PULSAR OUTER-GAP ELECTRODYNAMICS: HARDENING OF SPECTRAL SHAPE IN THE TRAILING PEAK IN THE GAMMA-RAY LIGHT CURVE

Journal Article · Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/733/2/L49· OSTI ID:21562632

Hirotani, Kouichi ^[1]

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1. TIARA, Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, 101, Sec. 2, Kuang Fu Rd., Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan (China)

The spectral characteristics of the pulsed gamma-ray emission from outer-magnetospheric particle accelerators are investigated. Either positrons or electrons are accelerated outward by the magnetic-field-aligned electric field to emit gamma rays via the curvature process. Since the particles move along relatively straight paths in the trailing side of a rotating magnetosphere, they attain higher Lorentz factors to emit more energetic gamma rays than those in the leading side. It is first demonstrated that the cutoff energy of the curvature radiation evolves with the rotation phase owing to the variation of the curvature radii of the particle paths and maximizes at a slightly later phase of the trailing peak in the gamma-ray light curve.

• OSTI ID: 21562632
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol. 733, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/733/2/L49; ISSN 2041-8205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTROPHYSICS
COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
ACCELERATION
ELECTRIC FIELDS
ELECTRODYNAMICS
ELECTRONS
EMISSION
GAMMA RADIATION
MAGNETIC FIELDS
POSITRONS
PULSARS
STARS
ANTILEPTONS
ANTIMATTER
ANTIPARTICLES
COSMIC RADIO SOURCES
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
FERMIONS
IONIZING RADIATIONS
LEPTONS
MATTER
RADIATIONS