Speaker
Description
High mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs) offer a unique opportunity to study the physics of accretion in extreme environments and magnetic fields. In these systems, matter is accreted from a massive star onto a compact object which is usually a neutron star. A large number of HMXBs is found in the Magellanic Clouds, especially in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). This is attributed to their ideal environment for hosting young stellar remnants, high formation efficiency for HMXBs, as well as relatively small distances and low foreground absorption conducive for performing detailed studies. This enables us to study HMXBs in the Magellanic Clouds down to a point source X-ray luminosity of a few 10^33 erg/s. We will present the first results from the few HMXB pulsars in the Magellanic Clouds that were in the field of view during the eROSITA calibration and commissioning phase observations including a new X-ray pulsar. We will discuss their spin evolution and spectral properties in the context of accretion onto highly magnetized neutron stars.
| Presenter status | eROSITA consortium member |
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