Louisiana State University Physics & Astronomy

Robert I. Hynes
Assistant Professor of Physics

Ph.D., 1999 - The Open University

Multiwavelength Observational Astronomy

Office: 275 Nicholson
Telephone: 7459-Office
E-mail:

Personal Home Page

RESEARCH INTERESTS

My research involves multiwavelength observations of accreting compact objects such as black holes and neutron stars. My primary interests are in applying such observations to understand the structure, physical conditions, and astrophysics of the accretion flows onto these objects in both X-ray bright phases and quiescent states. To achieve this I use a variety of space-based telescopes including the Hubble Space Telescope for ultraviolet and optical observations and the Chandra X-ray Observatory and Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer for X-ray data, and also several ground-based optical, infrared, and radio facilities. In more detail, my two most active interests are: constraining the geometry and efficiency of X-ray irradiation of accretion disks using multiwavelength spectral energy distributions and reverberation mapping; and probing the instabilities in accretion onto quiescent black holes by studying short-timescale variability and correlating variability at different wavelengths.

CURRENT AND SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Cornelisse, R., Steeghs, D., Casares, J., Charles, P.A., Shih, I., Hynes, R.I. and O'Brien, K., "A signature of the donar star in the extra-galactic X-ray binary LMCX-2," Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 381, Issue 1, 194-200 (2007).
Cornelisse, R., Steeghs, D., Casares, J., Charles, P.A., Barnes, A.D., Hynes, R.I. and O'Brien, K., "Optical spectroscoy of the low-mass X-ray binary GX9+9," Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 380, Issue 3, 1219-1229 (2007).
Barnes, A.D., Casares, J., Cornelisse, R., Charles, P.A., Steeghs, D., Hynes, R.I. and O'Brien, K., "Kinematical studies of the low-mass X-ray binary GRMus (XB1254-690)," Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 380, Issue 3, 1182-1190 (2007).
Bradley, Charles K., Hynes, Robert I., Kong, Albert K.H., Haswell, C.A., Casares, J. and Gallo, E., "The Spectrum of the Black Hole X-Ray Nova V404 Cygni in Quiescence as Measured by XMM-Newton," The Astrophysical Journal 667, Issue 1 427-432 (2007).
Cornelisse, R., Casares, J., Steeghs, D., Barnes, A.D., Charles, P.A., Hynes, R.I. and O'Brien, K., "A detection of the donar star of Aquila X-1 during its 2004 outburst," Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 375, Issue 4, 1463-1470 (2007).

Updated: Thu, 11-Oct-2007 5:05 PM