PSR J1723–2837: AN ECLIPSING BINARY RADIO MILLISECOND PULSAR

Journal Article · Thu Oct 10 04:00:00 EDT 2013 · Astrophysical Journal

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/776/1/20· OSTI ID:22270898

Crawford, Fronefield ^[1]; Lyne, Andrew G. ^[2]; Stairs, Ingrid H. ^[3]; Kaplan, David L. ^[4]; McLaughlin, Maura A.; Lorimer, Duncan R. ^[5]; Freire, Paulo C. C.; Kramer, Michael ^[6]; Burgay, Marta; D'Amico, Nichi; Possenti, Andrea ^[7]; Camilo, Fernando ^[8]; Faulkner, Andrew ^[9]; Manchester, Richard N. ^[10]; Steeghs, Danny ^[11]

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1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, Franklin and Marshall College, P.O. Box 3003, Lancaster, PA 17604 (United States)
2. Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL (United Kingdom)
3. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, 6224 Agricultural Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1 (Canada)
4. Physics Department, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53211 (United States)
5. Department of Physics, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506 (United States)
6. Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, auf dem Huegel 69, D-53121 Bonn (Germany)
7. INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Cagliari, Poggio dei Pini, I-09012 Capoterra (Italy)
8. Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027 (United States)
9. Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, J. J. Thompson Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 0HE (United Kingdom)
10. CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science, Australia Telescope National Facility, P.O. Box 76, Epping, NSW 1710 (Australia)
11. Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL (United Kingdom)

We present a study of PSR J1723–2837, an eclipsing, 1.86 ms millisecond binary radio pulsar discovered in the Parkes Multibeam survey. Radio timing indicates that the pulsar has a circular orbit with a 15 hr orbital period, a low-mass companion, and a measurable orbital period derivative. The eclipse fraction of ∼15% during the pulsar's orbit is twice the Roche lobe size inferred for the companion. The timing behavior is significantly affected by unmodeled systematics of astrophysical origin, and higher-order orbital period derivatives are needed in the timing solution to account for these variations. We have identified the pulsar's (non-degenerate) companion using archival ultraviolet, optical, and infrared survey data and new optical photometry. Doppler shifts from optical spectroscopy confirm the star's association with the pulsar and indicate a pulsar-to-companion mass ratio of 3.3 ± 0.5, corresponding to a companion mass range of 0.4 to 0.7 M{sub ☉} and an orbital inclination angle range of between 30° and 41°, assuming a pulsar mass range of 1.4-2.0 M{sub ☉}. Spectroscopy indicates a spectral type of G for the companion and an inferred Roche-lobe-filling distance that is consistent with the distance estimated from radio dispersion. The features of PSR J1723–2837 indicate that it is likely a 'redback' system. Unlike the five other Galactic redbacks discovered to date, PSR J1723–2837 has not been detected as a γ-ray source with Fermi. This may be due to an intrinsic spin-down luminosity that is much smaller than the measured value if the unmeasured contribution from proper motion is large.

• OSTI ID: 22270898
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal, Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 776; ISSN ASJOAB; ISSN 0004-637X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
ASTRONOMY
ASTROPHYSICS
DOPPLER EFFECT
ECLIPSE
LUMINOSITY
MASS
PHOTOMETRY
PROPER MOTION
PULSARS
ROCHE EQUIPOTENTIALS
SPECTROSCOPY
STARS
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION