Coupling between the 45 Hz Horizontal-Branch Oscillation and the Normal-Branch Oscillation in Scorpius X-1

Abstract

The observations of the bright persistent neutron star low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) Sco X-1 performed with the Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) show a ~6 Hz normal-branch oscillation (NBO), a ~45 Hz horizontal-branch oscillation (HBO), and twin kilohertz quasi-periodic oscillations (kHz QPOs) on its normal branch simultaneously. We have found that the fractional amplitude of the HBO corresponding to the NBO phase of high flux is 1.1%, while that of the NBO phase of low flux is undetectable, with a 3 σ upper limit of 0.4%, implying that the HBO strength varies with the NBO phase in a manner opposite that of the lower kHz QPO previously found, and suggests that the condition for the generation of the HBO is met when the NBO flux is high. The 6 Hz NBO in Sco X-1 connects the 45 Hz HBO and the twin kHz QPO together, showing a unique picture indicating a coupling between the QPOs, which has never been observed in other neutron star LMXBs. We discuss the implications for current models of the 45 Hz HBO, the 6 Hz NBO, and the twin kHz QPOs.