Monte Carlo simulator and ancillary response generator of suzaku XRT/XIS system for spatially extended source analysis

Yoshitaka Ishisaki, Yoshitomo Maeda, Ryuichi Fujimoto, Masanobu Ozaki, Ken Ebisawa, Tadayuki Takahashi, Yoshihiro Ueda, Yasushi Ogasaka, Andrew Ptak, Koji Mukai, Kenji Hamaguchi, Masaharu Hirayama, Taro Kotani, Hidetoshi Kubo, Ryo Shibata, Masatoshi Ebara, Akihiro Furuzawa, Ryo Iizuka, Hirohiko Inoue, Hideyuki MoriShunsaku Okada, Yushi Yokoyama, Hironori Matsumoto, Hiroshi Nakajima, Hiroya Yamaguchi, Naohisa Anabuki, Noriaki Tawa, Masaaki Nagai, Satoru Katsuda, Kiyoshi Hayashida, Aya Bamba, Eric D. Miller, Kosuke Sato, Noriko Y. Yamasaki

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

332 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We have developed a framework for the Monte Carlo simulations of X-Ray Telescope (XRT) and X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS) on board Suzaku, mainly for the scientific analysis of spatially and spectroscopically complex celestial sources. A photon-by-photon instrumental simulator is built on the ANL platform, which has been successfully used in ASCA data analysis. The simulator has a modular structure, in which the XRT simulation is based on a ray-tracing library, while the XIS simulation utilizes a spectral "Redistribution Matrix File" (RMF), generated separately by other tools. Instrumental characteristics and calibration results [e.g., XRT geometry, reflectivity, mutual alignments, thermal shield transmission, build-up of the contamination on the XIS optical blocking filters (OBF)] are incorporated as completely as possible. Most of this information is available in the form of FITS (Flexible Image Transport System) files in the standard calibration database (CALDB). This simulator can also be utilized to generate an "Ancillary Response File" (ARF), which describes the XRT response and the amount of OBF contamination. An ARF is dependent on the spatial distribution of the celestial target and the photon accumulation region on the detector, as well as the observing conditions, such as the observation date and satellite attitude. We describe the principles of the simulator and the ARF generator, and demonstrate their performance compared with in-flight data.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)S113-S132
JournalPublications of the Astronomical Society of Japan
Volume59
Issue number1 SPEC. ISS.
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2007
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

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