Xmm-Newton X-Ray Detection of the High-Magnetic-Field Radio Pulsar PSR B1916+14

Using observations made with the XMM-Newton Observatory, we report the first X-ray detection of the high-magnetic-field radio pulsar PSR B1916+14. We show that the X-ray spectrum of the pulsar can be well fitted with an absorbed blackbody with temperature in the range of 0.08-0.23 keV, or a neutron-...

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Published inThe Astrophysical journal Vol. 704; no. 2; pp. 1321 - 1326
Main Authors Zhu, Weiwei, Kaspi, Victoria M, Gonzalez, Marjorie E, Lyne, Andrew G
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States IOP Publishing 20.10.2009
Subjects
ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
BARYONS
COSMIC RADIO SOURCES
DETECTION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
FERMIONS
HADRONS
HYDROGEN
MAGNETIC FIELDS
NEUTRON STARS
NEUTRONS
NONMETALS
NUCLEONS
PULSARS
RADIATION DETECTION
SPECTRA
STARS
X-RAY DETECTION
X-RAY SPECTRA
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Summary:Using observations made with the XMM-Newton Observatory, we report the first X-ray detection of the high-magnetic-field radio pulsar PSR B1916+14. We show that the X-ray spectrum of the pulsar can be well fitted with an absorbed blackbody with temperature in the range of 0.08-0.23 keV, or a neutron-star hydrogen atmosphere model with best-fit effective temperature of ~0.10 keV, higher than expected from fast cooling models. The origin of the likely thermal emission is not well constrained by our short observation and is consistent with initial cooling or return-current heating. We found no pulsations in these data and set a 1 Delta *s upper limit on the pulsed fraction in the 0.1-2 keV band of ~0.7. Implications of these results for our understanding of the different observational properties of isolated neutron stars are discussed.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
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ISSN:0004-637X
1538-4357
DOI:10.1088/0004-637X/704/2/1321