Toward an Empirical Theory of Pulsar Emission. XII. Exploring the Physical Conditions in Millisecond Pulsar Emission Regions

Journal Article · Thu Aug 10 04:00:00 EDT 2017 · Astrophysical Journal

DOI:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/AA7B73· OSTI ID:22663279

Rankin, Joanna M.; Mitra, Dipanjan ^[1]; Archibald, Anne; Hessels, Jason; Leeuwen, Joeri van ^[2]; Ransom, Scott ^[3]; Stairs, Ingrid ^[4]; Straten, Willem van ^[5]

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1. Physics Department, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405 (United States)
2. Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam (Netherlands)
3. National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Charlottesville, VA 29201 (United States)
4. Physics Department, University of British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, BC (Canada)
5. Institute for Radio Astronomy and Space Research, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland 1142 (New Zealand)

The five-component profile of the 2.7 ms pulsar J0337+1715 appears to exhibit the best example to date of a core/double-cone emission-beam structure in a millisecond pulsar (MSP). Moreover, three other MSPs, the binary pulsars B1913+16, B1953+29, and J1022+1001, seem to exhibit core/single-cone profiles. These configurations are remarkable and important because it has not been clear whether MSPs and slow pulsars exhibit similar emission-beam configurations, given that they have considerably smaller magnetospheric sizes and magnetic field strengths. MSPs thus provide an extreme context for studying pulsar radio emission. Particle currents along the magnetic polar flux tube connect processes just above the polar cap through the radio-emission region to the light-cylinder and the external environment. In slow pulsars, radio-emission heights are typically about 500 km around where the magnetic field is nearly dipolar, and estimates of the physical conditions there point to radiation below the plasma frequency and emission from charged solitons by the curvature process. We are able to estimate emission heights for the four MSPs and carry out a similar estimation of physical conditions in their much lower emission regions. We find strong evidence that MSPs also radiate by curvature emission from charged solitons.

• OSTI ID: 22663279
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal, Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 845; ISSN ASJOAB; ISSN 0004-637X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
CONFIGURATION
EMISSION
LANGMUIR FREQUENCY
MAGNETIC FIELDS
PARTICLES
PLASMA
PULSARS
VISIBLE RADIATION