Simultaneous independent measurements of a truncated inner accretion disc in the low/hard state of GX 399$-$4

Abstract

We present results from three recent XMM-Newton observations of GX 339$-$4 in the low/hard state, taken during the decay of a bright (peak $\sim 0.05$ L$_{\rm Edd}$) failed outburst. Uniquely, these are the first XMM-Newton EPIC-pn observations of this source using an imaging mode, which significantly enhances the quality of the data at hand. In particular, thanks to the larger available bandpass, this allows an unprecedented constraint of the thermal accretion disc component, and the level of photoelectric absorption. We simultaneously measured the inner radius of the accretion disc via the broadened Fe K$\alpha$ line and the disc component. The two methods agree, and the measured radii show good consistency over the three epochs. We find that the inner radius is at 20-30 $r_{\rm g}$, adding to the growing direct evidence for truncation of the inner accretion disc in the low/hard state.