FRB 121102 is the only known repeating fast radio burst source. Here we analyze a wide-frequency-range (1-8 GHz) sample of high signal-to-noise, coherently dedispersed bursts detected using the ...Arecibo and Green Bank telescopes. These bursts reveal complex time-frequency structures that include subbursts with finite bandwidths. The frequency-dependent burst structure complicates the determination of a dispersion measure (DM); we argue that it is appropriate to use a DM metric that maximizes frequency-averaged pulse structure, as opposed to peak signal-to-noise, and find DM = 560.57 0.07 pc cm−3 at MJD 57,644. After correcting for dispersive delay, we find that the subbursts have characteristic frequencies that typically drift lower at later times in the total burst envelope. In the 1.1-1.7 GHz band, the ∼0.5-1 ms subbursts have typical bandwidths ranging from 100 to 400 MHz, and a characteristic drift rate of ∼200 MHz ms−1 toward lower frequencies. At higher radio frequencies, the subburst bandwidths and drift rate are larger, on average. While these features could be intrinsic to the burst emission mechanism, they could also be imparted by propagation effects in the medium local to the source. Comparison of the burst DMs with previous values in the literature suggests an increase of ΔDM ∼ 1-3 pc cm−3 in 4 yr; though, this could be a stochastic variation as opposed to a secular trend. This implies changes in the local medium or an additional source of frequency-dependent delay. Overall, the results are consistent with previously proposed scenarios in which FRB 121102 is embedded in a dense nebula.
PSR J1903+0327, a millisecond pulsar in an eccentric (e= 0.44) 95-d orbit with an ∼1 M⊙ companion poses a challenge to our understanding of stellar evolution in binary and multiple-star systems. Here ...we describe optical and radio observations which rule out most of the scenarios proposed to explain formation of this system. Radio timing measurements of three post-Keplerian effects yield the most precise measurement of the mass of a millisecond pulsar to date: 1.667 ± 0.021 solar masses (99.7 per cent confidence limit). This rules out some equations of state for superdense matter; furthermore, it is consistent with the spin-up of the pulsar by mass accretion, as suggested by its short spin period and low magnetic field. Optical spectroscopy of a proposed main-sequence counterpart shows that its orbital motion mirrors the pulsar's 95-d orbit; being therefore its binary companion. This finding rules out a previously suggested scenario which proposes that the system is presently a hierarchical triple. Conventional binary evolution scenarios predict that, after recycling a neutron star into a millisecond pulsar, the binary companion should become a white dwarf and its orbit should be nearly circular. This suggests that if PSR J1903+0327 was recycled, its present companion was not responsible for it. The optical detection also provides a measurement of the systemic radial velocity of the binary; this and the proper motion measured from pulsar timing allow the determination of the systemic 3D velocity in the Galaxy. We find that the system is always within 270 pc of the plane of the Galaxy, but always more than 3 kpc away from the Galactic Centre. Thus an exchange interaction in a dense stellar environment (like a globular cluster or the Galactic Centre) is not likely to be the origin of this system. We suggest that after the supernova that formed it, the neutron star was in a tight orbit with a main-sequence star and the present companion was a tertiary farther out. The neutron star then accreted matter from its evolving inner companion, forming a millisecond pulsar. The inner companion then disappeared, either due to a chaotic three-body interaction with the outer star (caused by the expansion of the inner orbit that necessarily results from mass transfer), or in the case of a very compact inner system, due to ablation/accretion by the newly formed millisecond pulsar. We discuss in detail the possible evolution of such a system before the supernova.
In this work, we report the discovery and characterization of PSR J1411+2551, a new binary pulsar discovered in the Arecibo 327 MHz Drift Pulsar Survey. Our timing observations of the radio pulsar in ...the system span a period of about 2.5 years. This timing campaign allowed a precise measurement of its spin period (62.4 ms) and its derivative (9.6 0.7) × 10−20 s s−1; from these, we derive a characteristic age of >9.1 Gyr and a surface magnetic field strength of <2.6 × 109 G. These numbers indicate that this pulsar was mildly recycled by accretion of matter from the progenitor of the companion star. The system has an eccentric (e = 0.17) 2.61 day orbit. This eccentricity allows a highly significant measurement of the rate of advance of periastron, . Assuming general relativity accurately describes the orbital motion, this implies a total system mass M = 2.538 0.022 M . The minimum companion mass is 0.92 M and the maximum pulsar mass is 1.62 M . The large companion mass and the orbital eccentricity suggest that PSR J1411+2551 is a double neutron star system; the lightest known to date including the DNS merger GW170817. Furthermore, the relatively low orbital eccentricity and small proper motion limits suggest that the second supernova had a relatively small associated kick; this and the low system mass suggest that it was an ultra-stripped supernova.
Recent work has exploited pulsar survey data to identify temporally isolated, millisecond-duration radio bursts with large dispersion measures (DMs). These bursts have been interpreted as arising ...from a population of extragalactic sources, in which case they would provide unprecedented opportunities for probing the intergalactic medium; they may also be linked to new source classes. Until now, however, all so-called fast radio bursts (FRBs) have been detected with the Parkes radio telescope and its 13-beam receiver, casting some concern about the astrophysical nature of these signals. Here we present FRB 121102, the first FRB discovery from a geographic location other than Parkes. FRB 121102 was found in the Galactic anti-center region in the 1.4 GHz Pulsar Arecibo L-band Feed Array (ALFA) survey with the Arecibo Observatory with a DM = 557.4 + or - 2.0 pc cm super(-3), pulse width of 3.0 + or - 0.5 ms, and no evidence of interstellar scattering. The observed delay of the signal arrival time with frequency agrees precisely with the expectation of dispersion through an ionized medium. Despite its low Galactic latitude (b = 0degrees.2), the burst has three times the maximum Galactic DM expected along this particular line of sight, suggesting an extragalactic origin. A peculiar aspect of the signal is an inverted spectrum; we interpret this as a consequence of being detected in a sidelobe of the ALFA receiver. FRB 121102's brightness, duration, and the inferred event rate are all consistent with the properties of the previously detected Parkes bursts.
ABSTRACT To understand the nature of supernovae and neutron star (NS) formation, as well as binary stellar evolution and their interactions, it is important to probe the distribution of NS masses. ...Until now, all double NS (DNS) systems have been measured as having a mass ratio close to unity (q ≥ 0.91). Here, we report the measurement of the individual masses of the 4.07-day binary pulsar J0453+1559 from measurements of the rate of advance of periastron and Shapiro delay: the mass of the pulsar is Mp = 1.559 0.005 M and that of its companion is M ; q = 0.75. If this companion is also an NS, as indicated by the orbital eccentricity of the system (e = 0.11), then its mass is the smallest precisely measured for any such object. The pulsar has a spin period of 45.7 ms and a spin period derivative of = (1.8616 0.0007)×10−19 s s−1; from these, we derive a characteristic age of ∼ 4.1×109 years and a magnetic field of ∼ 2.9×109 G, i.e., this pulsar was mildly recycled by the accretion of matter from the progenitor of the companion star. This suggests that it was formed with (very approximately) its current mass. Thus, NSs form with a wide range of masses, which is important for understanding their formation in supernovae. It is also important for the search for gravitational waves released during an NS-NS merger: it is now evident that we should not assume that all DNS systems are symmetric.
Abstract The AO327 drift survey for radio pulsars and transients used the Arecibo telescope from 2010 until its collapse in 2020. AO327 collected ∼3100 hr of data at 327 MHz with a time resolution of ...82 μ s and a frequency resolution of 24 kHz. While the main motivation for such surveys is the discovery of new pulsars and new, even unforeseen, types of radio transients, they also serendipitously collect a wealth of data on known pulsars. We present an electronic catalog of data and data products of 206 pulsars whose periodic emission was detected by AO327 and are listed in the Australia Telescope National Facility catalog of all published pulsars. The AO327 data products include dedispersed time series at full time resolution, average (“folded”) pulse profiles, Gaussian pulse profile templates, and an absolute phase reference that allows phase aligning the AO327 pulse profiles in a physically meaningful manner with profiles from data taken with other instruments. We also provide machine-readable tables with uncalibrated flux measurements at 327 MHz and pulse widths at 50% and 10% of the pulse peak determined from the fitted Gaussian profile templates. The AO327 catalog data set can be used in applications like population analysis of radio pulsars, pulse profile evolution studies in time and frequency, cone and core emission of the pulsar beam, scintillation, pulse intensity distributions, and others. It also constitutes a ready-made resource for teaching signal-processing and pulsar astronomy techniques.
Recent analyses of the excess of gamma-ray radiation emanating from the Galactic center (GC) region suggest an origin in a population of thousands of undetected millisecond pulsars (MSPs). We have ...conducted a search for pulsar candidates using new high-sensitivity, wide-field radio observations of the GC covering 5 deg2. We conducted the search at a low frequency of ∼320 MHz in order to take advantage of the very steep spectra typical of pulsars. Additional observations at 6 GHz of the most steep-spectrum, compact sources resulted in a list of seven candidate pulsars. No pulsations were detected for any of the candidates in a search conducted with the GBT at 1.5, 2, and 6 GHz, presumably due to severe temporal scattering in the GC region or along the line of sight. We discuss the implications of the nondetections on pulse period and distance estimates using two different models of the Galactic distribution of ionized gas. For our best candidate, C1748−2827, located 43′ from Sgr A*, we estimate that pulsations from a normal pulsar would have been detected up to a distance of ∼8 kpc and from an MSP up to ∼4.5 kpc.
ABSTRACT We present Clusterrank, a new algorithm for identifying dispersed astrophysical pulses. Such pulses are commonly detected from Galactic pulsars and rotating radio transients (RRATs), which ...are neutron stars with sporadic radio emission. More recently, isolated, highly dispersed pulses dubbed fast radio bursts (FRBs) have been identified as the potential signature of an extragalactic cataclysmic radio source distinct from pulsars and RRATs. Clusterrank helped us discover 14 pulsars and 8 RRATs in data from the Arecibo 327 MHz Drift Pulsar Survey (AO327). The new RRATs have DMs in the range 23.5-86.6 pc cm−3 and periods in the range 0.172-3.901 s. The new pulsars have DMs in the range 23.6-133.3 pc cm−3 and periods in the range 1.249-5.012 s, and include two nullers and a mode-switching object. We estimate an upper limit on the all-sky FRB rate of 105 day−1 for bursts with a width of 10 ms and flux density 83 mJy. The DMs of all new discoveries are consistent with a Galactic origin. In comparing statistics of the new RRATs with sources from the RRATalog, we find that both sets are drawn from the same period distribution. In contrast, we find that the period distribution of the new pulsars is different from the period distributions of canonical pulsars in the ATNF catalog or pulsars found in AO327 data by a periodicity search. This indicates that Clusterrank is a powerful complement to periodicity searches and uncovers a subset of the pulsar population that has so far been underrepresented in survey results and therefore in Galactic pulsar population models.
We report the discovery and initial follow-up of a double neutron star (DNS) system, PSR J1946+2052, with the Arecibo L-Band Feed Array pulsar (PALFA) survey. PSR J1946+2052 is a 17 ms pulsar in a ...1.88 hr, eccentric (e = 0.06) orbit with a 1.2 M companion. We have used the Jansky Very Large Array to localize PSR J1946+2052 to a precision of 0 09 using a new phase binning mode. We have searched multiwavelength catalogs for coincident sources but did not find any counterparts. The improved position enabled a measurement of the spin period derivative of the pulsar ( P ˙ = 9 2 × 10 − 19 ); the small inferred magnetic field strength at the surface (BS = 4 × 109 G) indicates that this pulsar has been recycled. This and the orbital eccentricity lead to the conclusion that PSR J1946+2052 is in a DNS system. Among all known radio pulsars in DNS systems, PSR J1946+2052 has the shortest orbital period and the shortest estimated merger timescale, 46 Myr; at that time it will display the largest spin effects on gravitational-wave waveforms of any such system discovered to date. We have measured the advance of periastron passage for this system, ˙ = 25.6 0.3 deg yr − 1 , implying a total system mass of only 2.50 0.04 M , so it is among the lowest-mass DNS systems. This total mass measurement combined with the minimum companion mass constrains the pulsar mass to 1.3 M .
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