Aims. The usefulness and versatility of the PSRSALSA open-source pulsar data-analysis project is demonstrated through an analysis of the radio pulsar B1839−04. This study focuses on the phenomenon of ...bi-drifting, an effect where the drift direction of subpulses is systematically different in different pulse profile components. Bi-drifting is extremely rare in the pulsar population, and the theoretical implications are discussed after comparing B1839−04 with the only other known bi-drifter. Methods. Various tools in PSRSALSA, including those allowing quantification of periodicities in the subpulse modulation, their flux distribution, and polarization properties, are exploited to obtain a comprehensive picture of the radio properties of PSR B1839−04. In particular, the second harmonic in the fluctuation spectra of the subpulse modulation is exploited to convincingly demonstrate the existence of bi-drifting in B1839−04. Bi-drifting is confirmed with a completely independent method allowing the average modulation cycle to be determined. Polarization measurements were used to obtain a robust constraint on the magnetic inclination angle. Results. The angle between the rotation and magnetic axis is found to be smaller than 35°. Two distinct emission modes are discovered to be operating, with periodic subpulse modulation being present only during the weaker mode. Despite the variability of the modulation cycle and interruption by mode-changes, the modulation pattern responsible for the bi-drifting is strictly phase locked over a timescale of years such that the variability is identical in the different components. Conclusions. The phase locking implies that a single physical origin is responsible for both drift directions. Phase locking is hard to explain for many models, including those specifically proposed in the literature to explain bi-drifting, and they are therefore shown to be implausible. It is argued that within the framework of circulating beamlets, bi-drifting could occur if the circulation were severely distorted, possibly by distortions in the magnetic field.
ABSTRACT
The smooth spin-down of young pulsars is perturbed by two non-deterministic phenomenon, glitches, and timing noise. Although the timing noise provides insights into nuclear and plasma ...physics at extreme densities, it acts as a barrier to high-precision pulsar timing experiments. An improved methodology based on the Bayesian inference is developed to simultaneously model the stochastic and deterministic parameters for a sample of 85 high-$\dot{E}$ radio pulsars observed for ∼10 yr with the 64-m Parkes radio telescope. Timing noise is known to be a red process and we develop a parametrization based on the red-noise amplitude (Ared) and spectral index (β). We measure the median Ared to be $-10.4^{+1.8}_{-1.7}$ yr3/2 and β to be $-5.2^{+3.0}_{-3.8}$ and show that the strength of timing noise scales proportionally to $\nu ^{1}|\dot{\nu }|^{-0.6\pm 0.1}$, where ν is the spin frequency of the pulsar and $\dot{\nu }$ is its spin-down rate. Finally, we measure significant braking indices for 19 pulsars and proper motions for 2 pulsars, and discuss the presence of periodic modulation in the arrival times of 5 pulsars.
Abstract
After spending almost a decade in a radio-quiet state, the Anomalous X-ray Pulsar XTE J1810–197 turned back on in early 2018 December. We have observed this radio magnetar at 1.5 GHz with ...nearly daily cadence since the first detection of radio re-activation on 2018 December 8. In this paper, we report on the current timing properties of XTE J1810–197 and find that the magnitude of the spin frequency derivative has increased by a factor of 2.6 over our 48-d data set. We compare our results with the spin-down evolution reported during its previous active phase in the radio band. We also present total intensity pulse profiles at five different observing frequencies between 1.5 and 8.4 GHz, collected with the Lovell and the Effelsberg telescopes. The profile evolution in our data set is less erratic than what was reported during the previous active phase, and can be seen varying smoothly between observations. Profiles observed immediately after the outburst show the presence of at least five cycles of a very stable ∼50 ms periodicity in the main pulse component that lasts for at least tens of days. This remarkable structure is seen across the full range of observing frequencies.
ABSTRACT
We report on a timing programme of 74 young pulsars that have been observed by the Parkes 64-m radio telescope over the past decade. Using modern Bayesian timing techniques, we have measured ...the properties of 124 glitches in 52 of these pulsars, of which 74 are new. We demonstrate that the glitch sample is complete to fractional increases in spin frequency greater than $\Delta \nu ^{90{{\ \rm per\ cent}}}_{\mathrm{ g}}/\nu \approx 8.1 \times 10^{-9}$ . We measure values of the braking index, n, in 33 pulsars. In most of these pulsars, their rotational evolution is dominated by episodes of spin-down with n > 10, punctuated by step changes in the spin-down rate at the time of a large glitch. The step changes are such that, averaged over the glitches, the long-term n is small. We find a near one-to-one relationship between the interglitch value of n and the change in spin-down of the previous glitch divided by the interglitch time interval. We discuss the results in the context of a range of physical models.
Abstract We present a detailed study of the X-ray emission from PSR B1055–52 using XMM-Newton observations from 2019 and 2000. The phase-integrated X-ray emission from this pulsar is poorly described ...by existing models of neutron star atmospheres. Instead, we confirm that, similar to other middle-aged pulsars, the best-fitting spectral model consists of two blackbody components, with substantially different temperatures and emitting areas, and a nonthermal component characterized by a power law. Our phase-resolved X-ray spectral analysis using this three-component model reveals variations in the thermal emission parameters with the pulsar’s rotational phase. These variations suggest a nonuniform temperature distribution across the neutron star’s surface, including the cold thermal component and probable hot spot(s). Such a temperature distribution can be caused by external and internal heating processes, likely a combination thereof. We observe very high pulse fractions, 60%–80% in the 0.7–1.5 keV range, dominated by the hot blackbody component. This could be related to temperature nonuniformity and potential beaming effects in an atmosphere. We find indication of a second hot spot that appears at lower energies (0.15–0.3 keV) than the first hot spot (0.5–1.5 keV) in the X-ray light curves and is offset by about half a rotation period. This finding aligns with the nearly orthogonal rotator geometry suggested by radio observations of this interpulse pulsar. If the hot spots are associated with polar caps, a possible explanation for their temperature asymmetry could be an offset magnetic dipole and/or an additional toroidal magnetic field component in the neutron star crust.
The largest glitch observed in the Crab pulsar Shaw, B; Lyne, A G; Stappers, B W ...
Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society,
08/2018, Letnik:
478, Številka:
3
Journal Article
ABSTRACT
The Parkes telescope has been monitoring 286 radio pulsars approximately monthly since 2007 at an observing frequency of 1.4 GHz. The wide dispersion measure (DM) range of the pulsar sample ...and the uniformity of the observing procedure make the data set extremely valuable for studies of flux density variability and the interstellar medium (ISM). Here, we present flux density measurements and modulation indices of these pulsars over this period. We derive the structure function from the light curves and discuss the contributions to it from measurement noise, intrinsic variability, and interstellar scintillation. Despite a large scatter, we show that the modulation index is inversely correlated with DM, and can be generally described by a power law with an index of ∼−0.7 covering DMs from ∼10 to 1000 cm−3 pc. We present refractive time-scales and/or lower limits for a group of 42 pulsars. These often have values significantly different from theoretical expectations, indicating the complex nature of the ISM along individual lines of sight. In particular, local structures and non-Kolmogorov density fluctuations are likely playing important roles in the observed flux density variation of many of these pulsars.
ABSTRACT
The radio emission of pulsar B1451−68 contains two polarization modes of similar strength, which produce two clear orthogonal polarization angle tracks. When viewed on a Poincaré sphere, the ...emission is composed of two flux patches that rotate meridionally as a function of pulse longitude and pass through the Stokes V poles, which results in transitions between orthogonal polarization modes (OPMs). Moreover, the ratio of power in the patches is inversed once within the profile window. It is shown that the meridional circularization is caused by a coherent OPM transition (COMT) produced by a varying mode ratio at a fixed quarter-wave phase lag. The COMTs may be ubiquitous and difficult to detect in radio pulsar data, because they can leave no trace in polarized fractions and they are described by equation similar to the rotating vector model. The circularization, which coincides with flux minima at lower frequency, requires that profile components are formed by radiation with an oscillation phase that increases with longitude in steps of 90○ per component. The properties can be understood as an interference pattern involving two pairs of linear orthogonal modes (or two non-orthogonal elliptic waves). The frequency-dependent coherent superposition of coplanar oscillations can produce the minima in the pulse profile, and thereby the illusion of components as separate entities. The orthogonally polarized signal that is left after such negative interference explains the enhancement of polarization degree that is commonly observed in the minima between profile components.
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