X-ray reverberation models of the disc wind in ultraluminous X-ray source NGC 5408 X-1

Abstract

Majority of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are believed to be super-Eddington objects, providing a nearby prototype for studying an accretion in supercritical regime. In this work, we present the study of time-lag spectra of the ULX NGC 5408 X-1 using a reverberation mapping technique. The time-lag data were binned using two different methods: time-averaged-based and luminosity-based spectral bins. These spectra were fitted using two proposed geometric models: single and multiple photon scattering models. While both models similarly assume that a fraction of hard photons emitted from inner accretion disc could be downscattered with the super-Eddington outflowing wind becoming lagged, soft photons, they are different by the number that the hard photons scattering with the wind, i.e. single versus multiple times. In case of an averaged spectrum, both models consistently constrained the mass of ULX in the range of ∼80–500 M☉. However, for the modelling results from the luminosity-based spectra, the confidence interval of the BH mass is significantly improved and is constrained to the range of ∼75–90 M☉. In addition, the models suggest that the wind geometry is extended in which the photons could downscatter with the wind at the distance of ∼104–106 rg. The results also suggest the variability of the lag spectra as a function of ULX luminosity, but the clear trend of changing accretion disc geometry with the spectral variability is not observed. © 2021 The Author(s).