Date Presented:

2012/01/1

Abstract:

In this work, we study the properties of the overall accreting binary population of the Magellanic Clouds and the connection between star-formation (SF) activity and X-ray binary (XRB) formation and evolution. Understanding of the populations of compact objects and their connection with SF will allow us to investigate channels of XRB formation in a variety of environments and therefore help in studies of the X-ray source populations of star-forming galaxies outside our Local Group, and even enable their use as a SF diagnostic. By using surveys carried out with space-based X-ray and infrared observatories and ground-based telescopes, we address the demographics of the most common type of young XRBs in the two nearest star-forming galaxies. Our program makes use of multiwavelength data sets in order to provide better understanding of the physical parameters which influence the XRB formation rate and evolution, such as the metallicity and the age of the parent stellar populations. In the SMC, the dominant Be-XRB population appears to be linked to the increased SF activity at ~25-60 Myr ago, while in the Large Magellanic Cloud this activity is shifted to earlier ages (at only ~10-50 Myr). The similarity of this age with the age of maximum occurrence of the Be phenomenon (~40 Myr) indicates that the presence of a circumstellar decretion disk plays a significant role in the number of observed XRBs in the 10-100 Myr age range.

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