Scintillation Arcs in Pulsar B0450–18

Abstract

Abstract We report on Green Bank Telescope observations of interstellar scintillation from the pulsar B0450−18 at 340 and 825 MHz, revealing prominent arcs in the secondary spectra at both frequencies. The arcs are successfully modeled by one-dimensional angular brightness distributions, estimated by two independent techniques. The distributions do not follow the expected shape for a Kolmogorov plasma density spectrum, and their overall angular widths follow a scaling law, versus frequency, that is slightly slower than the inverse square law expected from plasma dispersion. They also exhibit discrete peaks that are the cause of the occasional reverse sub-arcs. Over a narrow (5%) frequency range these peaks do not participate in the overall spreading, having angular positions that are fixed on the sky. However, the peaks do evolve over a wider range of frequencies and cannot be traced from 825 to 340 MHz. Our conclusions add further evidence for a widespread distribution of highly localized regions of interstellar plasma with small-scale structure that is either elongated or flattened.