A High-resolution Study of Nonthermal Emission from the SNR G347.3-0.5

ASCA observations of the SNR G347.3-0.5 revealed that the X-ray spectrum is dominated by nonthermal emission. This puts G347.3-0.5 in the small, but growing class of SNRs for which the X-ray emission reveals the presence of extremely energetic electrons accelerated by the SNR shock, such as in SN 1006. We have obtained new, high-resolution X-ray and radio data on G347.3-0.5 using the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA). The Chandra observations of discrete regions along the SNR boundary show very good agreement between the X-ray and radio morphological structure, providing strong evidence that the same population of electrons is responsible for the synchrotron emission in both bands. We present spectral index information from both observations which will provide strong constraints on models for the acceleration process in the SNR shock. The X-ray observations also support earlier indications that the spectral index of the nonthermal emission varies considerably across the remnant. Finally, we present spectral results on the X-ray point source in the central region of the SNR, for which we find no radio counterpart, and we comment on possible interpretations as an associated neutron star. This work was supported in part from Chandra grant G00-1123X.