Application of a new method to study the spin equilibrium of Aql X-1: the possibility of gravitational radiation

Abstract

Accretion via disks can make neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) fast spinning, and some of these stars are detected as millisecond pulsars. Here we report a practical way to find out if a neutron star in a transient LMXB has reached the spin equilibrium by disk--magnetosphere interaction alone, and if not, to estimate this spin equilibrium frequency. These can be done using specific measurable source luminosities, such as the luminosity corresponding to the transition between the accretion and propeller phases, and the known stellar spin rate. Such a finding can be useful to test if the spin distribution of millisecond pulsars, as well as an observed upper cutoff of their spin rates, can be explained using disk--magnetosphere interaction alone, or additional spin-down mechanisms, such as gravitational radiation, are required. Applying our method, we find that the neutron star in the transient LMXB Aql X--1 has not yet reached the spin equilibrium by disk--magnetosphere interaction alone. We also perform numerical computations, with and without gravitational radiation, to study the spin evolution of Aql X--1 through a series of outbursts and to constrain its properties. While we find that the gravitational wave emission from Aql X--1 cannot be established with certainty, our numerical results show that the gravitational radiation from Aql X--1 is possible, with a \(1.6\times10^{37}\) g cm\(^2\) upper limit of the neutron star misaligned mass quadrupole moment.