The properties of the progenitor supernova, pulsar wind, and neutron star inside PWN G54.1+0.3

Journal Article · Wed Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 2015 · Astrophysical Journal

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/807/1/30· OSTI ID:22882984

Gelfand, Joseph D. ^[1]; Slane, Patrick O. ^[2]; Temim, Tea ^[3]

---

1. NYU Abu Dhabi, P.O. Box 903, New York, NY, 10276 (United States)
2. Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
3. Observational Cosmology Lab, Code 665, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

The evolution of a pulsar wind nebula (PWN) inside a supernova remnant (SNR) is sensitive to the properties of the central neutron star, pulsar wind, progenitor supernova, and interstellar medium. These properties are both difficult to measure directly and critical for understanding the formation of neutron stars and their interaction with the surrounding medium. In this paper, we determine these properties for PWN G54.1+0.3 by fitting its observed properties with a model for the dynamical and radiative evolution of a PWN inside an SNR. Our modeling suggests that the progenitor of G54.1+0.3 was an isolated ∼15–20 M{sub ⊙} star which exploded inside a massive star cluster, creating a neutron star initially spinning with a period of P{sub 0} ∼ 30–80 ms. We also find that ≳99.9% of the pulsar’s rotational energy is injected into the PWN as relativistic electrons and positrons whose energy spectrum is well characterized by a broken power law. Finally, we propose future observations which can both test the validity of this model and better determine the properties of this source—in particular, its distance and the initial spin period of the central pulsar.

• OSTI ID: 22882984
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal, Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 807; ISSN ASJOAB; ISSN 0004-637X
• Country of Publication: United Kingdom
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
DISTANCE
ELECTRONS
ENERGY SPECTRA
NEBULAE
NEUTRON STARS
POSITRONS
PULSARS
RELATIVISTIC RANGE
STAR CLUSTERS
STELLAR WINDS
SUPERNOVA REMNANTS