Compton heated winds and coronae above accretion disks. II Radiative transfer and observable consequences

Begelman et al. (1983) have shown that a strong wind can arise when the outer part of an accretion disk is irradiated by X-rays from the central regions. The present investigation has the objective to verify that some assertions made by Begelman et al. are correct. A second objective is related to the study of important observable effects of Compton-heated gas above an accretion disk. Aspects of radiative transfer in the corona and wind are considered, taking into account the vertical structure of the corona, and radiative transfer in the wind. Attention is also given to scattered X-ray surface brightness and luminosity, scattering in the wind, scattering in the corona, eclipses of corona and wind in X-ray binaries, the efficiency of line emission from the disk, and X-ray binaries and cataclysmic variables.