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# Green Bank Telescope Observations of the Eclipse of Pulsar “A” in the Double Pulsar Binary PSR J0737-3039

## 1 Introduction

The discovery of the double-pulsar binary system PSR J0737$``$3039 (Burgay et al., 2003; Lyne et al., 2004) represents a landmark in neutron-star astrophysics. This relativistic system consists of two neutron stars, both radio pulsars, in a 2.4-hr orbit having eccentricity 0.08, viewed nearly edge-on. The binary promises unparalleled tests of General Relativity. During each orbit, the faster-rotating of the two pulsars, PSR J0737$``$3039A (hereafter A), which has period $`P=22`$ ms, is eclipsed briefly at conjunction, while the slower-rotating of the two, PSR J0737$``$3039B ($`P=2.7`$ s; hereafter B), has unusual and longer-lived flux enhancements near the same epoch (Lyne et al., 2004). This bizarre and unprecedented behavior offers a new opportunity to understand pulsar magnetospheric and wind structures.

This paper is part of a short series describing the first follow-up observations of this remarkable source using the 100-m diameter National Radio Astronomy Observatory Green Bank Telescope (GBT).111 The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc. Here we concentrate on the properties of the pulsar “A” eclipse. From observations at the Parkes and Lovell Telescopes, Lyne et al. (2004) have already established that the eclipse has duration 20–30 s and is roughly independent of frequency. The greater sensitivity of the observations described here reveal that the eclipse duration is in fact slightly but significantly dependent on radio frequency, as well as demonstrate for the first time that the eclipse is asymmetric.

## 2 Observations

Our observations with the GBT were promptly scheduled as a NRAO Rapid Response Science Program222http://www.vla.nrao.edu/astro/prop/rapid/ four times in 2003 December and once in 2004 January and made use of receivers at 427, 820 and 1400 MHz. The observational details are summarized in Table 1. The 427 and 820 MHz receivers were located at the prime focus of the GBT, are cooled FET amplifiers, and have approximate system temperatures of 57 K and 25 K, respectively. The 1400 MHz receiver was located at the Gregorian focus and is a cooled HFET amplifier with system temperature of 20 K. All provide one beam and are sensitive to orthogonal polarizations. Signals from the receivers are transferred from the telescope to the control room via optical fibre.

The data reported on here were acquired with a single Berkeley-Caltech Pulsar Machine (BCPM). The BCPM is an analog/digital filter bank which samples $`2\times 96`$ channels using 4 bits at flexible sampling rates and channel bandwidths (Backer et al., 1997). For our observations, the two orthogonal polarizations were summed in hardware prior to being written to disk. The sampling time for all observations was 72 $`\mu `$s. The total bandwidth used (and hence the channel bandwidth) depended on the observing frequency (Table 1).

## 3 Analysis and Results

The data were analyzed using the PRESTO software package (Ransom, 2001). We dedispersed the data using dispersion measure 48.9115 pc cm-3 and did the following analysis on the resulting time series. First, we folded data obtained within 2 min of pulsar A’s eclipse with the ephemeris reported by Lyne et al. (2004) using 64 phase bins. The resulting profile was cross-correlated with a high signal-to-noise template (obtained using data from several complete orbits at the appropriate radio frequency) and the temporal offset was recorded. Then, we folded data from within the 2 min of the eclipse again, but in 2-s intervals. We then determined the pulsed intensity in each 2-s interval, first by aligning the pulse with the template using the previously recorded offset, then by finding the best-fit scale factor between the template and aligned data profile. The best-fit value was found by $`\chi ^2`$ minimization, and the equivalent $`1\sigma `$ uncertainties determined from the values of the scale factor corresponding to the minimum $`\chi ^2`$ plus 1. Note that no effort was made to calibrate the intensities in physical units; we assume that the telescope gain and system temperatures were constant throughout each observation. The average pulse arrival time in each 2-s interval was recorded and reduced to the solar system barycenter using the published position for the pulsar (Lyne et al., 2004). In this way, we obtained a pulsed flux intensity time series consisting of a barycentric time and an intensity for each of the 120 2-s intervals around conjunction. The number of conjunctions observed at each frequency is given in Table 2. Note that we found no evidence for any changes in dispersion measure near eclipse. Using the 427 MHz data, we set an upper limit on any dispersion-measure variation on $`\stackrel{>}{_{}}2`$-s time scales of 0.016 pc cm-3. This was done by running the pulsar timing software package TEMPO333http://www.atnf.csiro.au/research/pulsar/timing/tempo/ on the 427 MHz data (with eclipse points identified by large arrival-time uncertainty and omitted) without fitting for any parameters, and taking the largest residual as an upper limit on any delay due to an anomalous dispersion-measure change.

Average eclipse light curves for each frequency were obtained by combining results of every observed conjunction and are shown in Figure 1. The light curve at 427 MHz has more scatter than the other light curves, primarily due to higher levels of sporadic, short-time scale radio interference of unknown origin, particularly during the first orbit.

We detect significant variations in the pulsed emission at the same orbital phase but in different orbits, during the eclipse. An example of such variability is illustrated in Figure 2, in which the light curves for the three 1400 MHz eclipses are shown. In the second observed orbit, there is an apparent $`5\sigma `$ detection of the pulsar during the nominal eclipse period, as indicated in the Figure. Investigation of this 2-s interval’s folded profile by eye confirmed that the pulse, with the expected pulse shape and phase (though appropriately noisy), was present (see Fig. 2, inset). Also, in Figure 1, there is emission in the eclipse region both before and after conjunction in the average 427 MHz light curve. Examination by eye confirmed the approximate pulse shape at the expected phase in several individual 2-s intervals in two of the three 427 MHz orbits. No such pulse appearance was seen in any of the 820 MHz eclipses, however.

Several new properties of the eclipse are apparent from Figure 1. First, the eclipse is clearly asymmetric in that the eclipse ingress is longer in duration than egress. Also, the eclipse appears to last longer post conjunction.

To quantify these properties, we fit the orbit-averaged light curves at each frequency with two functions of the form

$$F(\varphi )=\frac{1}{e^{(\varphi \varphi _0)/w}+1}.$$
(1)
Here $`F(\varphi )`$ is the flux at orbital phase $`\varphi `$, defined such that conjunction is at $`\varphi =0`$. This function, having two free parameters $`\varphi _0`$ and $`w`$, has value unity for $`(\varphi \varphi _0)/w<<1`$, zero for $`(\varphi \varphi _0)/w>>1`$, and one half for $`\varphi =\varphi _0`$. The transition from values near unity to zero occurs in a width $`2w`$. Optimal values of $`\varphi _0`$ and $`w`$ for eclipse ingress and egress were determined separately for each light curve in Figure 1 using straightforward $`\chi ^2`$ minimization and data in the interval $`0.006<\varphi <0`$ for ingress and $`0<\varphi <0.006`$ for egress. With two free parameters per side, the number of degrees of freedom per fit, $`\nu `$, was 23. The best fits are shown as solid curves in Figure 1; they generally yield values of reduced $`\chi ^2`$ near unity, except for the 427 MHz light curve, for which the higher $`\chi ^2`$ results from the extra scatter noted above. Contours of constant $`\chi ^2`$ in $`\varphi _0`$/$`w`$ space were approximately circular, indicating that these parameters were largely independent. Best-fit parameters and $`\chi _\nu ^2`$ values are given in Table 2.

Figure 3 summarizes the results of these fits. Panel (a) shows the eclipse FWHM, defined as the sum of ingress and egress values of $`|\varphi _0|`$. The clear trend in the data indicates that the eclipse duration is frequency-dependent. Indeed the reduced $`\chi ^2`$ of a fit to the data assuming a simple constant mean value is 6.1, clearly ruling this model out. The data are very well fit by a linear model, having slope $`(4.52\pm 0.03)\times 10^7`$ orbits MHz-1, and intercept $`(3.412\pm 0.003)\times 10^3`$. This predicts that the eclipse will disappear at approximately 7.5 GHz, assuming no other eclipse mechanism becomes important. The mean eclipse FWHM duration, averaged over these three frequencies, is $`0.00301\pm 0.00008`$ in orbital phase, or $`26.6\pm 0.7`$ s.

Figure 3, panel (b), shows ingress and egress values of $`w`$. One aspect of the asymmetry of the eclipse is very apparent from this plot: all ingress values of $`w`$ are higher than the egress values. Thus, the pulsar exits eclipse faster than it enters. We quantify this effect by taking the ratio of the ingress to egress values of $`w`$, $`w_i/w_e`$. We find, for 427, 820 and 1400 MHz, $`w_i/w_e=3.34\pm 0.59,3.74\pm 0.78,`$ and $`3.45\pm 1.40`$, respectively. Thus, this aspect of the eclipse asymmetry is not dependent on frequency. The mean $`w_i/w_e`$ is 3.51; the uncertainty on this value, estimated from the uncertainties at each frequency, is 0.99. Estimating the uncertainty from the RMS scatter in the three values suggests a much smaller uncertainty of 0.15; this may be a chance occurence due to small-number statistics.

Figure 3, panel (c), shows the fitted values of $`\varphi _0`$ for ingress and egress at each frequency. Clearly, $`|\varphi _0|`$ values for egress are systematically larger than for ingress (Fig. 2c), demonstrating that the eclipse lasts longer post-conjunction. Note that the latter is opposite to what would be expected if the $`w`$ asymmetry were the only one present, and hence is a different effect. We quantify this using the difference between ingress and egress values of $`\varphi _0`$. For 427, 820 and 1400 MHz, we find differences of $`0.00042\pm 0.00007`$, $`0.00036\pm 0.00006`$, and $`0.00042\pm 0.00009`$, respectively. Thus we find no evidence for frequency dependence of this eclipse asymmetry. That the absolute values of $`\varphi _0`$ for both ingress and egress decrease significantly with increasing frequency is a restatement of the fact that the eclipse duration decreases with increasing frequency.

## 4 Discussion

The best-fit inclination angle of the system as reported by Ransom et al. (2004) is $`88.7^{}\pm 0.9^{}`$. Given the measured projected semi-major axis of pulsar A’s orbit, this implies that A’s beam must pass within 0.07 lt-s of pulsar B. The latter has light-cylinder radius $`R_{\mathrm{lc}}=cP/2\pi =0.45`$ lt-s. Thus, if B’s magnetosphere were unperturbed, then A’s beam as observed by us would have passed well within its light cylinder and through its magnetosphere. However, as discussed by Lyne et al. (2004), given the relative spin-down luminosities of the two pulsars, with A’s being a factor of $``$3625 greater than B’s, it seems inevitable that A’s wind has disrupted B’s outer magnetosphere at least halfway inside B’s light cylinder and possibly further out than A’s beam passes at conjunction. At A’s conjunction, the relative transverse velocities of the pulsars is 680 km s-1, so the eclipse duration implies an approximately constant physical size of the eclipsing region of 18,100 km, or 0.060 lt-s, comparable to the estimated 0.07 lt-s impact parameter, though in a direction parallel to the orbital plane. This clearly implies an eclipse region that is much smaller than B’s unperturbed magnetosphere.

Synchrotron absorption in a shock heated “magnetosheath” surrounding and containing B’s magnetosphere is a possible model for the A eclipse (Arons et al., 2004a; Lyutikov, 2004, Arons et al., in preparation). A’s wind probably confines B’s magnetosphere on the side facing A (which changes periodically with B’s rotation over 2.7 s) such that the latter likely resembles a time-dependent variant of the Earth’s magnetosphere: compressed on the side facing the source of the wind (the Sun in the terrestrial case, A in this case) with a magnetotail on the opposite side. The plasma from A passes through a bow shock which spreads and weakens with distance down the flanks of the tail. The wind plasma from A which passes through the bow shock, flows in a magnetosheath layer between the bow shock and the magnetopause current layer that confines B’s magnetosphere. If the bow shock compresses and heats the A pulsar’s wind plasma as if it occurred in a weakly magnetized, semi-infinite flow, then synchrotron absorption in this shock heated plasma can account for the strong eclipse of A by B, albeit for surprisingly high pair densities in A’s wind (Arons et al., 2004a). The dimensions of the magnetopause and bow shock on the side facing A, along with the impact parameter of the line-of-sight with respect to B at conjunction, are such that A’s radio beam can pass through the northernmost or southernmost extremities of the magnetosheath layer (where north or south means with respect to the orbital plane.)

Such a scenario is consistent with the sharp edge and mildly frequency-dependent shape of the eclipse, since the synchrotron absorption optical depths at the observation frequencies used in this study are large and the shock causes the plasma density and relativistic temperature to jump up sharply across the thin shock layer. The eclipse-to-eclipse variations and occasional appearances of the pulse during the nominal eclipse region suggest a changing eclipse medium. If pulsar B is an oblique rotator, it is possible that the rotation of its magnetosphere causes the magnetospheric and bow shock shapes to be asymmetric on average between ingress and egress by amounts which account for the observed asymmetries.

If this picture and physical model is correct, one reaches the interesting conclusion that A’s wind shocks as if it is not strongly magnetized at a distance of only $``$750 times its light cylinder radius. Previous conclusions regarding pulsar wind magnetization have been derived from the behavior of relativistic winds as they pass through their termination shocks in pulsar wind nebulae (see Kaspi et al., 2004, for a recent review), located at much larger distances (typically $`10^7`$ light cylinder radii) from their driving pulsars (e.g. Kennel & Coroniti, 1984).

The above A eclipse model (see Arons et al., in preparation) predicts that at sufficiently high radio frequencies, the eclipse will clear, consistent with the observed frequency dependence of the eclipse duration. For nominal, highly simplified models, transparency might appear at frequencies above 5–10 GHz, roughly quantitatively consistent with the observed frequency dependence extrapolation. If the impact parameter of the line-of-sight with respect to B during eclipse is sufficiently small, cyclotron scattering within B’s magnetosphere might also contribute to the high-frequency opacity. However, nominal values for the geometry suggest this to be unlikely. In addition, the eclipse duration and morphology should change with time on few-year time scales as relativistic periastron precession, and, perhaps more importantly, geodetic precession, which is expected to be very important in this system (Lyne et al., 2004), change the alignment of the pulsars. This will alter both our viewing vantage point and the dynamic pressure of A’s wind on B at conjunction.

The durations of pulsar A ingress and egress are comparable to the rotational period of B. As B’s magnetosphere could well present a different response to A’s wind pressure depending on B’s rotational phase, significantly different A eclipse behavior from orbit to orbit might be expected. A higher time resolution investigation with higher sensitivity may reveal B phase dependent effects on the eclipse.

We pay tribute to the Parkes survey team for so wonderful a discovery. We thank C. Bignell, F. Ghigo, and G. Langston for assistance with the GBT observations, and M. Roberts and B. Rutledge for useful discussions. This work was funded by an NSERC Discovery Grant and Steacie Fellowship Supplement to V.M.K. Additional funding to V.M.K. was provided by FQRST and CIAR. J.A. was partially supported by NASA grants TM4-5005X, NAG5-12031, G03-4063B and HST-HF-01157.01-A. He also thanks the taxpayers of California for their continued indulgence. A.S. acknowledges support provided by NASA through Chandra Fellowship PF2-30025 awarded by the Chandra X-ray Center, which is operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory for NASA under contract NAS8-39073.

Note added in proof. –  Very recently, McLaughlin et al. (2004) report modulation of A’s flux at B’s period during eclipse ingress, from a higher time resolution analysis of the 820 MHz data set used here. This suggests that the eclipse medium is indeed highly dependent on B’s rotational phase.


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# Accretion flows around stellar mass black holes and neutron stars

## 1 Introduction

Accretion is a very common process in the Universe playing a key role from young stellar objects to super-massive black holes powering active galactic nuclei. Accretion of matter onto a neutron star or a stellar mass black hole will produce copious X-ray emission (Frank et al. (2002) and references therein). In most X-ray binaries, the matter from the secondary star feeds the compact object through an accretion disk. In the disk, matter heats up as it approaches the central object in keplerian orbits, while viscosity transports angular momentum outward. The energy spectrum and time variability of the X-rays can be used to probe the strong gravity field of the collapsed star, the accretion geometry and the emission processes at work under extreme conditions.

Recent advances in understanding accretion flows around compact objects have greatly benefited from the observations performed by two exceptional X-ray observatories: BeppoSAX Frontera et al. (1998) and RXTE Bradt et al. (1993). The major BeppoSAX contribution came from its broad band capability (from less than a keV to $`200`$ keV) and unprecedented sensitivity in the hard X-ray range (E$`40`$ keV), whereas the RXTE contribution came from its ability to perform extensive and flexible monitoring spectral and timing observations.

This review presents a summary of what has been learned recently from these observations by combining spectral and timing information and emphasizing the many similarities observed between neutron stars and black holes. The X-ray properties of accreting binaries have been reviewed extensively in the last few years Done (2001); Beloborodov (2001a); Poutanen (2001); Natalucci (2001); Done (2002); McClintock, J.E and Remillard, R. (2003); Bellloni, T. (2003); Di Salvo, T. and Stella, L. (2003). The optical, ultraviolet and infrared observations of X-ray binaries are reviewed in Charles, P.A. and Coe, M.J. (2003), whereas their radio properties are reviewed in Fender (2003).

Since this review is also intended for plasma physicists not always familiar with the terminology used in the field, it is worth defining precisely what we are talking about. With neutron star binaries, it is meant those systems containing weakly magnetized neutron stars (B$`<10^9`$ G); the presence of a neutron star is inferred from the detection of type I X-ray bursts (thermonuclear flashes on the neutron star surface) or X-ray pulsations (for accreting millisecond pulsars). There are more than 50 such systems known in the Galaxy Liu et al. (2001). Similarly black hole binaries mean those systems for which there are compelling evidence that the compact object is a black hole (e.g. estimate of the mass function which indicates a compact object mass larger than $`3`$ solar masses: the maximum mass of a stable neutron star McClintock, J.E and Remillard, R. (2003)). To date, there are 18 such systems McClintock, J.E and Remillard, R. (2003), among the $`150`$ X-ray binaries known.

## 2 Soft and hard spectral states

X-ray binaries for which the accretion rate onto the compact object varies exhibit various spectral states. This is naturally the case for X-ray transients, which sample a very wide range of accretion rates from quiescence to outburst. For the sake of clarity, in this paper I will define soft and hard spectral states based on the fraction of luminosity radiated below 10 keV22210 keV has been chosen to encompass the peak of the energy spectra of the persistently bright X-ray sources which are permanently observed in soft spectral states, e.g. Sco X-1.. In a soft spectral state, the bulk of the energy (e.g. $`80`$%) is radiated below 10 keV, whereas in a hard spectral state, the energy radiated below 10 keV is either comparable or less than the energy radiated above. There are obviously intermediate and extreme states beside soft and hard states (see Figure 1). In general, it is assumed that the X-ray luminosity (below 10 keV) is a good measure of the source bolometric luminosity, and hence that the source is more luminous in a soft state than in a hard state; but this is not necessarily the case. Thanks to RXTE, many systems have now been followed extensively during their spectral state transitions, and the picture that is emerging is that the spectral state is a very complex function of the source luminosity (e.g. Bellloni, T. (2003); McClintock, J.E and Remillard, R. (2003); Barret (2001)). The luminosity associated with spectral state transitions vary within and between systems McClintock, J.E and Remillard, R. (2003). Within a system, it depends also to some degree on the long term evolution of the accretion rate Barret and Olive (2002).

In the following, we review separately each of the spectral components making up the broad band X-ray/hard X-ray spectrum of accreting X-ray binaries.

## 3 Thermal and non-thermal Comptonization

Comptonization, which is the process of Compton up scattering of soft seed photons on hot electrons is the dominant emission mechanism in both soft and hard spectral states of X-ray binaries333This is not the case however for the ultrasoft state of black holes when the disk emission dominates over a weak comptonized hard tail. (see Figures 2 & 3). The shape of the Comptonized spectrum depends primarily on the nature of the electron distribution (thermal/non-thermal), the temperature and optical depth of the electron cloud, the characteristic temperature of the seed photons, and to a lower degree on the geometrical shape of the scattering cloud (e.g. Titarchuk (1994)).

Thermal Comptonization is observed in black hole binaries in their hard states, and both in soft and hard states of neutron star binaries. For black holes, their broad band spectra show clear evidence for a high energy cutoff (the signature of a thermal electron distribution) around 200 keV (see Figures 1 & 3). Fitting these spectra with thermal Comptonization models yields for the electron plasma a temperature ranging from $`50`$ to $`100`$ keV and an optical depth of the order of unity (e.g. Cyg X-1, see Di Salvo et al. (2001a), but see also Frontera et al. (2001) for a more sophisticated model involving two temperatures for the electrons).

For neutron stars, in soft states, the electron temperature is typically 3 to 5 keV and the optical depth of the electron plasma a few Barret (2001). On the other hand, in their low states, the comptonized spectra are considerably harder and hotter, with the electron temperature typically around $`30`$ keV Barret (2001); Di Salvo, T. and Stella, L. (2003) (see Figures 2 & 3). These spectra share clearly some similarities with those observed from hard state black hole binaries. However on average, neutron stars reach electron temperature lower than black holes. This has been interpreted as the signature of the neutron star surface acting as a Compton thermostat to limit the electron cloud temperature (see discussion in Barret (2001)).

Non-thermal Comptonization has been observed in soft states of black holes (Figure 1). Significant emission is detected up to $`1`$ MeV and the spectra show no clear evidence for a high energy cutoff Grove et al. (1998). These spectra have been adequately fitted with Comptonization models assuming a hybrid thermal and non-thermal electron distribution. A significant fraction (up to $`50\%`$) of the power must go in the non-thermal electrons to account for the spectrum beyond $`300`$ keV. The most likely mechanism to power the non-thermal electrons is magnetic reconnection in a corona above the accretion disk (e.g. Gierliński and Done (2003)).

For neutron star binaries, the evidence for non-thermal Comptonization comes from the observation of non-attenuated power law tails. Such tails have been observed from some of the brightest neutron star binaries, permanently observed in soft states (e.g. Di Salvo et al. (2001b)). These tails dominate the spectrum above 30 keV and carry only a small fraction of the source luminosity (a few %). Non-attenuated power laws with slopes in the range 2.0-2.5 have also been observed from much fainter systems Natalucci (2001); Di Salvo, T. and Stella, L. (2003). Fitting such spectra with Comptonization models sets a lower limit on the electron temperature to at least 100 keV.

The origin of these tails is currently debated but may be related to the non-thermal components observed in the soft spectral states of black hole binaries Di Salvo, T. and Stella, L. (2003). In bright neutron stars, the luminosity in the tail remains a small fraction of the source luminosity. This is not the case for black holes. This could again be related to the additional Compton cooling from the neutron star surface/boundary layer emission Done and Gierliński (2003). Alternatively, it has also been suggested that the tails may be related to the appearance of a jet (which is observed in some bright systems, e.g. Fender (2003)). The high energy tail would then result either from non-thermal Comptonization of disk seed photons in the jet or from direct optically thin synchrotron emission of the jet itself (see discussion in Di Salvo, T. and Stella, L. (2003)).

## 4 Seed photons

In the section above, I have left unspecified the source of seed photons for the Comptonization. These seed photons are sometimes directly visible in the X-ray spectrum in the form of a soft component. This component is generally modeled by a multi-color disk blackbody model (e.g. Merloni et al. (2000)), and provides some constraints on the geometry of the accretion flow.

In black holes binaries, especially in their soft states, it has been shown that the soft component was consistent with being the unscattered fraction of the seed photons supplied by the accretion disk to a magnetic corona Gierliński and Done (2003) (Figure 2 left). The changes in the ratio between the disk and corona emissions are explained by changing the optical depth of the comptonizing cloud and/or the covering factor of the disk by the corona. In the highest luminosity states, the disk emission is so strongly comptonized that it becomes barely visible in the X-ray spectrum (e.g. Done (2001)).

When going to hard states, the soft component generally becomes cooler (hence fainter in X-rays). One of the best example to date is provided by the black hole binary XTEJ1118+480, whose extremely low interstellar absorption allowed to measure the soft component temperature down to $`40`$ eV Frontera et al. (2003); its hard state spectrum is shown in Figure 3 (left). If attributed to the accretion disk, the soft component would imply that the disk is truncated at $`R30`$ Rg (with $`R_g=GM/c^2`$). Near-simultaneous infrared to hard X-ray observations of the same source also in a hard state resolved the disk emission into an even softer 24 eV thermal component, from which an inner disk radius larger than 70 $`R_g`$ was inferred McClintock et al. (2001).

Three classes of models are currently competing to explain hard state spectra (see Done (2001); Beloborodov (2001b) for a review). The first one, is the so-called disk-spheroid model (e.g. Poutanen et al. (1997)), in which a hot inner flow is surrounded, with a partial overlap, by a cool accretion disk supplying the seed photons. The hot inner flow is a two-temperature plasma, with the protons much hotter than the electrons. The two-temperature plasma cools either by Compton scattering (e.g. Shapiro et al. (1976)) or by advection (e.g. Esin et al. (2001)). In the second class of model, electrons are stored in magnetic flares above a non truncated accretion disk. These flares could be generated by the magneto-hydrodynamic dynamo responsible for the disk viscosity Hawley (2000). The third one uses the fact that hard states of black holes are associated with compact and quasi-steady radio jets Fender (2003). It has been suggested that the X-rays could arise directly from synchrotron emission in the jet (e.g. Markoff et al. (2003)).

Sometimes the soft component detected in the spectrum is so weak that it is no longer consistent with being the visible part of the seed photon spectrum Frontera et al. (2003). Thus alternative interpretations for the source of seed photons have been considered; as for instance thermal synchrotron emission from within the electron plasma cloud Wardziński and Zdziarski (2000).

For neutron star binaries, in addition to the disk, thermalized emission at the neutron star surface can also supply seed photons. Since both components can be visible in the X-ray spectrum (their unscattered fraction), the interpretation of the spectra is not as straightforward as in the case of black holes. However, recent RXTE monitoring observations have shown that the complex spectral behavior of these systems could be explained also in the framework of the disk-spheroid model, to which the emission from the neutron star surface must be added. In the hard spectral state444The upper horizontal branch of the so-called ”island” state., the disk does not contribute to the X-ray spectrum, and the seed photons are predominantly provided by the neutron star surface (limited to a hot spot in the case of accreting millisecond pulsars in which the inner flow is channeled by the neutron star magnetic field, e.g. SAXJ1808-3659, Gierliński et al. (2002); Poutanen and Gierliński (2003)). A fraction of the neutron star (or hot spot) emission is visible through the scattering cloud which has a moderate optical depth Gierliński et al. (2002); Gierliński and Done (2002); Barret and Olive (2002) (see Figure 3, right). In that state, the lack of correlation between the spectral and timing parameters provides support for this interpretation (see Gierliński et al. (2002); Olive et al. (2003); van Straaten et al. (2003) and discussion below).

On the other hand, in the soft spectral state, some seed photons are still provided by the neutron star surface but the contribution from the accretion disk is no longer negligible (see Figure 2 right). Only the unscattered disk emission can be seen, as the one from the neutron star surface is buried under the Comptonizing cloud of increased optical depth. The changing optical thickness of the boundary layer, the relative strength of its unscattered emission and the one from the disk would explain the complex spectral evolution of neutron stars, as followed in their X-ray color-color diagrams Gierliński and Done (2002); Barret and Olive (2002). In addition, the neutron star/boundary layer emission which is absent in black holes would explain why in some regions of these color-color diagrams (the very soft regions) only black holes can be found Done and Gierliński (2003).

In both soft spectral states of neutron stars, the Comptonized component carries out most of the energy (see Figures 2 and 3 right) and dominates over the disk contribution. The site of Comptonization must therefore involve the boundary layer, in which the kinetic energy of the accreted material must eventually be released. In general relativity, it is known that the luminosity of the boundary layer can exceed that of the disk by about a factor of 2 Sunyaev and Shakura (1986). In the hard state, the observations suggest that the boundary layer is optically thin and merge smoothly with the hot inner flow (e.g. Barret et al. (2000); Barret (2001)).

## 5 Reflection

Reflection of hard X-rays on some material (neutral or ionized) will produce a broad X-ray bump (peaking at $``$ 20 keV) together with fluorescence lines and edges of the most abundant elements (mostly iron). This reflection component holds also some potential to constrain the geometry of the accretion flow in the immediate vicinity of the compact star (see Fabian et al. (2000); Done (2001) and references therein and e.g. Miller et al. (2001) for an application to the candidate black hole XTE J1748-288 X-ray data). The parameters of the reflection component and associated features can be constrained from spectral fitting, but requires a precise knowledge of the continuum spectrum (hence broad band measurements).

This reflected component has now been observed in the spectra of both neutron star and black hole systems, in soft and hard spectral states (see Figures 2 & 3). However it is much easier to dig out in hard state spectra. In general, in the hard state, it is found that the reflector is mostly neutral, subtends a small solid angle much less than $`2\pi `$, and that the amount of relativistic smearing is much less than what would be expected if the reflector extended down to the last stable orbit Done (2001). On the other hand, in soft states, the properties of the reflection component (increased smearing) suggest that the reflector extends closer to the central object (e.g. Miller et al. (2001)).

The strength of the reflection component seems to be correlated with the spectral index of the continuum spectrum in a way that softer spectra are associated with more reflection Zdziarski et al. (1999); Gilfanov et al. (1999, 2000). Fitting of the 3-20 keV spectra with a power law continuum model and its reflection yields the correlation represented in Figure 4 (left) for three black hole systems. This correlation has been interpreted as strong evidence that the reflecting material is also the source of source of seed photons, hence most likely the cool accretion disk Zdziarski et al. (1999); Gilfanov et al. (1999, 2000). The above correlation can be interpreted in the framework of the disk-spheroid model as resulting from a geometrical effect (when the disk moves in, the solid angle it subtends to the hard source increases, leading to more reflection and more cooling, hence softer spectra) Zdziarski et al. (1999); Gilfanov et al. (1999, 2000). Another possible interpretation of the above correlation involves emitting blobs of plasma, moving at semi-relativistic speeds above a non truncated disk Beloborodov (1999). The correlation shown in Figure 4 (left) for black holes is observed also from neutron star systems, but slightly offset towards softer spectra for the same amount of reflection (Gilfanov, private communication). This could be due again to the additional Compton cooling from the neutron star surface Gilfanov and Revnivtsev (2003).

## 6 Timing

The Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer has opened a new window to explore the time variability of the X-ray emission down to the dynamical time scales of the accretion flow van der Klis (2000); Psaltis (2001); Wijnands (2001). Despite great observational progresses, the origin of the variability remains poorly understood at the moment. In particular, there are no undisputed models allowing to relate the observed variability time scales to some physical and measurable properties of the accretion flow.

Nevertheless, detailed modeling of the Fourier power density spectrum has allowed to determine and follow precisely the characteristic time scales of the variability for a variety of systems and over a wide range of source intensity states. This analysis has demonstrated, that black holes and neutron stars have very similar properties of their time variability Wijnands and van der Klis (1999). The similarities are very pronounced in the hard states, in which both systems display the so-called band limited noise and broad bumps (Figure 5). This similarity points to a similar underlying mechanism for the variability and a similar accretion geometry in both systems. Multi-component decomposition of power density spectra using Lorentzians has shown that many of the characteristic noise frequencies (up to five is some power spectra) correlate to each other Belloni et al. (2002), and that in a given source, soft states are associated with higher characteristic frequencies than hard states.

As shown above, the properties of the energy spectrum can be interpreted in the framework of a truncated disk geometry with a moving inner radius. Assuming that the characteristic noise frequencies are somehow set by the inner disk radius (as expected in some theoretical models, see van der Klis (2000); Psaltis (2001)), one expects some immediate relationships between timing and spectral parameters. Consistent with this specific assumption, many clear correlations between timing and spectral parameters have been reported. One of the most significant links the amplitude of the reflection component and the low frequency quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) detected in the power density spectra of black hole systems (see Figure 4 right). The higher the QPO frequency the stronger the reflection, as expected if indeed the QPO frequency tracks somehow the position of the inner disk radius Gilfanov et al. (1999, 2000).

If considering the kilo-Hertz QPO frequencies detected in many neutron star systems, several correlations between spectral parameters and QPO frequencies have been reported (see Barret (2001) for a review). One correlation linked the slope of the Comptonized spectrum with the kilo-Hz QPO frequency: the steeper the slope; the higher the QPO frequency Kaaret et al. (1998). This may again be explained by the strong radiative coupling between the disk and the Comptonizing cloud invoked above to explain the correlation between the power law slope and reflection amplitude shown in Figure 4 (left).

It was also shown that kHz QPO frequencies correlate well with the luminosity on timescales of hours, but that sources differing by about three orders of magnitude in luminosity show kilo-Hz QPOs that cover the same range of frequencies van der Klis (2000). A similar effect is seen between observations of the same source at different epochs (e.g. Méndez et al. (1999)). This suggests that the inner disk radius is not set by the instantaneous accretion inferred from the source luminosity. Although the physics of the truncation radius is very uncertain (see however Czerny et al. (2001)), it has been proposed that the inner disk radius could be related to some long-time averaging process over timescales of days to months van der Klis (2001). In this scenario, the important parameter to set the radius would become the ratio between the total accretion rate and the average accretion rate through the disk (e.g. Barret and Olive (2002)). This scenario relies however on the uncertain assumption that the accretion rate in the disk is not the same as the total mass accretion rate.

## 7 Conclusions

The spectral state transitions of X-ray binaries are more likely related to changes in the geometry of the accretion flow, which in the case of black holes is also accompanied by a change in the nature (thermal or non-thermal) of the emission. In the high state of black holes, the disk extends very close to the last stable orbit. It provides the seed photons for the Comptonization. Magnetic reconnection at the surface of the disk is the main source of heat for the electrons; a significant fraction of which have a non-thermal energy distribution. In the low state, the geometry is very much different, the disk is truncated away from the black hole, and is replaced inside by a hot optically thin inner flow. The disk which still provides the seed photons for the Comptonization does not contribute much to the X-ray spectrum, but is visible through a weak reflection component. The main weakness of that scenario is that the physics of the disk truncation is poorly constrained at the moment. This clearly means that alternative models for hard spectral states (magnetic flares or jet synchrotron emission) can still be considered.

Neutron stars differ from black holes, not so much in terms of accretion geometry and emission process, but rather in terms of spectral behavior which is more complex, due mostly to the presence of a solid surface for the neutron star. The unavoidable radiation from the neutron star surface acts as an additional source of cooling for the Comptonizing region, producing in general softer spectra than in the case of black holes.

Turning now to the future, thanks to its improved sensitivity in hard X-rays (at 100 keV), compared to BeppoSAX and RXTE, INTEGRAL Winkler et al. (2003) will enable the properties of the thermal and non-thermal Comptonized emissions from both black holes and neutron stars to be investigated in great details. These observations should however be combined with high resolution spectroscopic simultaneous observations in soft X-rays with XMM-Newton or Chandra. Following upon what has been learned recently with BeppoSAX and RXTE, one might expect significant progresses in the understanding the accretion flows around compact objects to be made in the next few years.

I wish to thank L. Amati, T. di Salvo, M. Gierliński, M. Gilfanov, F. Frontera, E. Palazzi, R. Wijnands, A. Zdziarski for sending me their original data to make some of the figures presented in this paper. I am grateful to F. Frontera, M. Gierliński, M. Gilfanov, T. di Salvo for helpful comments on an earlier version of the paper. It is a real pleasure to thank the organizers of the COMO 2003 meeting, in particular D. Farina and G. Bertin for their invitation, their hospitality and their very kind support along the preparation of this paper, which arrived far too long after the original deadline.


text:
# 1 Introduction

## 1 Introduction

Recently a great deal of experimental and theoretical activity has been dedicated to exotic pentaquark baryons. This activity was sparked by observations of a narrow $`S=1`$ baryon resonance with a mass of 1540 MeV . At present the spin, parity and magnetic moment of this state have not been determined; some groups, e.g. the SAPHIR collaboration , find that the isospin of the $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ is zero. Such a state appears naturally in the rigid rotator approach to the 3-flavor Skyrme model 111 The rigid rotator Skyrmion  approach to non-exotic baryons is usually justified in the limit of large $`N_c`$, where $`N_c`$ is the number of colors . However, the rigid rotator approach to the exotic baryons cannot be justified by large $`N_c`$ reasoning . A study of kaon resonances near a Skyrmion, which is a better approach to the exotics for large $`N_c`$, shows that a state with the quantum numbers of $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ does not appear for conventional values of model parameters . However, such a state can be made to appear by large changes in the parameters. or in diquark models . Both of these approaches produce exotic baryons in the $`\overline{\mathrm{𝟏𝟎}}`$ of $`SU(3)`$, with positive parity. In the diquark model the $`\overline{\mathrm{𝟏𝟎}}`$ mixes strongly with another exotic multiplet, $`\mathrm{𝟖}`$ ; in the chiral soliton model there is also an $`\mathrm{𝟖}`$ of excited baryons coming from the breathing modes of the Skyrmion, and there is also some mixing between the $`\overline{\mathrm{𝟏𝟎}}`$ and the $`\mathrm{𝟖}`$ . Therefore, the $`SU(3)`$ rigid rotator Skyrme model and the diquark models give low-lying pentaquark spectra that are rather similar, although they may be different quantitatively. In particular, both approaches predict the existence of an $`I=3/2`$ multiplet of exotics, which are the lowest strangeness ($`S=2`$) members of the antidecuplet.

Quite recently, an experimental boost to these ideas came from the NA49 collaboration which reported observation of a manifestly exotic member of this quartet, $`\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^{}(ssdd\overline{u})`$ . For analysis of the theoretical situation in light of this new result, see . In spite of the report from NA49, more experimental and theoretical work is clearly needed. The experiments carried out so far are rather difficult, and care needs to be exercised in interpreting the data (see, for instance,  and ). A surprising feature of the experimental results is that the ratio of the $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ production cross-section to that of $`\mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)`$ is found to be very high, in the range of $`3050\%`$ (however, the experimental consistency of a ratio this high was questioned in ). Theoretically, the production cross-section of a 5-quark state is expected to be roughly $`O(1\%)`$ of that for a 3-quark state.222We thank G. Farrar for pointing this out to us.

A further question concerns parity of the pentaquarks. While early quark model approaches predict negative parity (see, for example, ), it was later pointed out that wave functions with positive parity are energetically preferred for certain model interactions . Soliton and diquark models predict positive parity, while some recent lattice studies instead suggest negative parity .

The unexpectedly small width of the pentaquark resonances is also a puzzle. Measurements of the width have been largely limited by the experimental resolution. Careful analysis of some experiments indicates a width as small as $`1`$ MeV . This poses a challenge for all presently available theoretical models, although there are some ideas on why the width is considerably smaller than a typical $`𝒪(100)`$ MeV width expected of a strongly interacting state this much above threshold .

Another important question concerns pentaquarks with $`I=1`$ and $`I=2`$. On general grounds, if the isosinglet $`\overline{s}udud`$ pentaquark has been found, then one suspects that the $`\overline{s}uduu`$ and $`\overline{s}uuuu`$ may be discovered as well, with somewhat higher masses. In chiral soliton models one indeed finds that the existence of the $`I=1`$ and $`I=2`$ pentaquarks is tied to the existence of the $`I=0`$ one . In the $`SU(3)`$ rigid rotator model the $`I=1`$ and $`I=2`$ exotics belong to the $`\mathrm{𝟐𝟕}`$ and the $`\mathrm{𝟑𝟓}`$, respectively. Their origin is more general, however: all that is needed to construct exotic states of higher isospin is an $`SU(2)`$ collective coordinate  whose existence can be argued on large $`N_c`$ grounds . In the simplest diquark model, where all diquarks are assumed to be antisymmetric in color, spin and flavor, such states are absent . If, however, one also assumes the presence of quark pairs symmetric in flavor (pairs of quarks with such quantum numbers are present in decuplet baryons), then the $`I=1`$ pentaquark states of $`J=3/2`$ and $`J=1/2`$ appear, just as in the chiral soliton models, and restore agreement with large $`N_c`$ considerations. The $`I=1`$ states are typically predicted to lie in the range $`16001680`$ MeV  and should be sufficiently narrow to be observable. The highest charge member of this multiplet, $`\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}`$, should be observable through decay into $`pK^+`$. There is no evidence for such a resonance in available $`pK^+`$ scattering data ; recent photoproduction experiments also did not find evidence for this state . In this paper we propose further searches for $`\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}`$.

Beyond the pentaquarks made of the light flavors, it is important to search for heavy flavored pentaquarks, such as the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0(\overline{c}udud)`$. A natural description of such objects in chiral soliton models is provided by the bound state approach  where they are described by bound states or resonances of flavored mesons and solitons. In this approach the exotic baryons are distinguished from the conventional ones by the Wess-Zumino term, which attracts $`D`$ mesons, but repels $`\overline{D}`$ mesons. Heavy quark symmetry was incorporated into the bound state approach in . As the mass of the meson increases, so does the tendency to bind, and the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ is typically predicted to lie below the $`\overline{D}N`$ threshold  (see also ). The bottom flavored pentaquark, $`\mathrm{\Theta }_b^+(\overline{b}udud)`$, is even more likely to be bound.333 However, the effective lagrangian for heavy mesons near a Skyrmion is not known precisely; appreciable changes of parameters can make heavy flavored pentaquarks unbound. In the quark model approaches of  the heavy flavored pentaquarks are also predicted to be bound (in  the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ is estimated to lie $`100`$ MeV below the $`\overline{D}N`$ threshold, in rough agreement with bound state approach estimates ).

If the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ lies below the threshold, then it has only weak decay modes, such as $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0pK^0\pi ^{}`$. If, however, it lies above the threshold, as predicted by other models , then it should appear as a narrow $`D^{}p`$ resonance. One should keep in mind that some earlier charmed pentaquark searches, such as the Fermilab E791 searches for $`\overline{c}suud`$ through its weak decays into $`\varphi \pi ^{}p`$ or $`K^0K^{}p`$, were not successful .

Clearly, further experimental input on pentaquarks is crucial at this point. It is important to find pentaquark production mechanisms that give clean and unambiguous signatures. One possibility first suggested by Rosner  is to search for pentaquarks by using baryonic $`B`$ decays.444 For other recent pentaquark search proposals see, for example, . Although $`B`$ decays into a baryon and antibaryon typically have branching ratios $`<10^4`$, the large numbers of events accumulated at the $`B`$-factories offer excellent opportunities for pentaquark detection that are distinct from photoproduction or kaon scattering that have been used so far. In this paper we make further suggestions along the lines of , and also propose other production mechanisms involving decays of heavy flavored baryons. Since the experimental detection of charged particles is typically easier than that of neutral particles, we will focus on signatures that do not require the detection of an anti-neutron (or neutron) and that lead to final states with charged particles only.

## 2 Pentaquarks in B decays

One of the suggestions in  is that $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+(1540)`$ may be observable through the decay sequences

$$B^0\mathrm{\Theta }^+\overline{p}p\overline{p}K^0$$
(2.1)
$$\overline{B}^0\overline{\mathrm{\Theta }}^{}pp\overline{p}\overline{K}^0$$
(2.2)
In practice one observes $`K_S`$ instead of $`K^0`$. The existence of the $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ and its antiparticle may be confirmed either by examining both the $`pK_S`$ and $`\overline{p}K_S`$ invariant mass combinations or by using flavor-tagging. The $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ pentaquark can also appear in a weak decay of the meson $`\overline{B}_s^0`$, which consists of $`b\overline{s}`$ quarks. If the $`b`$ quark decays weakly into $`du\overline{u}`$ then we may find

$$\overline{B}_s^0\mathrm{\Theta }^+\overline{p}p\overline{p}K^0.$$
(2.3)
Similarly, one can search for the $`I=1`$, $`I_3=1`$ pentaquark $`\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}`$ in the decay

$$B^+\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}\overline{p}p\overline{p}K^+$$
(2.4)
by examining the $`pK^+`$ invariant mass. Another possibility is

$$B^0\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}\overline{p}\pi ^{}p\overline{p}K^+\pi ^{}$$
(2.5)
where again we should examine the $`pK^+`$ invariant mass. On the other hand, examination of the $`\overline{p}K^+`$ invariant mass should reveal a peak corresponding to the antiparticle of $`\mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)`$, which provides a useful normalization. The first of these modes seems most promising as far as statistics are concerned. For example, Belle finds $`96.4_{10.5}^{+11.2}`$ $`p\overline{p}K^+/78`$ fb-1 versus $`11.3_{3.4}^{+4.1}`$ $`p\overline{p}K_S/78`$ fb-1. Belle also finds $`14.5_{4.0}^{+4.6}`$ $`p\overline{p}K^+/78`$ fb-1 where $`K^+K_S\pi ^+`$. However, searches for peaks in the $`pK`$ spectra are not reported in . The final state $`p\overline{p}K_S\pi ^+`$ is one suggested by Rosner. This final state is flavor-specific (allowing one to distinguish $`pK_S`$ and $`p\overline{K}_S`$); however, the signal to background is marginal.

To produce the $`I=0`$ charmed pentaquark $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ in a $`B`$-decay, there are modes involving the dominant weak process $`\overline{b}\overline{c}u\overline{d}`$ :

$$B^+\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0\overline{\mathrm{\Delta }}^+,$$
(2.6)
$$B^0\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0\overline{p}\pi ^+.$$
(2.7)
If the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c`$ is below the $`\overline{D}N`$ threshold, then it will decay weakly into $`pK^0\pi ^{}`$. Otherwise, it will decay strongly into $`\overline{D}^0n`$ or $`D^{}p`$. Since CLEO reported a large signal for $`B^0D^{}p\overline{p}\pi ^+`$ ($`32.3\pm 6.0`$ events/9.1 fb-1) , we should expect a large signal for $`B^0D^{}p\overline{p}\pi ^+`$ as well. This mode can be used to search for $`D^{}p`$ resonances.

Just like the $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$, the charmed pentaquark may have counterparts with $`I=1`$ and $`I=2`$. The antiparticle of a member of the $`I=1`$ multiplet, $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^+(\overline{c}uuud)`$, may be produced through

$$\overline{B}^0\overline{\mathrm{\Theta }}_c^{}pD^0\overline{p}p$$
(2.8)
where we assumed that it lies above the $`DN`$ threshold. This decay mode has been observed (Belle finds $`92\pm 11.5`$ $`D^0p\overline{p}/29`$ fb-1 and $`19\pm 5`$ $`D^0p\overline{p}/29`$ fb-1), and now the spectrum of invariant mass of $`\overline{p}D^0`$ needs to be analyzed.

One may also try to observe pentaquarks containing a $`\overline{c}`$ quark and an $`s`$-quark. It is natural to suppose that the lightest such states are the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^0(\overline{c}sudu)`$ and $`\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^{}(\overline{c}sddu)`$, which form an $`I=1/2`$ doublet . They could be produced, for example, in decays of $`B_s^0(\overline{b}s)`$:

$$B_s^0\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^0\overline{p}\pi ^+,$$
(2.9)
$$B_s^0\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^{}\overline{\mathrm{\Delta }}^+.$$
(2.10)
In the Skyrme model, such states could emerge as bound states or resonances of $`D_s^{}`$ near a Skyrmion. If these states are above the $`D_sN`$ threshold of $`2910`$ MeV, then they could be detected through strong decays, such as $`\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^0D_s^{}p`$, $`\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^0D^{}\mathrm{\Sigma }^+`$, and $`\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^{}\overline{D}^0\mathrm{\Sigma }^{}`$. Otherwise only their weak decays are allowed (however, earlier searches for such states through weak decays have not been successful ).

## 3 Pentaquarks in baryon decays

Another promising way of producing pentaquarks is through weak decays of heavy flavored baryons. Consider, for example, Cabibbo suppressed decays of the $`\mathrm{\Lambda }_c^+(cud)`$. If instead of the dominant mode $`csu\overline{d}`$ we consider Cabibbo suppressed modes that proceed through $`csu\overline{s}`$, then we find the following possible decay modes where only one additional $`q\overline{q}`$ pair is produced:

$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_c^+\mathrm{\Theta }^+\overline{K}^0pK^0\overline{K}^0,$$
(3.1)
$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_c^+\mathrm{\Theta }^{++}K^{}pK^+K^{}.$$
(3.2)
Belle published a signal for $`\mathrm{\Lambda }_cpK^+K^{}`$ with $`676\pm 89`$ events/78 fb-1. No signal was shown for $`\mathrm{\Lambda }_cpK_S\overline{K}_S`$. Rough scaling leads one to expect $`𝒪(90100)`$ $`pK_S\overline{K}_S`$ events/78 fb-1. The signal to background should be excellent.

Another good opportunity is provided by decays of $`\mathrm{\Xi }_c^+(csu)`$ and $`\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0(csd)`$. Using the dominant mode $`csu\overline{d}`$, we may have

$$\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+\mathrm{\Xi }^{}\pi ^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+.$$
(3.3)
This is a large mode, and a sample of events $`\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }^{}\pi ^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+`$ was already obtained by Belle for the study of excited $`\mathrm{\Xi }_c^{}`$. This, or another possible mode

$$\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+\mathrm{\Sigma }^{}K^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+,$$
(3.4)
provide good opportunities to confirm the discovery  of the $`\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^{}(1860)`$.

It is interesting that the same events could be used to search for another manifestly exotic member of the $`I=3/2`$ quartet, $`\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^+(ssuu\overline{d})`$, which is a state not yet observed by NA49 . Indeed, the following decay sequence is available:

$$\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^+\pi ^{}\mathrm{\Xi }^{}\pi ^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+,$$
(3.5)
and $`\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^+`$ could appear as a peak in the distribution of the invariant mass of $`\mathrm{\Xi }^{}\pi ^+\pi ^+`$. Another possible decay sequence is

$$\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^+\pi ^{}\mathrm{\Sigma }^+\overline{K}^0\pi ^{},$$
(3.6)
but it is not reported as “seen” by the PDG . Perhaps it is also possible to observe

$$\mathrm{\Xi }_c^0\mathrm{\Xi }_{3/2}^+\pi ^{}\mathrm{\Xi }^0\pi ^+\pi ^{}\mathrm{\Lambda }\pi ^0\pi ^+\pi ^{},$$
(3.7)
where the $`\mathrm{\Xi }^0`$ decays weakly into $`\mathrm{\Lambda }\pi ^0`$.

Charm pentaquarks, such as the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ may be produced in weak decays of the $`\mathrm{\Lambda }_b(bud)`$. Using a Cabibbo suppressed mode $`bcd\overline{c}`$, we may find

$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_b\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0D^0$$
(3.8)
or

$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_b\mathrm{\Theta }_c^{}D^+$$
(3.9)
where $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^{}(\overline{c}uddd)`$ is the $`I=1`$, $`I_3=1`$ state. Using instead the dominant mode $`bcs\overline{c}`$, we may find, e.g.,

$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_b\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^0D^0$$
(3.10)
or

$$\mathrm{\Lambda }_b\mathrm{\Theta }_{cs}^{}D^+.$$
(3.11)
## 4 Pentaquarks in quarkonium decays or in $`e^+e^{}`$ continuum production

As suggested in , another possible way of observing the $`\mathrm{\Theta }^+`$ is through the inclusive reaction

$$J/\psi \mathrm{\Theta }^++X.$$
(4.1)
However, there is little phase space avilable since $`m(J/\psi )3097`$ MeV, while the minimum mass of $`X`$ is $`m_N+m_K1435`$ MeV. It may be better to study instead excited charmonium states, such as the $`\psi (2S)`$ whose mass is 3686 MeV. Millions of its decays have been observed at BES. The typical branching fraction for a $`\psi (2S)`$ decay to a baryon-antibaryon pair is $`𝒪(10^4)`$ , thus perhaps it is possible to observe the decay

$$\psi (2S)\mathrm{\Theta }^++XpK^0+X.$$
(4.2)
Similar events could be expected in the decay of $`b\overline{b}`$ mesons, such as the $`\mathrm{{\rm Y}}(1S)`$ (millions of its decays have been recorded by CLEO ). It is heavy enough that it can decay into charmed pentaquarks. For example, one could carry out an inclusive search for events of the type

$$\mathrm{{\rm Y}}(1S)\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0+XpD^{}+X.$$
(4.3)
Even if the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ is slightly below the $`DN`$ threshold, there could be some indication for it from a $`pD^{}`$ spectrum rising toward the threshold. Otherwise, the decay sequence is

$$\mathrm{{\rm Y}}(1S)\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0+XpK^0\pi ^{}+X.$$
(4.4)
Finally we mention perhaps the most obvious way of producing pentaquarks: through $`e^+e^{}q\overline{q}`$ with subsequent production of four light quark-antiquark pairs during fragmentation (this was briefly discussed in ). While this method is possible off any resonance, a particularly convenient data set involves the vast number of $`e^+e^{}q\overline{q}`$ events accumulated by the $`B`$-factories at the $`\mathrm{{\rm Y}}(4S)`$ resonance. This method seems particularly well-suited for production of pentaquarks containing a $`\overline{c}`$ quark, such as in the inclusive reactions

$$e^+e^{}\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0+XpD^{}+X,$$
(4.5)
if the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ is above the $`\overline{D}N`$ threshold, or

$$e^+e^{}\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0+XpK^0\pi ^{}+X,$$
(4.6)
if the $`\mathrm{\Theta }_c^0`$ is below the $`\overline{D}N`$ threshold. In these cases, due to the hard fragmentation of the charm quark, one can apply a tight momentum requirement, e.g. $`p_P^{}>2.5`$ GeV, (where $`p_P^{}`$ is the momentum of the pentaquark candidate in the center of mass frame), to reduce backgrounds in the search.

## 5 Conclusion

There is strong motivation to search for the pentaquarks in decays of heavy hadrons or in $`e^+e^{}`$ collisions, as suggested in  and in this paper. Possible signatures are given in Tables 1, 2, and 3. Besides confirming the existence of the pentaquarks, these methods promise a precise determination of their widths and quantum numbers (spin and parity). Based on experience so far, their widths are expected to be narrow, much less than the $`100`$ MeV width that one might naively expect for a strongly decaying resonance. Some heavy flavored pentaquarks may even have weak lifetimes.

One uncertainty for all searches is the lack of a good understanding of the pentaquark production cross-sections. Cross-sections for known non-exotic resonances, such as the $`\mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)`$, should be measured first for calibration. One then expects pentaquark cross-sections to be at least of order a percent of that.

## Acknowledgments

We are grateful to G. Farrar, P. Ouyang and E. Witten for useful discussions. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Grants No. PHY-0243680 and PHY-0140311. We acknowledge support from the U.S. Department of Energy under grants DE-FG03-94ER40833, DE-FG02-96ER41005. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.