The Discovery of Broad P Cygni X-Ray Lines from Circinus X-1 with the [ITAL]Chandra[/ITAL] High-Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer

Abstract

We present the first grating-resolution X-ray spectra of the X-ray binary Circinus X-1, obtained with the High-Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer on Chandra. These reveal a rich set of lines from H-like and/or He-like Ne, Mg, Si, S, and Fe detected with a high signal-to-noise ratio. The lines are broad (±2000 km s-1) and show P Cygni profiles. The absorption components of the lines extend to low velocity, and they have about the same widths and strengths as the corresponding emission components. The widths of the X-ray P Cygni lines are comparable to that of the broad component of the strong, asymmetric Hα line from Cir X-1, suggesting that the two phenomena may be related. We discuss outflow models and propose that the P Cygni profiles may arise in the moderate temperature (~5 × 106 K) region of the wind from an X-ray-heated accretion disk. This basic picture strengthens the idea that the accretion disk in Cir X-1 is viewed in a relatively edge-on manner, and it suggests that Cir X-1 is the X-ray binary analog of a broad absorption line quasar.