Refereed journal article or data article (A1)
Black hole spin-orbit misalignment in the x-ray binary MAXI J1820+070
List of Authors: Poutanen Juri, Veledina Alexandra, Berdyugin Andrei V., Berdyugina Svetlana V., Jermak Helen, Jonker Peter G., Kajava Jari J. E., Kosenkov Ilia A., Kravtsov Vadim, Piirola Vilppu, Shrestha Manisha, Torres Manuel A. P., Tsygankov Sergey S.
Publisher: AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
Publication year: 2022
Journal: Science
Journal name in source: SCIENCE
Journal acronym: SCIENCE
Volume number: 375
Issue number: 6583
Start page: 874
End page: 876
Number of pages: 29
ISSN: 0036-8075
eISSN: 1095-9203
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abl4679
URL: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abl4679
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://arxiv.org/abs/2109.07511
The observational signatures of black holes in x-ray binary systems depend on their masses, spins, accretion rate, and the misalignment angle between the black hole spin and the orbital angular momentum. We present optical polarimetric observations of the black hole x-ray binary MAXI J1820+070, from which we constrain the position angle of the binary orbital. Combining this with previous determinations of the relativistic jet orientation. which traces the black hole spin, and the inclination of the orbit, we determine a lower limit of 40 degrees on the spin-orbit misalignment angle. The misalignment must originate from either the binary evolution or black hole formation stages. If other x-ray binaries have similarly large misalignments, these would bias measurements of black hole masses and spins from x-ray observations.
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