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M.D. Stage (MIT Center for Space Research), P.C. Joss (MIT ), Jurek Madej (Warsaw University)
We present the neutron star masses, radii, and effective temperatures from our most recent applications of the ATM neutron star atmosphere code (Joss, Madej, & Stage, 2001, Neutron Stars in Supernova Remnants, in press) to Chandra ACIS and LETG/HRC-S observations of the spectra of thermally emitting neutron stars, including the recent archival observation of thermal neutron star RXJ185635-3754. The ATM code uses a virtually exact quantum electrodynamical treatment of incoherent Compton scattering to generate model spectra for given composition, surface gravity and temperature. Observed spectra are then fit to a multidimensional grid of model spectra parameterized by the neutron star's effective temperature, radii, mass, and surface composition. As our emphasis is on the physical interpretation of the derived parameters, we will discuss the significance of our self-consistent fit-determined radii, masses, and redshifts on the present theoretical understanding of these objects. We will also present our new iron models calculated with ATM, and discuss recent improvements to the model code.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: mikstage@space.mit.edu