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Moffat

:::info Migrated from Old Wiki This content was partially migrated from the old wiki using GitHub Copilot and should be double-checked for accuracy. :::

Usage​

moffat
x1c # x-coordinate of centroid
x2c # y-coordinate of centroid
q # axis ratio (minor/major)
pa # position angle (in radians; counter-clockwise from +x)
Amp # amplitude (normalisation; peak surface brightness)
alpha # structural parameter (controls width of the profile)
beta # structural parameter (controls the wings of the profile)

Surface Brightness Profile​

After rotating by βˆ’pa-\text{pa} into the frame aligned with the light profile (major axis along x1x_1, minor along x2x_2), define:

r2=x12+x22q2r^2 = x_1^2 + \frac{x_2^2}{q^2}

The Moffat intensity is given by:

I(r)=Aβ‹…Ξ²βˆ’1πα2β‹…(1+r2Ξ±2)βˆ’Ξ²I(r) = A \cdot \frac{\beta - 1}{\pi \alpha^2} \cdot \left(1 + \frac{r^2}{\alpha^2}\right)^{-\beta}

where:

  • AA is the amplitude (Amp), the peak surface brightness
  • Ξ±\alpha sets the core width
  • Ξ²\beta controls the steepness of the wings
  • qq is the axis ratio