Energy Spectra and Time Delays of Hard X-Rays of Solar Flares in Konus-Wind and RHESSI Experiments

Abstract

This paper analyzes hard X-ray radiation of solar flares detected by Konus-Wind and RHESSI spacecrafts. X-ray quanta are measured using high energy, time (Konus-Wind), and spatial (RHESSI) resolution. Spectra of accelerated electrons are calculated from the spectra of hard X-rays both via the forward-fitting method and the Tikhonov reconstruction method. The X-ray data for the solar flare of July 8, 2013, 0120:24 UT are analyzed. In Konus-Wind data the irregularities and inversions are detected in the energy spectrum. According to RHESSI data, the hard X-ray (HXR) energy spectrum is smoother, although it contains breaks. The X-ray energy spectrum determined by the forward-fitting method is hard at the peak of the flux, and the spectrum index is γ ≈ 3.5. Over time, the HXR spectrum is significantly softened, and the spectrum index increases to γ ≈ 7.5. X-ray time delays are determined by a correlation analysis of the time series of different energies. The time delay spectrum is U-shaped with a 47-keV break in the energy for the Konus-Wind data and 57 keV for the RHESSI data.