Hard X-ray imaging of the supernova remnant RX J1713.7-3946 with INTEGRAL
Supernova remnants are well-known accelerators of cosmic rays (CRs) up
to TeV energies. RX J1713.7-3946 is one of the best studied young
shell-type supernova remnant, which has bright emission in the X-ray and
gamma-ray energy bands.
Since the first detection by INTEGRAL (see INTEGRAL
POM April 2008), the
exposure time on the source has significantly increased. This allowed
for the first time a detailed analysis of the remnant morphology. The
IBIS/ISGRI 17-60 keV image of RX J1713.7-3946 has a shell-like
structure, which is dominated by two extended hard X-ray excesses marked
as A and B (left panel, blue solid circles). The image also shows a
bright anomalous X-ray pulsar, 1RXS J170849.0-400910.
In the soft X-ray energy band, the supernova remnant has a double-shell
structure, which is shown in the detailed 1-10 keV XMM-Newton/MOS1+2
image (right panel). Note that the double-shell structure cannot be seen
in IBIS/ISGRI data due to insufficient angular resolution (12' FWHM).
The brightest parts of the remnant in soft X-rays are spatially
consistent with hard X-ray excesses A and B (white solid circles). The
similarity of the XMM-Newton and INTEGRAL images indicates a single
emission mechanism operating in the soft and hard X-ray energy bands.
The XMM-Newton image convolved with the IBIS PSF reveals the shell-like
structure of RX J1713.7-3946 (green contours), that is seen with
INTEGRAL in hard X-rays. The spatial analysis demonstrates a good
agreement between the position of the shocks in the hard and soft X-ray
bands.
