Glitch Events Research Articles

Pulsar Glitch Activities: The Spin Parameters Approach

Glitch activity refers to the mean increase in pulsar spin frequency per year due to rotational glitches. It is an important tool for studying super-nuclear matter using neutron star interiors as templates. Glitch events are typically observed in the spin frequency (ν) and frequency derivative ( ν̇ ) of pulsars. The rate of glitch recurrence decreases as the pulsar ages, and the activity parameter is usually measured by linear regression of cumulative glitches over a given period. This method is effective for pulsars with multiple regular glitch events. However, due to the scarcity of glitch events and the difficulty of monitoring all known pulsars, only a few have multiple records of glitch events. This limits the use of the activity parameter in studying neutron star interiors with multiple pulsars. In this study, we examined the relationship between the activity parameters and pulsar spin parameters (spin frequency, frequency derivative, and pulsar characteristic age). We found that a quadratic function provides a better fit for the relationship between activity parameters and spin parameters than the commonly used linear functions. Using this information, we were able to estimate the activity parameters of other pulsars that do not have records of glitches. Our analysis shows that the relationship between the estimated activity parameters and pulsar spin parameters is consistent with that of the observed activity parameters in the ensemble of pulsars.

Pulsar glitches from quantum vortex networks

Neutron stars or pulsars are very rapidly rotating compact stars with extremely high density. One of the unsolved long-standing problems of these enigmatic celestial bodies is the origin of pulsars’ glitches, i.e., the sudden rapid deceleration in the rotation speed of neutron stars. Although many glitch events have been reported, there is no consensus on the microscopic mechanism responsible for them. One of the important characterizations of the glitches is the scaling law P(E)∼E-α\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$P(E) \\sim E^{-\\alpha }$$\\end{document} of the probability distribution for a glitch with energy E. Here, we reanalyse the accumulated up-to-date observation data to obtain the exponent α≈0.88\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\alpha \\approx 0.88$$\\end{document} for the scaling law, and propose a simple microscopic model that naturally deduces this scaling law without any free parameters. Our model explains the appearance of these glitches in terms of the presence of quantum vortex networks arising at the interface of two different kinds of superfluids in the core of neutron stars; a p-wave neutron superfluid in the inner core which interfaces with the s-wave neutron superfluid in the outer core, where each integer vortex in the s-wave superfluid connects to two half-quantized vortices in the p-wave superfluid through structures called “boojums”.

An investigation of the state changes of PSR J2021+4026 and the Vela pulsar

ABSTRACT We report on long-term evolution of gamma-ray flux and spin-down rate of two bright gamma-ray pulsars, PSR J2021+4026 and Vela (PSR J0835−4510). PSR J2021+4026 shows repeated state changes in gamma-ray flux and spin-down rate. We report two new state changes, a first one from a low gamma-ray flux to a high flux that occurred around MJD 58910, and a second one from high to low flux that occurred around MJD 59510. We find that the flux changes associated with these two state changes are smaller than those determined in the previous events, and the waiting time of the new state change from the high gamma-ray flux to low gamma-ray flux is significantly shorter than previous events. Since the waiting time-scale of the quasi-periodic state changes of PSR J2021+4026 is similar to the waiting time-scale of the glitch events of the Vela pulsar, we search for the state change of the gamma-ray emission of the Vela pulsar to investigate the possibility that the glitching process is the trigger of the state change of PSR J2021+4026. For the Vela pulsar, the flux of the radio pulses briefly decreased around the 2016 glitch, suggesting that the glitch may have affected the structure of the magnetosphere. Nevertheless, we could not find any significant change of the gamma-ray emission properties using 15 yr of Fermi-LAT data. Overall, it seems inconclusive that a glitch-like process similar to that occurred to the Vela pulsar triggers the structure change of the global magnetosphere and causes state changes of PSR J2021+4026. Further and deep investigations to clarify the mechanism of the mode change for PSR J2021+4026 are required.

Detection of 16 Small Glitches in Nine Pulsars

Pulsar timing measurements with a 26 m radio telescope at Nanshan between 2000 and 2014 were used to search for glitch events. The data span of nine pulsars ranges from 11.6 to 14.2 yr, and 16 new glitch events were identified in nine pulsars. Glitch parameters were determined through fitting the timing residuals data. All 16 glitches have a small fractional size. Six new glitches have been detected in PSR J1833−0827, making it another frequent glitching pulsar. Some of the 16 glitches may experience exponential or linear recovery, but it is unlikely for us to make further analyses with the large gap in the data set. All the glitch rates obtained from Nanshan are higher than that from Jodrell Bank Observatory. The small glitch size and high glitch rate could possibly attribute to the high observation cadence.

On the pulsar spin frequency derivatives and the glitch activity

The number of sudden spin-ups in radio pulsars known as pulsar glitches has increased over the years. Though a consensus has not been reached with regards to the actual cause of the phenomenon, the electromagnetic braking torque on the crust quantified via the magnitude of pulsar spin frequency first derivative, $ \dot{\nu} $ is a key factor in mechanisms put across toward the understanding of the underlying principles involved. The glitch size has been used to establish a quantity used to constrain the mean possible change in pulsar spin frequency $ (\nu) $ per year due to a glitch known as the `glitch activity'. Traditionally, the glitch activity parameter $ A_{g} $ is calculated from the cumulative glitch sizes in a pulsar at a certain observational time span. In this analysis, we test the possibility of of quantifying the $ A_{g} $ with the pulsars main spin frequency derivatives (i.e. $ \dot{\nu} $ and $\ddot{\nu} $). In this approach, the ratio of the frequency derivatives, i.e. $ |\ddot{\nu}|/\dot{\nu}^{2} $ is seen to constrains the glitch activity in radio pulsars. The glitch size is found to be independent of the magnitude of the ratio, however, based on the recorded glitch events, the lower end of $ |\ddot{\nu}|/\dot{\nu}^{2} $ distribution appear to have more glitches. The minimum inter-glitch time interval in the ensemble of pulsars scale with the ratio as $t_{g} \sim 3.35(|\ddot{\nu}|/\dot{\nu}^{2})^{0.23} $. The $ A_{g} $ quantified in this analysis supports the idea of neutron star inner-crust superfluid being the reservoir of momentum transferred during glitches. It suggests that the moment of inertia of the inner-crust to be at most 10 % of the entire neutron star moment of inertia.

Small glitches and other rotational irregularities of the Vela pulsar (Corrigendum)

Glitches are sudden increases in the rotation rate $\nu$ of neutron stars, which are thought to be driven by the neutron superfluid inside the star. The Vela pulsar presents a comparatively high rate of glitches, with 21 events reported since observations began in 1968. These are amongst the largest known glitches (17 of them have sizes $\Delta\nu/\nu\geq10^{-6}$) and exhibit very similar characteristics. This similarity, combined with the regularity with which large glitches occur, has turned Vela into an archetype of this type of glitching behaviour. The properties of its smallest glitches, on the other hand, are not clearly established. High-cadence observations of the Vela pulsar were taken between 1981 and 2005 at the Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory. An automated systematic search was carried out that investigated whether a significant change of spin frequency $\nu$ and/or the spin-down rate $\dot{\nu}$ takes place at any given time. We find two new glitches, with respective sizes $\Delta\nu/\nu$ of $(5.55\pm0.03)\times10^{-9}$ and $(38\pm4)\times10^{-9}$. In addition to these two glitch events, our study reveals numerous events of all possible signatures (i.e. combinations of $\Delta\nu$ and $\Delta\dot{\nu}$ signs), all of them small with $|\Delta\nu|/\nu<10^{-9}$, which contribute to the Vela timing noise. The Vela pulsar presents an under-abundance of small glitches compared to many other glitching pulsars, which appears genuine and not a result of observational biases. In addition to typical glitches, the smooth spin-down of the pulsar is also affected by an almost continuous activity that can be partially characterised by small step-like changes in $\nu$, $\dot{\nu,}$ or both. Simulations indicate that a continuous wandering of the rotational phase, following a red spectrum, could mimic such step-like changes in the timing residuals.

Small glitches and other rotational irregularities of the Vela pulsar

Context. Glitches are sudden increases in the rotation rate ν of neutron stars, which are thought to be driven by the neutron superfluid inside the star. The Vela pulsar presents a comparatively high rate of glitches, with 21 events reported since observations began in 1968. These are amongst the largest known glitches (17 of them have sizes Δν/ν ≥ 10−6) and exhibit very similar characteristics. This similarity, combined with the regularity with which large glitches occur, has turned Vela into an archetype of this type of glitching behaviour. The properties of its smallest glitches, on the other hand, are not clearly established. Aims. We explore the population of small-amplitude, rapid rotational changes in the Vela pulsar and determine the rate of occurrence and sizes of its smallest glitches. This will help advance our understanding of the actual distribution of glitch sizes and inter-glitch waiting times in this pulsar, which has implications for theoretical models of the glitch mechanism. Methods. High-cadence observations of the Vela pulsar were taken between 1981 and 2005 at the Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory. An automated systematic search was carried out that investigated whether a significant change of spin frequency ν and/or the spin-down rate ν̇ takes place at any given time. Results. We find two glitches that have not been reported before, with respective sizes Δν/ν of (5.55 ± 0.03) × 10−9 and (38 ± 4) × 10−9. The latter is followed by an exponential-like recovery with a characteristic timescale of 31 d. In addition to these two glitch events, our study reveals numerous events of all possible signatures (i.e. combinations of Δν and Δν̇ signs), all of them small with |Δν|/ν &lt; 10−9, which contribute to the Vela timing noise. Conclusions. The Vela pulsar presents an under-abundance of small glitches compared to many other glitching pulsars, which appears genuine and not a result of observational biases. In addition to typical glitches, the smooth spin-down of the pulsar is also affected by an almost continuous activity that can be partially characterised by small step-like changes in ν, ν̇ or both. Simulations indicate that a continuous wandering of the rotational phase, following a red spectrum, could mimic such step-like changes in the timing residuals.

How Massive Are the Superfluid Cores in the Crab and Vela Pulsars and Why Their Glitch-Events Are Accompanied with under and Overshootings?

The Crab and Vela are well-studied glitching pulsars and the data obtained sofar should enable us to test the reliability of models of their internal structures. Very recently it was proposed that glitching pulsars are embedded in bimetric spacetime: their incompressible superfluid cores (SuSu-cores) are embedded in flat spacetime, whereas the ambient compressible and dissipative media are enclosed in Schwarzschild spacetime. In this letter we apply this model to the Crab and Vela pulsars and show that a newly born pulsar initially of $1.25\text{M}_{\odot}$ and an embryonic SuSu-core of $0.029\text{M}_{\odot}$ could evolve into a \ARZL{Crab-like}\ARZR pulsar after 1000 years and into a \ARZL{Vela-like}\ARZR pulsar 10000 years later to finally fade away as an invisible dark energy object after roughly 10 Myr. Based thereon we infer that the Crab and the Vela pulsars should have SuSu-cores of $0.15\text{M}_{\odot}$ and $0.55\text{M}_{\odot}$, respectively. Futhermore, the under- and overshootings phenomena observed to accompany the glitch events of the Vela pulsar are rather a common phenomenon of glitching pulsars that can be well-explained within the framework of bimetric spacetime.

Alteration of the magnetosphere of the Vela pulsar during a glitch.

As pulsars lose energy, primarily in the form of magnetic dipole radiation, their rotation slows down accordingly. For some pulsars, this spin-down is interrupted by occasional abrupt spin-up events known as glitches 1 . A glitch is hypothesized to be a catastrophic release of pinned vorticity 2 that provides an exchange of angular momentum between the superfluid outer core and the crust. This is manifested by a minute alteration in the rotation rate of the neutron star and its co-rotating magnetosphere, which is revealed by an abrupt change in the timing of observed radio pulses. Measurement of the flux density, polarization and single-pulse arrival times of the glitch with high time resolution may reveal the equation of state of the crustal superfluid, its drag-to-lift ratio and the parameters thatdescribe its friction with the crust 3 . This has not hitherto been possible because glitch events happen unpredictably. Here we report single-pulse radio observations of a glitch in the Vela pulsar, which has a rotation frequency of 11.2 hertz. The glitch was detected on 2016 December 12 at 11:36 universal time, during continuous observations of the pulsar over a period of three years. We detected sudden changes in the pulse shape coincident with the glitch event: one pulse was unusually broad, the next pulse was missing (a 'null') and the following two pulses had unexpectedly low linear polarization. This sequence was followed by a 2.6-second interval during which pulses arrived later than usual, indicating that the glitch affects the magnetosphere.

Discovery of a glitch in the accretion-powered pulsar SXP 1062

We present timing analysis of the accretion powered pulsar SXP 1062, based on the observations of \textit{Swift}, \textit{XMM-Newton} and \textit{Chandra} satellites covering a time span of about 2 years. We obtain a phase coherent timing solution which shows that SXP 1062 has been steadily spinning down with a rate $-\,4.29(7) \times 10^{-14}$ Hz s$^{-1}$ leading to a surface magnetic field estimate of about $1.5 \times 10^{14}$ G. We also resolve the binary orbital motion of the system from X-ray data which confirms an orbital period of 656(2) days. On MJD 56834.5, a sudden change in pulse frequency occurs with $\Delta\nu = 1.28(5) \times 10^{-6} $ Hz, which indicates a glitch event. The fractional size of the glitch is $\Delta \nu / \nu \! \sim \! 1.37(6) \times 10^{-3}$ and SXP 1062 continues to spin-down with a steady rate after the glitch. A short X-ray outburst 25 days prior to the glitch does not alter the spin-down of the source; therefore the glitch should be associated with the internal structure of the neutron star. While glitch events are common for isolated pulsars, the glitch of SXP 1062 is the first confirmation of the observability of this type of events among accretion powered pulsars. Furthermore, the value of the fractional change of pulse frequency ensures that we discover the largest glitch reported up to now.

Characterizing the rotational irregularities of the Vela pulsar from 21 yr of phase-coherent timing

Pulsars show two classes of rotational irregularities that can be used to understand neutron-star interiors and magnetospheres: glitches and timing noise. Here we present an analysis of the Vela pulsar spanning nearly 21 yr of observation and including 8 glitches. We identify the relative pulse number of all of the observations between glitches, with the only pulse-number ambiguities existing over glitch events. We use the phase coherence of the timing solution to simultaneously model the timing noise and glitches in a Bayesian framework, allowing us to select preferred models for both. We find the glitches can be described using only permanent and transient changes in spin frequency, i.e., no step changes in frequency derivative. For all of the glitches, we only need two exponentially decaying changes in spin frequency to model the transient components. In contrast to previous studies, we find that the dominant transient components decay on a common $\approx$ 1300 d time scale, and that a larger fraction ( $\gtrsim 25\%$) of glitch amplitudes are associated with these transient components. We also detect shorter-duration transient components of $\approx$ 25 d, as previously observed, but are limited in sensitivity to events with shorter durations by the cadence of our observations. The timing noise is well described by a steep power-law process that is independent of the glitches and subdominant to the glitch recovery. The braking index is constrained to be $<$ 8 with 95% confidence. This methodology can be used to robustly measure the properties of glitches and timing noise in other pulsars.

Rotational behaviors and magnetic field evolution of radio pulsars

AbstractThe observed long‐term spin‐down evolution of isolated radio pulsars cannot be explained by the standard magnetic dipole radiation with a constant braking torque. However, how and why the torque varies remains still controversial, an outstanding problem in our understanding of neutron stars. We have constructed a phenomenological model of the evolution of surface magnetic fields of pulsars which contains a long‐term decay modulated by short‐term oscillations; a pulsar's spin is thus modified by its magnetic field evolution. The predictions of this model agree with the precisely measured spin evolution of several individual pulsars. The derived parameters suggest that the Hall drift and Hall waves in neutron star crusts are probably responsible for the long‐term change and short‐term quasi‐periodical oscillations, respectively. Many statistical properties of the timing noise of pulsars can well be reproduced with this model, including correlations and the distributions of the observed braking indices of the pulsars which span over a range of more than 100 millions. We have also presented a phenomenological model for the recovery processes of classical and slow glitches which can successfully model the observed slow and classical glitch events without biases. (© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &amp; Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Statistical Study of Neutron Star Glitches

Neutron star glitches; spanning a period of 42 years of pulsar timing were studied. These glitches are from Radio, X-ray, Anomalous X-ray and Milliseconds Pulsars. Radio Pulsars dominates the glitch events, contributing 87% of the glitches. Pulsars of characteristic age bracket 103 to 105 yrs dominated the glitch events, at a rate of 5.2 glitches per year per pulsar. Pulsar of the above age bracket exhibits large size glitches compared to others. A large frequency spin-up (△v) is generally associated with large frequency derivative jump (△v ̇). The distribution of the glitch magnitude (△v/v) is bimodal reaffirming dual glitch mechanism, but that of spin-up (△v) is tending towards multi-modal. Moreover, glitches in Vela pulsar and PSR J0537-6910 showed strong elasticity of the objects, suggesting that the interiors of these objects are in thermal equilibrium. Glitches from PSR J1740-3015 and PSR J1341-6220 appeared to occur in groups, suggesting that their interior fluid is switching between two phases. We discussed the glitch activity of young pulsars in terms of vortex creep model.

A connection between radio state changing and glitch activity in PSR J0742−2822

PSR J0742-2822 exhibits two distinct emission states that are identified by discrete changes in the observed pulse profile. These changes have previously been shown to correlate with changes in the derivative of the pulse frequency. In this paper, we use observations with the Parkes radio telescope at a centre frequency of 1369 and 3100 MHz to produce high phase resolution polarisation profiles for the two modes and perform a detailed study of the correlation between observed pulse shape and spin-down rate. We find no correlation for at least 200 days prior to a glitch in the pulsar at MJD 55022, following which the correlation becomes strong. This suggests a link between the emission state switching phenomenon and glitch events. We discuss the possibility that emission state switching is driven by the interaction between the magnetosphere and the interior of the neutron star.

An analysis of the timing irregularities for 366 pulsars

We provide an analysis of timing irregularities observed for 366 pulsars. Observations were obtained using the 76-m Lovell radio telescope at the Jodrell Bank Observatory over the past 36 years. These data sets have allowed us to carry out the first large-scale analysis of pulsar timing noise over time-scales of >10 yr, with multiple observing frequencies and for a large sample of pulsars. Our sample includes both normal and recycled pulsars. The timing residuals for the pulsars with the smallest characteristic ages are shown to be dominated by the recovery from glitch events, whereas the timing irregularities seen for older pulsars are quasi-periodic. We emphasize that previous models that explained timing residuals as a low-frequency noise process are not consistent with observation.

Searches for gravitational waves associated with pulsar glitches using a coherent network algorithm

Pulsar glitches are a potential source of gravitational waves for current and future interferometric gravitational wave detectors. Some pulsar glitch events were observed by radio and x-ray telescopes during the fifth LIGO science run. It is expected that glitches from these same pulsars should also be seen in the future. We carried out Monte Carlo simulations to estimate the sensitivity of possible gravitational wave signals associated with a pulsar glitch using a coherent network analysis method. We show the detection efficiency and evaluate the reconstruction accuracy of gravitational waveforms using a matched filter analysis on the estimated gravitational waveforms from the coherent analysis algorithm.

Pulsar Timing Noise

Pulsar timing techniques allow a pulsar's rotational, astrometric and binary parameters to be measured to high precision. Any features that remain in the timing residuals after fitting for the expected pulsar parameters are suggestive of unmodelled physics such as binary companions, free precession or glitch events. In this paper we provide an overview of the features observed in the timing residuals that collectively are referred to as ``pulsar timing noise''. We use results obtained from the literature and from the Jodrell Bank observatory archive of timing residuals.

The Big Glitcher: The Rotation History of PSR J0537−6910

We report the results of an extensive monitoring campaign of PSR 50537-6910, the 16 ms pulsar in the Large Magellanic Cloud, using data acquired with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. The spin evolution of this pulsar is found to experience extreme episodic discontinuities in its spin-down rate during the 2.6 year campaign. The rate of occurance of these timing glitches is 2.3 per year, comparable to the highest seen for any pulsar. The mean glitch amplitude produced a fraction change in the frequency of Delta(nu)/nu = 0.36 x l0(exp -6) and in the frequency derivative of Delta(dot nu)/dot nu = 3 x 10(exp -4). Despite this prodigous timing activity we are able to derive a phase connected timing solution between glitch events with an average spin-down rate of -1.9743 x 10(exp 10) Hz/s. The integrated effect of the glitches in dot nu was so large that the apparent characteristic age of the pulsar (-nu/2dot nu) decreased significantly during the campaign. We discuss the implications of a large glitch activity and high braking index on the spin evolution of young pulsars.

Search for non-Gaussian events in the data of the VIRGO E4 engineering run

This work is a first attempt to search for glitch events in the data of the VIRGO Central Interferometer (CITF). In the first step, using simple algorithms, we searched for strong glitches in the interferometer's output photodiodes signals over the three days of data of the last engineering run. In the second step, we focused on 10 hours of data taken when the interferometer was locked and stable. The events found in the dark-fringe signal during this period are all within 3 rms of the mean output value of each algorithm and are, in some cases, linked to a beat between the powerline 50 Hz contamination and a 43.7 Hz line that comes from injection-system components. The main conclusions are that, at this level of analysis, the algorithms used have found no strong glitch-like events in the dark-fringe signal of VIRGO and that removing spectral lines like the 50 Hz is essential to further investigation.

SWS-Detector Glitch Effect Correction

We describe how the ISO-SWS (Infrared Space Observatory – Short Wavelength Spectrometer) software packages detect various glitch events i.e. high energy particle hits effecting the SWS detectors. A rough classification of glitch types is given. The events cause an instantaneous change in the slope of the SWS detector read outs followed by a distortion of the further samples, so called glitch tails. As a consequence the S/N ratio and photometric accuracy are reduced.Different strategies, how to remove the resulting distortion of the detectorread-out-ramp after a hit, are presented. The methods of the basic SWS software packages, the Pipeline and Interactive Analysis, will be discussed. The Pipeline has to treat glitch effects automatically. The Interactive Analysis system provides the user with a comfortable Graphical User Interface (GUI) for Trend Analysis, detailed analysis of certain glitches and the testing of new algorithms.