A transient high-coherence oscillation in 4U 1820–30

¹ INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, via E. Bianchi 46, 23807 Merate, Italy e-mail: belloni@merate.mi.astro.it
² INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, via di Frascati 33, 00040 Monte Porzio Catone, Italy
³ Dipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi “Roma Tre”, via della Vasca Navale 84, 00146 Roma, Italy

Received: 25 February 2004
Accepted: 11 May 2004

Abstract

We re-analyzed two Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer archival observations of the atoll source 4U 1820-30 in order to investigate the detailed time-frequency properties of the source during the intervals when a ~7 Hz QPO was detected by Wijnands et al. (1999, ApJ, 512, L39). We find that in both observations, in addition to a QPO signal lasting a couple of minutes as previously reported, there is a much narrower transient oscillation with a life time of only a few seconds. Within this time, the oscillation is consistent with being coherent. Its integrated fractional rms is around 10% and its frequency 7.3 Hz and 5.7 Hz in the two observations. We discuss the possible association of this QPO with other oscillations known both in Neutron-Star and Black-Hole systems, concentrating on the similarities with the narrow 5–7 Hz oscillations observed at high flux in Black-Hole Candidates.