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Suzaku Guest Observer Facility

Suzaku Data Analysis


Analysis of Version 2 Data

  • Things to Watch Out For (Last updated 2012 Mar 28) This frequently update page lists
    • Calibration problems that have recently surfaced
    • Hints on how best to run Suzaku specific software

The version 4.0 of the data reduction guide is now available in HTML, PDF, and PostScript versions. This guide corresponds to Processing Version 2.X data as distributed to US Guest Observers. Although others are welcome to use this guide, there may be differences if data were obtained from ISAS/JAXA, or if the processing version is different.

Users of Version 2 data should update their Suzaku software to Version 6 or newer and also obtain the latest CALDB files.

Current calibration uncertainties of Version 2.X data are described in the Calibration status and caveats pages at ISAS.

The non X-ray background files for the analysis of the HXD data can be downloaded from the following locations:

PINGSO
Tuned (smaller systematic uncertainties) Version 2.5 (for observations before 2011-11-031)
or Version 2.6 (for observations after 2011-11-03)
Quick (available sooner than "Tuned") Old Gain (for comparison with old analysis)

1Version 2.6 should be used for observations taken between 2010-03-01 and 2011-11-03 if it has been reprocessed with the latest gsogpt file.

The following pages including information that supplements, or in some cases supercedes, Version 3.2 of the data reduction guide, have been incorporated into Version 4.0 of the guide.

  • Increase of non X-ray background for XIS1 with CI=6keV (Updated 2012 Apr 9)

  • Updated gain history file for HXD/GSO is now available (2011 Sep 19)
    • The HXD team has released an updated gain history file for the GSO that reduces the gain fluctuation for data taken since 2010 March (see the release note for further details). Affected users should reprocess their data.
    • The latest note on GSO background (2012 Apr 9)

  • New contamination model is now available. (2011 Jun 10)
    • The new model relaxes the old assumption of a fixed composition (C/O=6) of the contaminant and results in a better agreement between the Suzaku data and the known spectral parameters for E0102-72.3 and RX J1856.5-3754.
    • The new model requires both Version 18 of Suzaku FTOOLS and the latest XIS CALDB (20110608). While the new FTOOLS are compatible with older calibration files, the older FTOOLS cannot handle the most recent contamination calibration files.
    • Furthre details will be published in due course.

  • Contributed software (link to an MIT page): ISIS modules for Improved Attitude Correction and Pileup Estimation for bright point sources observed with XIS (Posted 2008 Aug 14) The FTOOLS versions of these tools are now available in HEAsoft 6.11 (2011 Jun 10)
  • Recipe for Pileup Effect on the Suzaku XIS by Dr. Yamada. (Link posted on 2012 Apr 10)

  • PIN Epochs (Last updated 2011 Aug 23): PIN data require different response files depending on the epoch of the observation. In particular, please note the frequent changes since 2009 Oct 1.

  • PIN Noise (2012 Apr 10)

  • New gain calibration of the GSO data (Updated 2010 Aug 20)
  • Empirical arf files for the new gain calibration (2010 Aug 20)

See also a list of current Suzaku memos - they contain more detailed information of many of the calibration issues.

In publishing results of Suzaku data analysis:
  • Please explicitly list the sequence numbers of the data used. This enables us to cross-link Suzaku data in the HEASARC database and the bibliography in the ADS.
  • How to acknowledge the use of Suzaku data in your publication.


The following pages include information appropriate for v2.x data and software that are also covered in the Reduction Guide, version 3.2.


Older Links

XIS Specific Issues

HXD Specific Issues


If you have any questions concerning Suzaku, visit the Feedback form.

This file was last modified on Thursday, 12-Apr-2012 11:57:47 EDT

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