Thermonuclear X-ray bursts across the eclipse transitions in the LMXBs EXO 0748−676 and XTE J1710−281

ABSTRACT The primary radiation from thermonuclear X-ray bursts observed in the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) systems can interact with various parts of the binary system. This interaction gives rise to secondary radiation in different wavelength ranges, known as reprocessed emission. In eclipsing LMXBs, the reprocessed emission from the bursts can be examined during eclipses, as the primary emission is blocked and only the reprocessed emission is visible. We searched for bursts during eclipses in the archival RXTE data of the eclipsing LMXBs and found them in EXO 0748−676 and XTE J1710−281. In EXO 0748−676, seven bursts were found to occur near eclipse egress, with their tails extending beyond the eclipse, and one such burst was found for XTE J1710−281. We estimate the reprocessing fraction at orbital phases near eclipse egress by modelling the peculiar eclipse bursts detected in both systems, which have tails extending beyond the eclipses. We observe an increasing trend in reprocessing fraction as these eclipse bursts occur closer to the eclipse egress. We discuss the possibilities of reprocessing in the ablated wind from the companion star, the accretion disc, and the disc wind in EXO 0748−676 and XTE J1710−281. Additionally, we observe two decay components in the bursts in EXO 0748−676, which could suggest a complex composition of the accreting fuel. From the burst rise time-scales, we place an upper limit on the size of the reprocessing regions in both EXO 0748−676 and XTE J1710−281, finding it comparable to the size of the respective X-ray binaries.