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# Spectrum of light scattering from an extended atomic wave packet

## I Introduction

The typical operation of a matter-wave interferometer  involves a beam splitter that separates an incoming atomic beam into a set of states having different center-of-mass momenta, and mirrors which recombine the beams. The atom density of the recombined beams exhibits interference fringes resulting from different phases acquired during free motion along the different arms of the interferometer. In this paper, we address a question of fundamental importance, Is it possible to establish the spatial coherence of the wave packet without recombining the beams?

To accomplish this goal, we propose a method involving Rayleigh scattering. It has already been shown  that the scattered signal, integrated over frequency, is not sensitive to the spatial coherence of atom wave packets. A similar conclusion was reached for the correlation properties of the field emitted in spontaneous emission . On the other hand, it was shown that the spectrum of spontaneous emission was sensitive to the spatial form of the wave packet . In effect, if one measures a frequency integrated spectrum, information on the momentum distribution of the atom wave packet is lost. The scattering cross section is then a sum over contributions from each position in the wave packet, with no interference. On the other hand, a measure of the scattered spectrum is equivalent to a measure of the momentum of the atom and all information on the position is lost. In this way contributions from different spatial positions can interfere. Similar conclusions can be reached on the modification of fringe contrast in an atom interferometer resulting from light scattering, but the localization in that case is on the order of a wavelength .

It is shown below that the spectrum of radiation scattered from the atom wave packets in two arms of an interferometer allows one to probe the spatial coherence between the beams. In other words, it is not necessary to recombine the beams to observe the interference between the beams. For a two-peaked initial wave packet, the scattered signal, as a function of the frequency difference between incident and scattered fields, exhibits a type of Ramsey fringe structure.

## II Spectrum

We consider the scattering of classical radiation by an atom having center–of-mass wave function $`\psi \left(𝐫\right)`$ and internal state wave function $`\psi _g.`$ Radiation from a mode $`\{𝐤_i,\omega _i\}`$ of the incident field is scattered into a mode $`\{𝐤_f,\omega _f\}`$ of the vacuum field. Scattering occurs via an off-resonant intermediate internal state $`n`$ of the atom. The atom remains in its initial internal state following the scattering, but the momentum of the atom changes from $`𝐩`$ to $`\left(𝐩\mathrm{}𝐪\right),`$ where $`𝐪=𝐤_f𝐤_i`$. If the momentum state wave function is denoted by $`\mathrm{\Phi }(𝐩),`$ then the scattering cross section is given by the Kramers-Heisenberg expression

$$d\sigma =\frac{d\sigma }{d𝐧_f}P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)d\omega _fd𝐧_f,$$
(2)
where

$$P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)=𝑑𝐩\left|\mathrm{\Phi }(𝐩)\right|^2\delta \left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _𝐪𝐪𝐩/𝐦\right),$$
(3)
and

$$\frac{d\sigma }{d𝐧_f}=\frac{\omega _i\omega _f^3}{\mathrm{}^2c^4}\left|\underset{n}{}\left\{\frac{\left(𝐝_{gn}𝐞_f^{}\right)\left(𝐝_{ng}𝐞_i\right)}{\omega _{ng}\omega _i}+\frac{\left(𝐝_{gn}𝐞_i\right)\left(𝐝_{ng}𝐞_f^{}\right)}{\omega _{ng}+\omega _f}\right\}\right|^2$$
(4)
In these expressions, $`\mathrm{\Delta }=\omega _f\omega _i`$ is the frequency detuning between scattered and incident field modes, $`𝐧_f=𝐤_f/k_f,`$ $`𝐝_{gn}`$ is a dipole moment matrix element, $`𝐞_f`$ and $`𝐞_i`$ are polarization vectors, and $`\omega _𝐪=\mathrm{}𝐪^2/2m`$ is a recoil frequency associated with the change in atomic momentum $`\mathrm{}𝐪.`$ The center-of mass energy has been neglected in the denominators in Eq. (4). The function $`P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)`$ determines the scattering spectrum. Since $`P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)𝑑\mathrm{\Delta }=1`$, the integrated spectrum does not depend on the form of the center-of-mass wave function, in agreement with Ref. .

For a one-dimensional wave packet consisting of a superposition of two identical packets $`\psi _a\left(x\right)`$ having extent $`a`$, phase difference $`\varphi ,`$ distanced from one another by a large distance $`La,`$ and having relative momentum $`p_0`$, i. e. $`\psi \left(x\right)=2^{1/2}\left[\psi _a(x)+e^{i\varphi }e^{ip_0x/\mathrm{}}\psi _a(xL)\right],`$ the wave function in momentum space is given by

$$\mathrm{\Phi }(p)=2^{1/2}\left\{\mathrm{\Phi }_a(p)+\mathrm{\Phi }_a(pp_0)\mathrm{exp}\left[i\left(\varphi +\left(pp_0\right)L/\mathrm{}\right)\right]\right\},$$
(5)
where $`\mathrm{\Phi }_a(p)`$ is the Fourier transform of $`\psi _a\left(x\right)`$ and it has been assumed that $`\psi _a\left(x\right)`$ is real and an even function of $`x`$. The spectrum is given by

$`P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)`$ $`=`$ $`{\displaystyle \frac{m}{2q_x}}\left\{\right|\mathrm{\Phi }_a[(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q)m/q_x]|^2+|\mathrm{\Phi }_a[(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q)m/q_xp_0]|^2`$ (7)
$`+2\mathrm{\Phi }_a[(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q)m/q_x]\mathrm{\Phi }_a[(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q)m/q_xp_0]\mathrm{cos}[\varphi +(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q)Lm/\mathrm{}q_xp_0L/\mathrm{}]\}`$
In the three-dimensional case, one can choose a double-peaked, Gaussian packet

$$\psi \left(𝐫\right)=2^{1/2}\left(2/\pi a^2\right)^{3/4}A\left\{e^{𝐫^2/a^2}+e^{i𝐩_0𝐫/\mathrm{}i\varphi }e^{\left(𝐫𝐋\right)^2/a^2}\right\},$$
(9)
where

$$A=\left[1+\mathrm{cos}\left(\varphi \frac{𝐩_0𝐋}{2\mathrm{}}\right)\mathrm{exp}\left(\frac{L^2}{2a^2}\frac{p_0^2a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}\right)\right]^{1/2}$$
(9)
is a normalization factor \[Eqs. (9) and (9) are valid for arbitrary ratios of $`L/a`$\].. For this packet one finds

$`P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)`$ $`=`$ $`{\displaystyle \frac{amA^2}{2\sqrt{2\pi }\mathrm{}q}}\{\mathrm{exp}[\left({\displaystyle \frac{m\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)}{q}}\right)^2{\displaystyle \frac{a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}}]+\mathrm{exp}[({\displaystyle \frac{m\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)}{q}}{\displaystyle \frac{𝐩_0𝐪}{q}})^2{\displaystyle \frac{a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}}]`$ (12)
$`+2\mathrm{exp}\left[L^2\mathrm{sin}^2\left(\theta \right)/2a^2\left({\displaystyle \frac{m\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)}{q}}\right)^2{\displaystyle \frac{a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}}\left(p_0^2+\left(𝐩_0\widehat{𝐪}\right)^2\right){\displaystyle \frac{a^2}{8\mathrm{}^2}}{\displaystyle \frac{m\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)}{q}}\left(𝐩_0\widehat{𝐪}\right){\displaystyle \frac{a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}}\right]`$
$`\times \mathrm{cos}[\varphi {\displaystyle \frac{𝐩_0𝐋+\left(𝐩_0\widehat{𝐪}\right)\left(𝐋\widehat{𝐪}\right)}{2\mathrm{}}}+{\displaystyle \frac{\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)mL\mathrm{cos}\left(\theta \right)}{\mathrm{}q}}]\}`$
where $`\widehat{𝐪}=𝐪/q`$ is a unit vector along $`𝐪`$ and $`\theta `$ is the angle between $`𝐪`$ and $`𝐋.`$

## III Discussion

It is clear from Eq. (3) that the spectrum is simply the momentum distribution of the entire wave packet, evaluated at momenta determined by the resonance condition

$$𝐪𝐩/m=\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _𝐪.$$
(13)
For a double peaked wave function, the momentum distribution oscillates as a function of $`𝐩`$, and this oscillation can be mapped into the spectrum of the scattered radiation. For the interference term to contribute, it is necessary that $`\frac{p_0a}{\mathrm{}}1`$. Let us see how this condition applies in an atom interferometer.

A well-collimated atomic beam is incident on a beam splitter that splits the beam into two momentum components. We can imagine that a momentum difference in the $`x`$ direction, $`p_0=2\mathrm{}k,`$ is produced via frequency controlled Bragg scattering from two counterpropagating fields  or some equivalent process. The quantity $`k=2\pi /\lambda `$ is the field propagation constant. For the Bragg field to split the beam into two distinct packets it is necessary that $`p_0t/m=La`$, and for negligible spreading of the packet, it is necessary that $`\left(\mathrm{}/ma\right)ta`$. These conditions can be satisfied simultaneously only if $`p_0a/\mathrm{}1.`$ In other words, if the Bragg field splits the incident beam into two, separated beams, the scattering techniques described above cannot be used to reveal the coherence of the wave packet since the interference term vanishes! A way around this is to apply a second Bragg pulse after the beams are separated. By a proper choice of the Bragg pulse it is possible to return the relative velocity of the split beams to a value $`p_0=0.`$ The beams will still be spatially separated, but moving on parallel trajectories. As such, one can analyze scattering from a two-peaked packet when the relative momentum $`𝐩_0=0.`$

With $`𝐩_0=0`$, Eq. (12) reduces to

$$P\left(\mathrm{\Delta }\right)=\frac{amA^2}{\sqrt{2\pi }\mathrm{}q}\mathrm{exp}\left[\left(\frac{m\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)}{q}\right)^2\frac{a^2}{2\mathrm{}^2}\right]\left\{1+\mathrm{exp}\left[L^2\mathrm{sin}^2\left(\theta \right)/2a^2\right]\mathrm{cos}\left[\varphi +\frac{\left(\mathrm{\Delta }+\omega _q\right)mL\mathrm{cos}\left(\theta \right)}{\mathrm{}q}\right]\right\}$$
(14)
Owing to recoil effect  the spectrum as a whole is shifted from $`\mathrm{\Delta }=0`$ by the recoil frequency $`\omega _q`$. The spectral width $`\gamma `$ of the envelope of the signal is of order

$$\gamma \omega _q/qa$$
(15)
The interference of the two momentum state wave packets represented in Eq. (14) translates in frequency space into oscillations having period

$$\gamma _R=4\pi \omega _q/qL\mathrm{cos}\left(\theta \right).$$
(16)
To observe these oscillations, one must have $`\gamma _R<\gamma `$ or, equivalently, $`L\mathrm{cos}\left(\theta \right)>a`$. The oscillations in frequency space have the same structure encountered in Ramsey fringes. The central fringe occurs for $`\mathrm{\Delta }=\omega _q\left[\mathrm{}q/Lm\mathrm{cos}\left(\theta \right)\right]\varphi `$. If, instead of a coherent superposition of two spatially separated wave packet components, one had chosen an incoherent sum of two separated wave packets, the interference term would be absent (corresponding to an average over $`\varphi `$). Thus, in principle, one can establish the mutual spatial coherence of the spatially separated wave packet components without recombining them.

A similar effect has been predicted previously in the spectrum of spontaneous emission from an extended wave packet. . However, in order to resolve the effects related to the size of the wave packet in that case, it is necessary that the width of the atomic wave function in momentum space $`\delta p\mathrm{}/a`$ be larger than $`m\mathrm{\Gamma }\lambda `$, where $`\mathrm{\Gamma }`$ is the upper state decay rate and $`\lambda `$ is the wavelength of the transition. This requirement restricts the wave packet size to $`a\left(\omega _k/\mathrm{\Gamma }\right)\lambda ,`$ which is typically much smaller (10-2 to 10-3) than an optical wavelength.

In our case, the size of the wave packet is limited only by the requirement that the wave packet be coherent over a distance $`a.`$ The spectral resolution needed to observe the coherence effects represented in Eq. (14) is of order $`\omega _q/qa\left(\lambda /4\pi a\right)\omega _{2k}`$ for backward scattering when $`q=2k.`$ Using a well-collimated atomic beam or a released Bose condensate , one finds that a resolution of order $`2\pi \times \mathrm{\hspace{0.17em}1.0}`$kHz is needed. The experimental challenge is great to say the least. The scattered signal can be detected using heterodyne techniques, but the signal strength is small, the collection angle is small, and long integration times can be anticipated. The signal to noise can be improved if, instead of measuring the scattered spectrum, one adds a probe field and monitors the probe field absorption or index change as a function of probe-pump field detuning.

It may also be possible to reduce the resolution requirements by considering scattering from a multicomponent wave packet rather than a two-peaked wave packet. For example, if one scatters an atomic beam from a resonant standing wave field (resonant Kapitza-Dirac effect) or from a microfabricated structure having grating period $`𝐝`$, the momentum space density, $`\left|\mathrm{\Phi }(𝐩)\right|^2,`$ following the interaction consists of a set of narrow peaks centered at $`𝐩=n\mathrm{}𝐪_s,`$ where $`𝐪_s=2\pi \widehat{𝐝}/d`$ and $`n`$ is an integer whose maximum value is determined by the strength of the interaction. For this momentum distribution, one finds from Eq. (3) that the spectrum consists of a set of peaks (recoil components) centered at

$$\mathrm{\Delta }=\omega _q+n𝐪𝐪_s/m.$$
(17)
If atoms are scattered by a standing wave and $`𝐪=𝐪_s`$, the recoil components are distanced from one another by $`2\omega _q,`$ which for the $`D_2`$ line in Na, is equal to $`2\pi \mathrm{\hspace{0.17em}208}KHz.`$ For $`n>1`$ the spectral width is correspondingly larger. Note that it is still necessary to have a spectral width of order $`\omega _q/qa\left(\lambda /4\pi a\right)\omega _{2k}`$ to resolve the interference pattern of Eq. (14); the larger resolution quoted above refers to the spectral width of the entire scattered signal.

###### Acknowledgements.

We are grateful to T. Sleator and K. Rza̧żewski for encouraging discussions. This work is supported by the U. S. Army Research Office under Grant Nos. DAAG55-97-0113 and DAAD19-00-1-0412, and by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. PHY-9800981.


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# On the nature of the hard X-ray source 4U 2206+54

## 1 Introduction

High Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) are X-ray sources composed of an early-type massive star and an accreting compact object (generally a neutron star, but occasionally a black hole and, at least theoretically, possibly a white dwarf). HMXBs are traditionally divided (see Corbet 1986) into Classical or Supergiant X-ray binaries (SXBs) in which the compact object accretes from the stellar wind (sometimes directly from the atmosphere through localized Roche-lobe overflow) of an OB supergiant and Be/X-ray binaries (BeXBs), in which a neutron star orbits an unevolved OB star surrounded by a dense equatorial disc. Almost all known HMXBs fit well into one of these two categories (with a majority of systems being BeXBs), though a few systems, such as LMC X-4 hutal78 (Hutchings et al. 1978) or RX J1826.2$-$1450 mot97 (Motch et al. 1997), seem to contain a compact object accreting from a “normal” main-sequence O-type star.

The hard X-ray source 4U 2206+54 was first detected by the Uhuru satellite gia72 (Giacconi et al. 1972). It appeared in the Ariel V catalogue as 3A 2206+543 waral81 (Warwick et al. 1981). Steiner et al. (1984; hereafter S84) used the refined position from the HEAO–1 Scanning Modulation Collimator to identify the optical counterpart with the early-type star BD$ +53^∘ $2790. S84 reported that the H$`\alpha `$ line was in emission, showing two distinctly separated peaks with $`\mathrm{\Delta }v_{\mathrm{peak}}=460\mathrm{km}\mathrm{s}^1`$. From their photometry, they estimated that the counterpart was a B0–2e main sequence star, and therefore concluded that the system was a Be/X-ray binary. In this subclass of HMXBs, the X-ray emission is due to accretion of matter from a Be star by a compact companion (see Bildsten et al. 1997; Negueruela 1998). The name “Be star” is used as a general term describing an early-type luminosity class III–V star, which at some time has shown emission in the Balmer series lines (Slettebak 1988, for a review). Both the emission lines and the characteristic strong infrared excess when compared to normal stars of the same spectral types are attributed to the presence of circumstellar material in the shape of a decretion quasi-Keplerian disc (see Negueruela & Okazaki 2000 for a recent discussion).

Assuming a distance to 4U 2206+54 of 2.5 kpc, S84 calculate an average luminosity for the source of $`L_\mathrm{x}7\times 10^{34}`$ erg s-1 between 1974 November and 1981 October. Saraswat & Apparao (1992, henceforth SA92) presented X-ray observations of 4U 2206+54 made with the EXOSAT satellite at different epochs between 1983–1985. The source was always detected, though in different states. In August 1983 and June 1985, the source was active, with a low-level luminosity of $`5\times 10^{34}`$ erg s-1 and aperiodic flaring phases (a few hundred seconds long) in which the overall X-ray flux increased by a factor 3 – 5 and the X-ray spectrum changed, becoming harder. In December 1984, the source was in quiescence, and the X-ray flux was weak ($`L_\mathrm{x}3\times 10^{33}`$erg s-1) and stable. SA92 also announced the possible detection of a spin period for the compact object which would be in the range 390 – 400 s and suggested that the accreting object was a white dwarf.

The source appears in the ROSAT All Sky Survey vog99 (Voges et al. 1999) as 1RX$ $J220755+543111 and has been consistently detected by the All Sky Monitor on board RXTE according to the quick-look results provided by the ASM/RXTE team. Corbet et al. (2000) have announced the detection of a $`9.570\pm 0.004\mathrm{d}`$ periodicity in the X-ray lightcurve. If this is the binary period, then it would be the shortest known for a BeXB – unless the $`1.4\mathrm{d}`$ periodicity in the optical lightcurve of RX$ $J0050.7$-$7316 reflects its orbital period CO00 (Coe & Orosz 2000).

## 2 Observations

BD$ +53^∘ $2790 (= LS III +54$^∘$16 = Hilt 1086) is included in several catalogues of bright stars. Measurements of its optical magnitudes are reported since the work of Hiltner & Johnson (1956). In spite of this, very little previous work on this source has been reported. We have undertaken a major multi-wavelength monitoring campaign on this source, the results of which will be presented in a subsequent paper. Here we concentrate only on observations that provide information on the nature of the system.

### 2.1 X-ray Observations

We have analysed X-ray data taken with the Proportional Counter Array (PCA) onboard the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). The data were retrieved from the RXTE archive and correspond to an observation made on March 11 – 13, 1997. After the screening and filtering of data, i.e., ensuring that all five PCA units were functioning and removing data taken at low Earth elevation angle ($`<`$ 10) and during times of high particle background, we were left with $``$ 9000 s of on-source clean data. Also in order to improve signal-to-noise we selected only events from the top layer (the PCUs have three Xenon layers, each consisting of two anode chains; see Jahoda et al. 1996 for a technical description of the instrument).

Figure 1 shows the background subtracted light curves of 4U 2206+54 in three different energy ranges. The temporal variability is characterised by erratic flaring activity on short timescales. The intensity shows changes by a factor of 3 in less than 2 minutes. The source becomes increasingly variable as the energy increases. The $`rms`$ of the light curves varies from $``$ 40% for the energy range 2.5 – 5 keV to $``$ 45% for 5 – 10 keV and $``$ 50% for 10 – 30 keV. This flaring and erratic behaviour was also reported by SA92 during their observations (which covered the 2 – 10 keV range) on the two occasions in which the source was active. Similar lightcurves are observed in SXB binaries in which a neutron star accretes from the radiative wind of an evolved star, such as 2S 0114+65 yamal90 (Yamauchi et al. 1990) or Vela X-1 kre99 (Kreykenbohm et al. 1999), which have typical $`L_\mathrm{x}10^{35}10^{36}\mathrm{erg}\mathrm{s}^1`$ (from now on, low-luminosity SXBs).

The correlation between the hardness ratio 5 – 10 keV/2.5 – 10 keV and the count rate (see Fig. 2) indicates that the X-ray spectrum becomes harder during the peak of the flares.

Figure 3 shows the power spectrum of 4U 2206+54. No evidence for the 390 – 400 s pulse period reported by SA92 was found. The power spectrum is dominated by a strong red noise component and no periodicity is detected at any significative level.

Spectral analysis was performed on Standard2 data, in the energy range 2.5 – 30.0 keV. The best-fit model was an absorbed power-law and a high energy cutoff yielding an unabsorbed X-ray flux of $`4.8\times 10^{10}\mathrm{erg}\mathrm{cm}^2\mathrm{s}^1`$. The best-fit parameters and their 68% confidence errors are given in Table 1, while Fig. 4 shows the photon distribution. No evidence for an iron line at around 6.4 keV was found. This line is seen in the spectra of the low-luminosity SXBs which display similar X-ray lightcurves. We can set an upper limit on the equivalent width of such line at $`<10`$ eV.

### 2.2 Ultraviolet spectroscopy

Ultraviolet observations of BD$ +53^∘ $2790 were retrieved from the International Ultraviolet Explorer archive at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. The database contains pre-processed spectra, which were subsequently reduced and analysed using the Starlink packages iuedr gidal96 (Giddins et al. 1996) and dipso how (Howarth et al. 1997). The low resolution spectra from the Uniform Low Dispersion Archive (ULDA) LWP18128 and SWP39111 did not provide enough detail to allow accurate line identification. The high resolution spectrum SWP39112, taken with the short-wavelength camera in the large aperture mode on June 18, 1990, is displayed in Fig. 5. The original resolution of the spectrum is approximately 0.05 Å, but it has been rebinned to 0.4 Å for display. The wavelength calibration, which has been checked with different interstellar lines, is accurate to a few km s-1.

The most remarkable features are the strong P-Cygni profiles of the resonance wind doublets C iv $`\lambda \lambda `$1548.2, 1550.8 Å and N v $`\lambda \lambda `$1239, 1243 Å. They are stronger than those reported for Be stars of different spectral types by Prinja (1989) and resemble those typical of O-type main sequence stars walal85 (Walborn et al. 1985). The subordinate wind line N iv $`\lambda `$1718 Å, which generally follows the behaviour of the resonance doublets WP84a (Walborn & Panek 1984a), does not show clear evidence for a P-Cygni profile, but it could be masked by the blend of two strong metallic lines just shortwards of it. The Si iv $`\lambda \lambda `$1394, 1403 Å doublet shows only a moderate wind effect, with narrow absorption troughs.

### 2.3 Optical Spectroscopy

The source has been monitored since 1990, using a large array of telescopes and configurations. The complete dataset, its variability and searches for periodic behaviour will be reported in a forthcoming paper. Here we concentrate on relatively high-resolution blue spectroscopy taken with the 2.5-m Isaac Newton Telescope (INT), located at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, La Palma, Spain, on July 11, 1995 and August 3, 1998. Both observations were taken with the Intermediate Dispersion Spectrograph (IDS) equipped with the 235-mm camera and the R1200B grating. In 1995, the Tek3 CCD was in use, while in 1998, the EEV#12 CCD had replaced it. Further blue observations were taken on July 25 – 30, 2000, using the 1.52-m G. D. Cassini telescope at the Loiano Observatory, Italy, equipped with the Bologne Faint Object Spectrograph and Camera (BFOSC). Several observations were taken using grism#6, while two higher resolution spectra were taken with grism#9 in echelle mode (using grism#10 as cross-disperser).

All the data have been reduced using the Starlink software packages ccdpack dra98 (Draper 1998) and figaro sho97 (Shortridge et al. 1997) and analysed using dipso.

## 3 The optical/UV spectrum

The spectra of BD$ +53^∘ $2790 in the classification region do not readily correspond to any spectral type. This fact was recognised by Hiltner & Johnson (1956), who classified the star as O9IIIp from photographic plates (apparently not detecting any emission in the blue at the time). An immediate conclusion of our monitoring (see Fig. 6) is that the spectrum is also variable. The presence of strong He ii lines, specially He ii $`\lambda `$4200 Å, would indicate an O-type classification. Though the spectrum from August 1998 is relatively close to that of a normal O9 star with high $`v\mathrm{sin}i`$, most other blue spectra of the source (such as those from July 1995 and July 2000) display abundant and strong O ii lines, together with a relatively strong Si iii triplet. These lines do not correspond to an O-type star, but are typical of early B-type stars.

From our spectra, we can deduce the following information:

* He ii $`\lambda `$4686Å is clearly variable, has obvious emission infilling and probably a permanent P-Cygni-like emission component.
* He ii $`\lambda `$4200Å is possibly also variable, though not to the same extent as He ii $`\lambda `$4686Å.
* All O ii and Si iii lines are variable. They can be basically absent, as in the August 1998 spectrum, or rather strong, as in July 1995, with the July 2000 spectrum showing an intermediate state. Other metallic lines, such as N ii $`\lambda `$4631Å and C ii $`\lambda `$4267Å seem to participate in these changes, though N iii $`\lambda `$4515Å apparently does not. All this would indicate a lower-temperature component superimposed on the spectrum of an O9 star.
* H$`\beta `$, like H$`\alpha `$ and the He i lines at $`\lambda \lambda `$ 6678, 7065 Å displays a shell-like spectrum, in the sense that the absorption feature is narrow and there are variable emission components in the wings. He i lines in the blue do not show this phenomenology.
* The upper Paschen series is basically in absorption, unlike in all the Be/X-ray binaries observed (see Negueruela & Torrejón, in preparation).

The ultraviolet spectrum is typical of a main-sequence, late O-type star. The O-star classification is supported by the strength of the Fe v lines in the ultraviolet (specially the ratio Fe v $`\lambda `$1431$`/`$ C iii $`\lambda `$1427 $`>`$ 1; Walborn et al. 1985) and the strong He ii $`\lambda `$4200Å and N iii $`\lambda `$4515Å in the blue WF90 (Walborn & Fitzpatrick 1990), none of which would be expected at the temperature of an early B-type star. The luminosity classification is supported by the shallow and broad photospheric lines in the ultraviolet and fundamentally the lack of wind troughs in the Si iv $`\lambda \lambda `$1394, 1403 Å resonance lines, which show a very strong luminosity dependence WP84b (Walborn & Panek 1984b).

The photospheric lines are those characteristic of a late-O/early-B main-sequence star, with Fe v lines dominating the spectrum shortwards of $`\lambda `$1500 Å. The Al iii $`\lambda \lambda `$1854.7, 1862.8 Å lines, although dominated by the sharp interstellar features seem to have shallow broader photospheric components, which would indicate a spectral type not much earlier than B0. The photospheric lines seem, in general, to be broader than those of the standards listed by Walborn et al. (1985).

In a normal star, the condition He ii $`\lambda `$4545Å $``$ Si iii $`\lambda `$4552Å would indicate a spectral type O9.5. The ratio between He i $`\lambda `$4471Å and He ii $`\lambda `$4545Å, which remains constant (He lines do not change intensity), also indicates a spectral type O9.5 (using the values from Mathys 1988). On the other hand, the presence of a variable spectral component, corresponding to a lower effective temperature, cannot be readily reconciled with the idea of a normal single O-type star. The following possibilities are open:

### 3.1 BD $`+53^{}`$2790 as a peculiar Oe shell star

The shapes of the H$`\alpha `$ and He i lines in the red are, at first sight, typical of a shell star. Shell lines are believed to be formed when the line of sight to the observer is intercepted by the outer cooler parts of the envelope of a Be star, which absorb the photospheric continuum (see Hanuschik 1995, 1996). Therefore Be stars seen very close to edge-on show deep absorption cores going down below the continuum level on top of their emission lines and are referred to as shell stars.

The spectra of Be shell stars are characterised by an absorption spectrum corresponding to a lower temperature (generally displaying many weak lines corresponding to Fe ii and other singly-ionised metals) superimposed on the photospheric spectrum. To the best of our knowledge, the spectrum of an Oe shell star has never been described in the literature. It is therefore possible to speculate that the envelope surrounding an Oe shell star could produce the O ii and Si iii lines, which correspond to a temperature of $`25000\mathrm{K}`$.

This would not explain the emission component almost certainly seen in He ii $`\lambda `$4686Å and would imply that either BD $+53^∘$2790 is both an Of and an Oe star (the first ever identified) or that the He ii emission originates in an accretion disc around the compact object. The presence of an accretion disc in the system, though not directly ruled out by observations, is difficult to reconcile with the absence of photometric variability. For example, Hiltner & Johnson (1956) give $`U=9.40`$, $`B=10.11`$, $`V=9.86`$. Barbier et al. (1973) report $`U=9.46`$, $`B=10.12`$, $`V=9.82`$, while S84 give $`U=9.45`$, $`B=10.05`$, $`V=9.85`$, $`R=9.61`$, $`I=9.41`$ measured with the 0.91-m telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory on October 5, 1981. Given the expected errors (for instance, St84 estimate their errors at 0.04 mag), the values of $`UBV`$ are consistent with no variation at all. The Tycho catalogue gives magnitudes $`B_\mathrm{T}=10.197\pm 0.027`$ and $`V_\mathrm{T}=9.898\pm 0.028`$, which transforms into $`B=10.13`$ and $`V=9.87`$, again compatible with no changes at all.

A more obvious complication for this model is that the metallic lines do not seem to be any narrower than other presumably photospheric lines. As a matter of fact, it is difficult to estimate the rotational velocity of the star. Using the linear relationships for the width of He i lines developed by Steele et al. (1999) for Be stars observed with the same configuration, we obtain $`v\mathrm{sin}i300\pm 40\mathrm{km}\mathrm{s}^1`$ from the lines on the August 1998 spectrum (i.e., that with the weakest metallic spectrum). This measurement clearly confirms that the star is a fast rotator, but there is a large dispersion in the values estimated from different lines.

Another problem faced by this interpretation comes from the asymmetry of the apparent shell lines. It is well known that in Be stars, symmetric lines arise from a quasi-Keplerian decretion disc, while asymmetric profiles correspond to perturbed configurations of such a disc (Hanuschik et al. 1988; 1995;1996). Whenever asymmetric lines are seen, the ratio between the Violet and Red peaks (V/R ratio) varies quasi-cyclically, due to the development of global one-armed density oscillations oka00 (Okazaki 2000). In contrast, the V/R ratio in the H$`\alpha `$ line of BD $+53^∘$2790 has been $`<1`$ during 15 years, in spite of the large changes in the overall shape and strength of the line. At the same time, the symmetry of H$`\beta `$ and H i $`\lambda `$6678Å has changed. This behaviour has not been observed in other Be stars and makes it unlikely that BD $+53^∘$2790 might be a classical Be star. Further arguments against the interpretation of BD $+53^∘$2790 as a classical Be star will be discussed in a forthcoming paper.

One further complication is the detection of a likely $`9.5\mathrm{d}`$ period. It is difficult to see how an extended envelope could form with such a close binary companion. The only possibility would be that, due to tidal truncation by the companion NO01 (Negueruela & Okazaki 2001), a very dense and small shell would form around the Oe star.

### 3.2 BD $+53^∘$2790 as a spectroscopic binary

One obvious possibility to explain the presence of a lower-temperature spectral component is that the star is in reality an unresolved spectroscopic binary, containing an O9 star and a slightly later companion. If this was the case, the companion should be of spectral type close to B1 in order to display the O ii spectrum. Since the UV spectrum is clearly dominated by a main-sequence O-star, this companion cannot have a high luminosity and should be fainter than the O star in the UV and have a comparable magnitude in the $`B`$ band.

Such a combination could be obtained with, for example, an O9V((f))+B1III binary. The O9V star, due to its Of nature, would contribute the emission in He ii and an asymmetric component to H$`\alpha `$. The B1 giant could be a Be star and contribute the Balmer and He i line emission. It is clear that such configuration could never produce the observed X-ray luminosity because of colliding winds, since both stars would have relatively weak winds and even binaries with very strong winds produce lower luminosities. Moreover, the X-ray spectrum observed is very different from those of colliding wind systems, which are generally soft (with little signal above 10 KeV) and interpreted as coming from hot, optically thin plasma with fixed or variable solar element abundances (Skinner et al. 1998; Stevens et al. 1996). None of such models or a combination of them (MEKAL, VMEKAL, RAYMOND in xspec terminology) gave acceptable fits to the X-ray spectrum of 4U 2206+54. Therefore, the presence of a compact object is necessary. Given the $`9.5\mathrm{d}`$ period, the compact object would be orbiting one of the components (presumably the Of star, since the Be star would not have a wind that could explain the observed X-ray lightcurve) in a close orbit and accreting from its wind. The other component would then be in a much wider orbit.

Abt & Bautz (1963) found no evidence for binarity in BD $+53^∘$2790 in their study of radial velocities of early-type stars. The reported value $`v_{\mathrm{rad}}=49.5\mathrm{km}\mathrm{s}^1`$ is typical for a member of the Perseus arm. However, this does not rule out the binary model, since the system could be very wide. Accurate radial velocity measurements of the weak metallic lines in order to check whether they are consistent with the strongest lines, should be a test of this hypothesis.

### 3.3 BD $+53^∘$2790 as a single peculiar active star.

The spectral variability of BD $+53^∘$2790 resembles in many aspects that of He-rich stars, though these objects have later spectral types (clustered tightly around B2). Some of these systems are known to display spectral variability in their Si iii lines in antiphase with their He i lines. These variations are strictly cyclical and correspond to the rotational period of the star, which is $`1\mathrm{d}`$ wal82 (Walborn 1982). Some of the He-rich stars (allegedly, those which are fast rotators) display H$`\alpha `$ in emission, but the line profile does not look shell-like zboal97 (Zboril et al. 1997). Only the peculiar He-rich star $σ$ Ori E displays an H$`\alpha `$ line profile similar to that of BD $+53^∘$2790, but in this star the V/R ratio varies cyclically with the same period as the He i lines. In any case, BD $+53^∘$2790 is unlikely to be related to He-rich stars (say, as an early-spectral type relative), because all the values of EWs measured for He i lines in BD $+53^∘$2790 are compatible with absolutely no changes in their strength or the He i/H i ratio.

In spite of this, the possibility that the peculiar changes seen in the spectrum of BD $+53^∘$2790 can be attributed to some unknown physical mechanism operating in a single star remains.

## 4 Discussion

Whatever the model adopted for BD $+53^∘$2790, it is clear that its ultraviolet and blue spectrum is dominated by a star of approximate spectral type O9.5V. For such a star, the intrinsic colour would be close to $`(BV)_0=0.3`$. Then, using the value from St84, $`(BV)=0.2`$, we have $`E(BV)0.5`$ and, assuming standard reddening, $`A_V=R\times E(BV)=1.6`$. An O9.5V star has an absolute magnitude $`M_V=4.3`$ (Vacca et al. 1996) and therefore the measured $`V=9.85`$ implies $`d3\mathrm{kpc}`$. At this distance, the average X-ray luminosity of 4U 2206+54 is $`L_\mathrm{x}10^{35}\mathrm{erg}\mathrm{s}^1`$.

The observational history of 4U 2206+54, which has been detected by all satellites that have pointed at it and has never been observed to undergo an outburst, is notably different from that of Be/X-ray transients, such as 4U 0115+63 or A 0535+26 (see Negueruela & Okazaki 2000). There is a second subclass of Be/X-ray binaries characterised by low-luminosity persistent X-ray emission with little variation, e.g., X Persei hab98 (Haberl et al. 1998), but they are believed to have large orbital periods RR99 (Reig & Roche 1999) – which is certainly the case for X Persei del01 (Delgado-Marti et al. 2001). The 9.5-d period of 4U 2206+54 makes a connection unlikely, though the low X-ray luminosity Be/X-ray binary 3A 0726$-$26 ($`P_\mathrm{s}=103.2\mathrm{s}`$) could have a short period $`P_{\mathrm{orb}}=34.5\mathrm{d}`$ Corbet & Peele 1997) . Moreover the decrease in $`L_\mathrm{x}`$ by more than one order of magnitude reported by SA92 is also atypical of these systems.

The X-ray luminosity and behaviour, with short erratic flares, point then to wind accretion as the mechanism producing the X-rays, if the compact object is a neutron star. The strong wind profiles seen in the UV spectrum indicate a large mass-loss rate which would fuel the X-ray system. Because of this, we can expect a similarity with low-luminosity SXBs, at least as long as the accretion process is concerned. Wind accreting supergiants with orbital periods similar to 4U 2206+54 generally show rather higher luminosities. This is certainly the case of Vela X-1 ($`P_{\mathrm{orb}}=8.96\mathrm{d}`$) with $`L_\mathrm{x}4\times 10^{36}\mathrm{erg}\mathrm{s}^1`$ kre99 (Kreykenbohm et al. 1999) and likely 2S 0114+65 ($`P_{\mathrm{orb}}=11.6\mathrm{d}`$) if the high distance estimates are correct (e.g., Reig et al. 1996). Such difference would be due to the much weaker wind of the Of star when compared to a supergiant.

In this respect, it must be noted that the absorption column to 4U 2206+54 derived from our X-ray spectral fitting $`N_\mathrm{H}=4.7\pm 0.2\times 10^{22}`$ atoms cm-2 (not very different from the values found by SA92) is much larger than what corresponds to the interstellar absorption. The standard relation from Bohlin et al. (1978) indicates that $`E(BV)0.5`$ translates into $`N_\mathrm{H}3\times 10^{21}`$ atoms cm-2, i.e., one order of magnitude less than observed. This would be indicating the presence of very optically thick material in the vicinity of the compact object, though it is not clear how this interpretation can be reconciled with the absence of an iron line.

It is also worth mentioning that the X-ray source RX J1826.2$-$1450, whose optical counterpart is also a main-sequence O star, could harbour a black hole, since it contains a microquasar paral00 (Paredes et al. 2000), and has an X-ray luminosity similar to or lower than 4U 2206+54. Therefore we cannot rule out the possibility of a black hole companion in 4U 2206+54, though the presence of a high-energy cutoff in the X-ray spectrum (which is typical of X-ray pulsars) favours a neutron star companion.

Even though we have no explanation for the spectral changes shown by BD $+53^∘$2790, a very close similarity to 2S 0114+65 is suggested. The optical counterpart to this system, V662~Cas, apparently is a normal B1 supergiant reial96 (Reig et al. 1996), in spite of the fact that some authors have claimed that the strength of the Balmer lines is not as large as expected for such a star. However, van Kerkwijk & Waters (1989) report an instance of spectral change in this source that occurred on November 4th, 1986. On this occasion, the complete metallic spectrum (i.e., O ii \+ Si iii) of the source – which is typical of a B1 supergiant – disappeared, leaving behind what looked like a normal B2-3III spectrum. It is interesting that the same set of lines that are variable in BD $+53^∘$2790 also varied in V662 Cas, though in the latter case, their disappearance seems to leave behind a cooler stellar spectrum. We take this as a suggestion that some stars in binaries with close compact object companions may be structurally unstable, perhaps due to their previous history, though at the moment we are unable to propose any physical mechanism for this variability.

Moreover Guarnieri et al. (1991) and Minarini et al. (1994) report the occurrence of optical outbursts in both BD $+53^∘$2790 and V662 Cas, during which some lines which are generally not seen or in absorption go strongly into emission and argue that these events suggest that both stars are Be stars. The classification spectra of both objects show that they are not classical Be stars, after all, but such episodes point to a further connection between the two systems. In this respect, it must be noted that Hall et al. (2000) have presented evidence strongly suggesting that the 2.7-h periodicity observed in the X-ray lightcurve of 2S 0114+65 should correspond to the spin period of a very slowly rotating neutron star. If 4U 2206+54 exhibits periodic behaviour on a similar timescale, it is very unlikely that our observations could have detected it.

Whichever of the scenarios proposed turns out to be closer to reality, the X-ray emission from 4U 2206+54 seems certain to be due to direct accretion from the wind of an active O-type star. This adds to increasing evidence that the traditional divisions of Supergiant X-ray binaries and Be/X-ray binaries are not enough to describe the whole set of Massive X-ray binaries. While the case of some objects, like 2S 0114+65 and 4U 1907+09, which seem to share characteristics of both groups, had always shown to be problematic, it is clear now that there is a variety of objects, such as RX$ $J1826.2$-$1450, RX$ $J0050.7$-$7316 and 4U 2206+54, which simply do not belong to any of those categories.

## 5 Conclusion

We have presented X-ray observations of the High Mass X-ray binary 4U 2206+54. The erratic flaring, lack of pulsations and very high hydrogen column density strongly suggest that the X-ray emission is produced by accretion from a wind. Though circumstantial evidence supports the idea that the compact companion is a neutron star, the lack of pulsations and an X-ray luminosity comparable to that of RX J1826.2$-$1450, whose optical counterpart is a main-sequence star and contains a microquasar, leave the possibility of a black hole companion open. Optical and ultraviolet spectroscopy of the optical component BD$ +53^∘ $2790 show it to be a very peculiar object, displaying emission in H i, He i and He ii lines and variability in the intensity of many metallic lines. Strong wind troughs in the UV resonance lines suggest a large mass loss rate. These properties might indicate that the star displays at the same time the Of and Oe phenomena or even hint at the possibility that it could be a spectroscopic binary consisting of two massive stars in addition to the compact object. There is with all certainty an O9.5V star in the system, which is probably a mild Of star, and which likely feeds the compact object with its stellar wind.

###### Acknowledgements.

The INT is operated on the island of La Palma by the Royal Greenwich Observatory in the Spanish Observatorio del Roque de Los Muchachos of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. The G. D. Cassini telescope is operated at the Loiano Observatory by the Osservatorio Astronomico di Bologna. This research has made use of data obtained through the High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center Online Service, provided by the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and of the Simbad data base, operated at CDS, Strasbourg, France. We would like to thank the referee, Frank Haberl, for his helpful comments. IN would like to thank Prof. Nolan Walborn for useful discussions on the spectral classification and Dr. Manfred Pakull for valuable comments on the manuscript. The August 1998 spectrum was taken by Dr. I. A. Steele. During part of this work IN was supported by a PPARC fellowship and later by an ESA external fellowship. PR acknowledges support from the European Union through the Training and Mobility of Researchers Network Grant ERBFMRX/CT98/0195.