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Systematic search for millisecond pulsars

Thesis/Dissertation ·
OSTI ID:6696490
The author performed a systematic search for pulsars, covering approximately 300 square degrees of sky, with sensitivity to periods as short as 0.6 ms. He detected 19 known pulsars and 5 new ones, one of which is a millisecond pulsar - PSR 1855 + 09, with rotational period 5.3 ms and dispersion measure of 13.3 pc cm/sup -3/, indicating that it is a nearby object. It is evidently in a binary system, although its orbital parameters are not yet known with certainty. The sensitivity of the search is such that the existence of a large population of high flux density pulsars such as PSR 1937 + 21 can be ruled out. However, the possibility of a population of weaker objects, such as the previously known PSR 1935 + 29 and the new PSR 1855 + 09, is suggested. Findings support the arguments for the origin of the short periods of these pulsars which rely on mass accretion from a companion object. Strategies for further searching are proposed.
Research Organization:
Princeton Univ., NJ (USA)
OSTI ID:
6696490
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English