Γ-ray Pulsars Research Articles

The contribution of millisecond pulsars to the Galactic cosmic-ray lepton spectrum

Pulsars are believed to be sources of relativistic electrons and positrons. The abundance of detections of γ-ray millisecond pulsars by Fermi Large Area Telescope coupled with their light curve characteristics that imply copious pair production in their magnetospheres, motivated us to investigate this old pulsar population as a source of Galactic electrons and positrons and their contribution to the enhancement in cosmic-ray positron flux at GeV energies. We use a population synthesis code to predict the source properties (number, position, and power) of the present-day Galactic millisecond pulsars, taking into account the latest Fermi and radio observations to calibrate the model output. Next, we simulate pair cascade spectra from these pulsars using a model that invokes an offset-dipole magnetic field. We assume free escape of the pairs from the pulsar environment. We then compute the cumulative spectrum of transported electrons and positrons at Earth, following their diffusion and energy losses as they propagate through the Galaxy. Our results indicate that the predicted particle flux increases for non-zero offsets of the magnetic polar caps. Comparing our predicted local interstellar spectrum and positron fraction to measurements by AMS-02, PAMELA, and Fermi, we find that millisecond pulsars are only modest contributors at a few tens of GeV, after which this leptonic spectral component cuts off. The positron fraction is therefore only slightly enhanced above 10GeV relative to a background flux model. This implies that alternative sources such as young, nearby pulsars and supernova remnants should contribute additional primary positrons within the astrophysical scenario.

Crab pulsar spectrum: A non-extensive approach

Non extensive statistical physics has been applied to various problems in physics including astrophysics. In this paper we explore the possibility of using non-extensive approach to explain the recently observed pulsed γ-ray from Crab pulsar above 100GeV observed by VERITAS γ-ray telescope.

Tachyonic quantum densities of relativistic electron plasmas: Cherenkov spectra of γ-ray pulsars

Abstract Tachyonic Cherenkov radiation in second quantization can explain the subexponential spectral tails of GeV γ-ray pulsars (Crab pulsar, PSR J1836+5925, PSR J0007+7303, PSR J2021+4026) recently observed with the Fermi-LAT, VERITAS and MAGIC telescopes. The radiation is emitted by a thermal ultra-relativistic electron plasma. The Cherenkov effect is derived from a Maxwell–Proca field with negative mass-square in a dispersive spacetime. The frequency variation of the tachyon mass results in exp ( − β ˆ ω 1 − ρ ) attenuation of the asymptotic Cherenkov energy flux, where β ˆ is a decay constant related to the electron temperature and ρ is the frequency scaling exponent of the tachyon mass. An exponent in the range 0 ρ 1 can reproduce the observed subexponential decay of the energy flux. For the Crab pulsar, we find ρ = 0.81 ± 0.02 , inferred from the substantially weaker-than-exponential decay of its spectral tail measured by MAGIC over an extended energy range. The scaling exponent ρ determines whether the group velocity of the tachyonic γ-rays is sub- or superluminal.

Mechanism of generation of runaway electrons in a lightning leader

A mechanism is analyzed of the electric field enhancement in a lightning leader up to the level permitting runaway of low-energy electrons. The ionization wave propagation in the preionized domain in front of the leader makes it possible to overcome the limitation imposed on the field intensity by transversal expansion of the leader front. By means of numerical simulations, it is demonstrated that, at the final stage of formation of a new leader step, generation of an electric field is possible in the channels of the streamer zone ahead of the new step with intensity sufficient for electron runaway and, consequently, for producing the X-ray and γ-ray pulses observed in correlation with the lightning leader steps.

Erratum to: “On Amplifications of Photonuclear Neutron Flux in Thunderstorm Atmosphere and Possibility of Detecting Them”

The reliability of communications reporting observations of neutron flux enhancements in thunderstorm atmosphere is analyzed. The analysis is motivated by the fact that the employed gas-discharge counters on the basis of reactions 3He(n, p)3H and 10B(n; 4He, γ)7Li detect not only neutrons but any penetrating radiations. Photonuclear reactions are capable of accounting for the possible amplifications of neutron flux in thunder-storm atmosphere since in correlation with thunderstorms γ-ray flashes were repeatedly observed with spectra extending high above the threshold of photonuclear reactions in air. By numerical simulations, it was demonstrated that γ-ray pulses detected in thunderstorm atmosphere are capable of generating photonuclear neutrons in numbers sufficient to be detected even at sea level.

A SURVEY FOR Hα PULSAR BOW SHOCKS

We report on a survey for Hα bow shock emission around nearby γ-detected energetic pulsars. This survey adds three Balmer-dominated neutron star bow shocks to the six previously confirmed examples. In addition to the shock around Fermi pulsar PSR J1741−2054, we now report Hα structures around two additional γ-ray pulsars, PSR J2030+4415 and PSR J1509−5850. These are the first known examples of Hα nebulae with pre-ionization halos. With new measurements, we show that a simple analytic model can account for the angular size and flux of the bow shocks' apices. The latter, in particular, provides a new pulsar probe and indicates large moments of inertia and smaller distances than previously assumed in several cases. In particular, we show that the re-measured PSR J0437−4715 shock flux implies I = (1.7 ± 0.2) × 1045/(fH isin i) g cm2. We also derive a distance d ≈ 0.72 kpc for the γ-ray only pulsar PSR J2030+4415 and revised distances for PSRs J1959+2048 (1.4 kpc) and J2555+6535 (∼1 kpc), smaller than the conventional DM-estimated values. Finally, we report upper limits for 94 additional LAT pulsars. An estimate of the survey sensitivity indicates that for a warm neutral medium filling factor ϕWNM ∼ 0.3 there should be a total of approximately nine Hα bow shocks in our LAT-targeted survey; given that seven such objects are now known, a much larger ϕWNM seems problematic.

Microdipole electromagnetic radiation induced by a high-power γ-ray pulse

The microdipole mechanism of electromagnetic emission induced by a high-power γ-ray pulse is theoretically studied. The model of electromagnetic field generation has been developed and investigated. It is shown that conductivity affects the microdipole component of radiation only slightly, and the amplitude and waveform of the detected signal do not depend on the duration of the γ-ray pulse.

Neutron/gamma discrimination employing the power spectrum analysis of the signal from the liquid scintillator BC501A

A digital method for the discrimination of neutron and γ-ray events based on analyzing the power spectra of the signals from a BC501A liquid scintillator detector was presented and investigated in this paper. In order to evaluate the feasibility of this novel pulse shape discrimination method, a 5GSample/s 8-bit oscilloscope was used to acquire waveforms for n/γ discrimination. Furthermore, the performance of this novel n/γ discrimination method was compared with that of a widely used method called the reference-pulses method which averaged a large number of neutron and γ-ray pulses to obtain the reference-pulse as the criterion for n/γ discrimination. The results showed that the proposed method performed well over the reference-pulses method, which was verified by the considerable decrease in the error rate of n/γ discrimination and the improvement of the Figure of Merit.

Ultrashort-pulse MeV positron beam generation from intense Compton-scattering γ-ray source driven by laser wakefield acceleration

AbstractIntense Compton-scattering γ-ray radiation driven by laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) and generation of ultrashort positron beams are investigated by Monte Carlo simulation. Using an LWFA driven GeV electron bunch and a 45 femtosecond, 90 mJ/pulse, and 10 Hz Ti:Sapphire laser for driving the Compton scattering, fs γ-ray pulses were generated. The latter have a flux of ≥108/s, peak brightness of ≥1020 photons/(s mm2 mrad2 0.1% bandwidth), and photon energy of 5.9 to 23.2 MeV. The γ-ray pulses then impinge on a thin high-Z target. More than 107 positrons/s in the form of sub-100 fs pulses at several MeV can be produced. Such ultrashort positron pulses can be useful as the pump-probe type positron annihilation spectroscopy as well as in other applications.

Fermi-LAT searches for γ-ray pulsars

AbstractThe Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi satellite is the first γ-ray instrument to discover pulsars directly via their γ-ray emission. Roughly one third of the 117 γ-ray pulsars detected by the LAT in its first three years were discovered in blind searches of γ-ray data and most of these are undetectable with current radio telescopes. I review some of the key LAT results and highlight the specific challenges faced in γ-ray (compared to radio) searches, most of which stem from the long, sparse data sets and the broad, energy-dependent point-spread function (PSF) of the LAT. I discuss some ongoing LAT searches for γ-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs) and γ-ray pulsars around the Galactic Center. Finally, I outline the prospects for future γ-ray pulsar discoveries as the LAT enters its extended mission phase, including advantages of a possible modification of the LAT observing profile.

TeV cosmic-ray electrons from millisecond pulsars

AbstractRecent γ-ray observations by the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope suggest that the γ-ray millisecond pulsar (MSP) population is separated into two subclasses with respect to pair multiplicity. Here, we calculate the cosmic-ray electron/positron spectra from MSPs. Based on the assumption of equipartition in the pulsar-wind region, the typical energy of electrons/positrons ejected by an MSP with pair multiplicity of the order of unity is ~50 TeV. In this case, we find that a large peak in the 10-50 TeV energy range would be observed in the cosmic-ray electron/positron spectrum. Even if the fraction of pair-starved MSPs is 10%, a large peak would be detectable with future missions such as CALET and CTA.

X-ray follow-up observations of the twoγ-ray pulsars PSR J1459–6053 and PSR J1614–2230

Aims. We have observed two newly detected γ-ray pulsars, PSR J1459−6053 and PSR J1614−2230, in the X-ray domain with XMM-Newton to try to enlarge the sample of pulsars for which multi-wavelength data exist. We use these data with the aim of understanding the pulsar emission mechanisms of these pulsars. Methods. We analysed the X-ray spectra to determine whether the emission emanates from the neutron star surface (thermal emission) or from the magnetosphere (non-thermal emission) and compared this to the region in the magnetosphere in which the γ-ray emission is generated. Furthermore, we compared the phase-folded X-ray lightcurves with those in the γ-ray and, where possible, radio domains, to elicit additional information on the emission sites. Results. J1459−6053 shows X-ray spectra that are best fitted with a power law model with a photon index Γ = 2.10+1.24 −0.85. The γ-ray data suggest that either the slot gap or the outer gap model may be best to describe the emission from this pulsar. Analysis of the X-ray lightcurve folded on the γ-ray ephemeris shows modulation at the 3.7σ level in the 1.0−4.5 keV domain. Possible alignment of the main γ-ray and X-ray peaks also supports the interpretation that the emission in the two energy domains emanates from similar regions. The millisecond pulsar J1614−2230 exhibits an X-ray spectrum with a substantial thermal component, where the best-fitting spectral model is either two blackbodies, with kT = 0.15+0.04 −0.04 and 0.88+2.54 −0.54 keV or a blackbody with similar temperature to the previous cooler component, kT = 0.13+0.04 −0.02 keV and a power law component with a photon index Γ = 1.25+2.30 −1.75. The cooler blackbody component is likely to originate from the hot surface at the polar cap. Analysis of the X-ray lightcurve folded on the radio ephemeris shows modulation at the 4.0σ level in the 0.4−3.0 keV domain.

Pulsars in gamma rays: What Fermi is teaching us

AbstractThe 2nd Fermi-LAT pulsar catalog includes 117 γ-ray pulsars, of which roughly one third are millisecond pulsars (MSPs) while the remaining two thirds split evenly into young radio-loud and radio-quiet pulsars. Although this large population will enable future, detailed studies of emission mechanisms and the evolution of the underlying neutron star population, some nearly-universal properties are already clear and unequivocal. We discuss some of these aspects below, including the altitude of the γ-ray emission site, the shape of the γ-ray spectrum, and the implications of the latter for the radiation mechanism.

Pulsed γ-ray emission from magnetar 1E 2259+586

AbstractAnomalous X-ray pulsars (AXPs) are thought to be magnetars which are young isolated neutron stars with extremely strong magnetic fields of >1014 Gauss. Their tremendous magnetic fields inferred from the spin parameters provide a huge energy reservoir to power the observed X-ray emission. High-energy emission above 0.3 MeV has never been detected despite intensive search. Here, we present the possible Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) detection of γ-ray pulsations above 200 MeV from the AXP, 1E 2259+586, which puts the current theoretical models of γ-ray emission mechanisms of magnetars into challenge. We speculate that the high-energy γ-rays originate from the outer magnetosphere of the magnetar.

Mitigation technique for use of CMOS image sensors in megajoule class laser radiative environment

Presented is a new mitigation technique to improve the radiation tolerance of CMOS image sensors to the radiation constraints associated to the fusion by inertial confinement experiments at megajoule class laser facilities. Using the global reset mode, results acquired at the OMEGA facility show the efficiency of this technique to reduce by more than 70% the number of white pixels induced by the mixed 14 MeV neutron and γ-ray pulse.

Recent Approach in Radiation Chemistry toward Material and Biological Science

In the present Perspective, a recent approach in radiation chemistry is summarized. By employing radiation chemical methods, such as γ-ray radiolysis and pulse radiolysis, powerful oxidative and reductive species can be generated to initiate various reactions. Thus, radiation chemical methods are applicable to various systems in a wide variety of fields and are not restricted to basic radical or radical ion chemistry. For example, our research group has employed radiation chemical methods to elucidate the mechanisms of various phenomena. Here, radiation chemical investigations on the charge delocalization process, excited radical ions, photocatalytic systems, emitting devices, and biological systems are introduced as examples of the wide applicability of radiation chemistry. Radiation chemical methods should be useful for a wide variety of researchers in the future as well.

Fermi γ-Ray Pulsars: Spectral and Generation Order Parameters

We examine the theory of generation order parameters. Three kinds of generation order parameters are introduced, which describe the production of high-energy γ photons in a cascade process scenario. We find a correlation between the average power-law photon index Γ and spin-down rate Ṗ in 38 common FERMI γ-ray pulsars, and find that the third generation order parameter, which implies that the magnetic field may have the most significant effect on the high-energy γ photon absorption in the cascade processes, is the best one. The statistical work shows that the theory of generation order parameters can be applied to describe the the γ-ray pulsar radiation mechanisms in the cascade processes.

Streaking at high energies with electrons and positrons

A detection scheme for characterizing high-energy γ-ray pulses down to the zeptosecond timescale is proposed. In contrast to existing attosecond metrology techniques, our method is not limited by atomic shell physics and therefore capable of breaking the MeV photon energy and attosecond time-scale barriers. It is inspired by attosecond streak imaging, but builds upon the high-energy process of electron–positron pair production in vacuum through the collision of a test pulse with an intense laser pulse. We discuss necessary conditions to render the scheme feasible in the upcoming Extreme Light Infrastructure laser facility.

Collective Spectra of Resonant Inverse Compton Scattering of Assembly of Relativistic Electrons in Intense Magnetic Fields*

The resonant inverse Compton scattering (RICS) of relativistic electrons in intense magnetic fields is an efficient mechanism for producing the highenergy γ-rays. In our previous work it is suggested that the early-stage γ-ray radiation of γ-ray bursts (GRBs) may be mainly produced by this mechanism. By using this mechanism, some puzzles in the study of GRBs can be clarified, e.g., the origin of the Amati relation obtained from the statistics of observations, the formation of the observed two-segment (broken) power-law spectra, the relevant “deadline problem”, the polarization property, etc. Herein our discussion will be focused on the formation of the broken power-law spectra. Based on the formula of the RICS spectral power of individual fast electrons, we have derived the simplified analytical formula of the collective RICS radiation spectrum (RICS spectral luminosity) produced by the assembly of relativistic electrons in an intense magnetic field when they pass through the ambient low-frequency radiation field, and applied it to several typical low-frequency radiation fields (e.g., the black-body radiation field, power-law radiation field and thermal bremsstrahlung field) around the central neutron star, for the convenience of comparison with the observed spectra. Our calculations indicate that the RICS radiation mechanism has a very high efficiency in the hard X-ray and γ-ray wavebands, if the matching condition (i.e., the condition approximate to resonance) is satisfied, and that independent of the ambient radiation field, the produced spectra are commonly the two-segment power-law spectra. Additionally, it is suggested that the RICS mechanism might be an ideal highly-efficient radiation mechanism for the high-energy emissions (hard X-rays and γ-rays) of the GRBs, soft γ-ray repeated bursts (SGRs) and γ-ray pulsars (GRPs).

Population study for γ-ray pulsars with the outer-gap model - III. Radiation characteristics and viewing geometry

We have performed a Monte-Calro simulation for Galactic population of pulsars and for the $\gamma$-ray observations. We apply outer gap model for the $\gamma$-ray emission process, and study the radiation characteristics as a function of the magnetic inclination angle $(\alpha)$ and the Earth viewing angle ($\zeta$). In our model, the $\gamma$-ray flux and the spectral cut-off energy tend to decrease as the inclination and viewing angles deviate from $90^{\circ}$. The emerging spectrum above 100 MeV becomes soft with a photon index $p\sim 1.8-2$ for $\zeta \rightarrow 90^{\circ}$ and $p\sim 1.2-1.3$ for $\zeta \ll 90^{\circ}$. Our simulation predicts that the pulsars with larger inclination angles ($\alpha=70-90^{\circ}$) and larger viewing angles ($\zeta=70-90^{\circ}$) have been preferentially detected by the $Fermi$ $\gamma$-ray telescope, and hence the observed pulse profiles of the $\gamma$-ray pulsars have the double peak structure rather than single peak. In the simulation, most $\gamma$-ray millisecond pulsars are categorized as the radio-quiet $\gamma$-ray pulsars, because its radio fluxes are under the sensitivities of the major radio surveys. Even we drastically increase the radio sensitivity by a factor of ten, the number of radio-selected millisecond pulsars detected by the $Fermi$ ten years observations is still much less than the expected $\gamma$-ray-selected millisecond pulsars, indicating the radio-quiet millisecond pulsars must contribute to the $Fermi$ unidentified sources and/or the $\gamma$-ray background radiations. The Unique radiation properties of the low-efficient $\gamma$-ray pulsar, PSR J0659+1414, can be explained by the present our gap model with a viewing geometry of $\alpha\sim \zeta=40^{\circ}-50^{\circ}$.