We present six monitoring observations of the starburst galaxy NGC 2146 using the Chandra X-ray Observatory .
We have detected 67 point sources in the \timeform { 8 ^ { \prime } .7 } \times \timeform { 8 ^ { \prime } .7 } field of view of the ACIS-S detector .
Six of these sources were Ultra-Luminous X-ray Sources , the brightest of which has a luminosity of 5 \times 10 ^ { 39 } ergs s ^ { -1 } .
One of the source , with a luminosity of \sim 1 \times 10 ^ { 39 } ergs s ^ { -1 } , is coincident with the dynamical center location , as derived from the ^ { 12 } CO rotation curve .
We suggest that this source may be a low-luminosity active galactic nucleus .
We have produced a table where the positions and main characteristics of the Chandra-detected sources are reported .
The comparison between the positions of the X-ray sources and those of compact sources detected in NIR or radio does not indicate any definite counterpart .
Taking profit of the relatively large number of sources detected , we have derived a \log { N } - \log { S } relation and a luminosity function .
The former shows a break at \sim 10 ^ { -15 } ergs cm ^ { -2 } s ^ { -1 } , that we interpret as due to a detection limit .
The latter has a slope above the break of 0.71 , which is similar to those found in the other starburst galaxies .
In addition , a diffuse X-ray emission has been detected in both , soft ( 0.5–2.0 keV ) and hard ( 2.0–10.0 keV ) , energy bands .
The spectra of the diffuse component has been fitted with a two ( hard and soft ) components .
The hard power-law component , with a luminosity of \sim 4 \times 10 ^ { 39 } ergs s ^ { -1 } , is likely originated by unresolved point sources , while the soft component is better described by a thermal plasma model with a temperature of 0.5 keV and high abundances for Mg and Si .