 | Published + Submitted
Journal Article Open

Plasma environment effects on K lines of astrophysical interest. II. Ionization potentials, K thresholds, radiative rates, and Auger widths in Ne- through He-like iron ions (Fe XVII – Fe XXV)

Abstract

Aims. In the context of accretion disks around black holes, we estimate plasma-environment effects on the atomic parameters associated with the decay of K-vacancy states in highly charged iron ions, namely Fe XVII – Fe XXV. Methods. Within the relativistic multiconfiguration Dirac–Fock (MCDF) framework, the electron–nucleus and electron–electron plasma screenings were approximated with a time-averaged Debye–Hückel potential. Results. Modified ionization potentials, K thresholds, wavelengths, radiative emission rates, and Auger widths are reported for astrophysical plasmas characterized by electron temperatures and densities in the ranges 10^5 − 10^7 K and 10^(18) − 10^(22) cm^(−3), respectively. Conclusions. We conclude that the high-resolution microcalorimeters on board future X-ray missions such as XRISM and ATHENA are expected to be sensitive to the lowering of the iron K edge due to the extreme plasma conditions occurring in accretion disks around compact objects.

Additional Information

© 2019 ESO. Article published by EDP Sciences. Received 11 March 2019; Accepted 4 May 2019; Published online 18 June 2019. J.D. is Research Fellow of the Belgian Fund for Research Training in Industry and Agriculture (FRIA) while P.P. and P.Q. are, respectively, Research Associate and Research Director of the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research (F.R.S.-FNRS). Financial supports from these organizations, as well as from the NASA Astrophysics Research and Analysis Program (grant 80NSSC17K0345) are gratefully acknowledged. J.A.G. acknowledges support from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

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August 19, 2023
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