The hyperluminous X-ray source (HLX-1, peak X-ray luminosity ) near the spiral galaxy ESO 243-49, which underwent recurrent outbursts within a period of ∼400 days, is possibly the best candidate for an intermediate mass black hole (IMBH). The physical reason for this quasiperiodic variability is still unclear. We explore the possibility of radiation-pressure instability in the accretion disk by modeling the light curve of HLX-1, and find that it can roughly reproduce the duration, period, and amplitude of the recurrent outbursts in HLX-1 with an IMBH of . Our result provides a possible mechanism to explain the recurrent outbursts in HLX-1. We further find a universal correlation between the outburst duration and the bolometric luminosity for the black hole (BH) sources with a very broad mass range (e.g., X-ray binaries, HLX-1, and active galactic nuclei), which is roughly consistent with the prediction of radiation-pressure instability of the accretion disk. These results imply that “heartbeat” oscillations triggered by radiation-pressure instability may appear in different-scale BH systems.

The minimum variation timescale (MVT) of soft gamma-ray repeaters can be an important probe to estimate the emission region in pulsar-like models, as well as the Lorentz factor and radius of the possible relativistic jet in gamma-ray burst (GRB)–like models, thus revealing their progenitors and physical mechanisms. In this work, we systematically study the MVTs of hundreds of X-ray bursts (XRBs) from SGR J1935+2154 observed by Insight-HXMT, GECAM, and Fermi/Gamma-ray Burst Monitor from 2014 July to 2022 January through the Bayesian block algorithm. We find that the MVTs peak at ∼2 ms, corresponding to a light-travel time size of about 600 km, which supports the magnetospheric origin in pulsar-like models. The shock radius and the Lorentz factor of the jet are also constrained in GRB-like models. Interestingly, the MVT of the XRB associated with FRB 200428 is ∼70 ms, which is longer than that of most bursts and implies its special radiation mechanism. In addition, the median of MVTs is 7 ms, shorter than the median MVTs of 40 ms and 480 ms for short GRBs or long GRBs, respectively. However, the MVT is independent of duration, similar to GRBs. Finally, we investigate the energy dependence of MVT and suggest that there is a marginal evidence for a power-law relationship like GRBs, but the rate of variation is at least about an order of magnitude smaller. These features may provide an approach to identify bursts with a magnetar origin.

The precursors of short and long gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs and LGRBs) can serve as probes of their progenitors, as well as shedding light on the physical processes of mergers or core-collapse supernovae. Some models predict the possible existence of quasiperiodic oscillations (QPOs) in the precursors of SGRBs. Although many previous studies have performed QPO searches in the main emission of SGRBs and LGRBs, so far there were no systematic QPO searches in their precursors. In this work, we perform a detailed QPO search in the precursors of SGRBs and LGRBs detected by Fermi/Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) from 2008 to 2019 using the power density spectrum (PDS) in the frequency domain and Gaussian processes in the time domain. We do not find any convinced QPO signal with significance above 3σ, possibly due to the low fluxes of precursors. Finally, the PDS continuum properties of both the precursors and main emissions are also studied for the first time, and no significant difference is found in the distributions of the PDS slope for precursors and main emissions in both SGRBs and LGRBs.

The frequency evolution behavior of radio pulse profiles is an important clue for the radiation mechanism of a pulsar. Combined with the latest results of the European Pulsar Network and the Australia Telescope National Facility data, we systematically study the evolution of W ₅₀ (the full width of the pulse profile at 50% of the pulsar amplitude) for 74 pulsars with frequencies from tens to thousands of megahertz. We find that 71 pulsars show “absorption” features, which indicates that the absorption is an universal phenomenon in the pulsar population and independent of the type of pulsar profile. It is found that for most pulsars, the absorption features appear in the frequency range of 100–800 MHz, and the evolution trend of W ₅₀ at frequencies less than ∼100 MHz and larger than ∼800 MHz can be described as a power-law function.We quantify the absorption intensity and analyze the correlation between the absorption intensity and the pulsar parameters (such as the spin period, magnetic field, and age of the pulsar). It is found that there is no direct correlation between them. Our results will provide good samples and clues for the study of the physical mechanism of the absorption phenomenon.