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Title

Polarization observations of 20 millisecond pulsars

Author(s)

Yan, W. M.;  Manchester, R. N.;  van Straten, W.;  Reynolds, J. E.;  Hobbs, G.;  Wang, N.;  Bailes, M.;  Bhat, N. D. R.;  Burke-Spolaor, S.;  Champion, D. J.;  Coles, W. A.;  Hotan, A. W.;  Khoo, J.;  Oslowski, S.;  Sarkissian, J. M.;  Verbiest, J. P. W.;  Yardley, D. R. B.

Abstract

Polarization profiles are presented for 20 millisecond pulsars that are being observed as part of the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array project. The observations used the Parkes multibeam receiver with a central frequency of 1369MHz and the Parkes digital filter bank pulsar signal-processing system PDFB2. Because of the large total observing time, the summed polarization profiles have very high signal-to-noise ratios and show many previously undetected profile features. 13 of the 20 pulsars show emission over more than half of the pulse period. Polarization variations across the profiles are complex, and the observed position angle variations are generally not in accord with the rotating vector model for pulsar polarization. Nevertheless, the polarization properties are broadly similar to those of normal (non-millisecond) pulsars, suggesting that the basic radio emission mechanism is the same in both classes of pulsar. The results support the idea that radio emission from millisecond pulsars originates high in the pulsar magnetosphere, probably close to the emission regions for high-energy X-ray and gamma-ray emission. Rotation measures were obtained for all 20 pulsars, eight of which had no previously published measurements.

Publication type

Journal article

Research centre

Swinburne University of Technology. Faculty of Information and Communication Technologies. Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing

Source

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 414, no. 3 (Jul 2011), pp. 2087-2100

Publication year

2011

FOR Code(s)

0201 Astronomical and Space Sciences

Keyword(s)

Polarization;  Pulsars;  Radio continuum;  Stars

Publisher

Wiley-Blackwell Publishing

ISSN

0035-8711

Publisher URL

http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2966.2011.18522.x

Copyright

Copyright © 2011 The Authors. Journal compilation copyright © 2011 Royal Astronomical Society. The accepted manuscript is reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. The definitive publication is available at www.interscience.wiley.com.

Research Projects

Precision pulsar timing and its applications, Australian Research Council grant number FF0348478
Gravitational wave detection through millisecond pulsar timing, Australian Research Council grant number DP0878388

Full text

Peer reviewed