Testing a stochastic acceleration model of pulsar wind nebulae: Early evolution of a wind nebula associated with SN 1986J
Abstract
Over three thousand pulsars have been discovered, but none have been confirmed to be younger than a few hundred years. Observing a pulsar after a supernova explosion will help us understand the properties of newborn ones, including their capability to produce gamma-ray bursts and fast radio bursts. Here, the possible youngest pulsar wind nebula (PWN) at the center of the SN 1986J remnant is studied. We demonstrate that the 5 GHz flux of 'PWN 1986J', increasing with time, is consistent with a stochastic acceleration model of PWNe developed to explain the flat radio spectrum of the Crab Nebula. We obtain an acceleration time-scale of electrons/positrons and a decay time-scale of the turbulence responsible for the stochastic acceleration as about 10 and 70 years, respectively. Our findings suggest that efficient stochastic acceleration and rising radio/submm light curves are characteristic signatures of the youngest PWNe. Follow-up observations of decades-old supernovae within a few tens of Mpc, including SN 1986J, are encouraged to reveal the origin of the flat radio spectrum of PWNe.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2308.08809,
title = {Testing a stochastic acceleration model of pulsar wind nebulae: Early evolution of a wind nebula associated with SN 1986J},
author = {Shuta J. Tanaka and Kazumi Kashiyama},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2308.08809},
year = {2023}
}
Comments
Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 8 pages, 2 figures and 1 table