Accretion by magnetic neutron stars
Most of the bright, periodically pulsing X-ray sources in the Galaxy are strongly magnetic, rotating neutron stars accreting matter from a binary companion. Some X-ray and ..gamma..-ray burst sources may also be strongly magnetic neutron stars accreting matter from a binary companion or the interstellar medium. In such systems the magnetic field of the neutron star creates a magnetosphere about the star. This review first describes the qualitative features that are characteristic of all flows onto strongly magnetic neutron stars and then discusses accretion from a thin disk and spherically symmmetric radial accretion in more detail, with emphasis on the scale and structure of the magnetosphere. Work on plasma flow inside the magnetosphere and the physics of accretion torques is described. Finally, some interesting unsolved problems in neutron star magnetospheric physics are indicated.
- Research Organization:
- Departments of Physics and Astronomy University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- OSTI ID:
- 6239093
- Journal Information:
- AIP Conf. Proc.; (United States), Journal Name: AIP Conf. Proc.; (United States) Vol. 115:1; ISSN APCPC
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
Radio & X-Ray Sources
640103 -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Quasi-Stellar
Radio
& X-Ray Sources-- (-1987)
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ACCRETION DISKS
ATMOSPHERES
BINARY STARS
COSMIC RAY SOURCES
COSMIC X-RAY SOURCES
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
IONIZING RADIATIONS
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MORPHOLOGY
NEUTRON STARS
RADIATIONS
STAR ACCRETION
STAR EVOLUTION
STARS
STELLAR ATMOSPHERES
STELLAR MAGNETOSPHERES
X RADIATION