NIR identified X-ray sources in Galactic bulge

We have used the MOIRCS on the Subaru telescope, reaching the limiting magnitude of ~18mag in the J, H, and K_s_ bands in this crowded region, and identified ~50% of the X-ray sources with NIR candidate counterparts. We classified the X-ray sources into three groups (A, B, and C) based on their positions in the X-ray color-color diagram and characterized them based on the X-ray and NIR features. We argue that the major populations of the Group A and C sources are, respectively, CVs (binaries containing magnetic or non-magnetic white dwarfs with high accretion rates) and X-ray active stars.

The major population of the Group B sources is presumably white dwarf (WD) binaries with low mass accretion rates. The Fe K equivalent width in the composite X-ray spectrum of the Group B sources is the largest among the three and comparable to that of the Galactic bulge X-ray emission. This leads us to speculate that there are numerous WD binaries with low mass accretion rates which are not recognized as CVs but are the major contributor of the apparently extended X-ray emission.