Related papers: Gamma-ray pulsars: a gold mine
Gamma-ray observations have shown pulsars to be efficient converters of rotational energy into GeV photons and it is of wide-ranging interest to determine their contribution to the gamma-ray background. We arrive at flux predictions from…
Gamma rays reveal extreme, nonthermal conditions in the Universe. The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has been exploring the gamma-ray sky for more than four years, enabling a search for powerful transients like gamma-ray bursts, solar…
Identifying gamma-ray sources in the Galaxy is hampered by their poor localization, source confusion, and the large variety of potential emitters. Neutron stars and their environment offer various ways to power gamma-ray sources: pulsed…
Gamma rays constitute a privileged point of view for the study of the extreme Universe. Unlike charged cosmic rays, which are thought to have a common origin, gamma rays are not deflected by galactic and intergalactic magnetic fields. This…
Two classes of X-ray pulsars, the Anomalous X-ray Pulsars and the Soft Gamma-ray Repeaters, have been recognized in the last decade as the most promising candidates for being magnetars: isolated neutron stars powered by magnetic energy. I…
As the endpoints of massive star evolution, neutron stars are enigmatic celestial objects characterized by extremely dense and exotic nuclear matter, magnetospheres with positrons (antimatter), rapid rotation and ultra-strong magnetic…
Radio-loud neutron stars known as pulsars allow a wide range of experimental tests for fundamental physics, ranging from the study of super-dense matter to tests of general relativity and its alternatives. As a result, pulsars provide…
In this article, we revisit the gamma-ray emission observed from millisecond pulsars and globular clusters. Based on 5.6 years of data from the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope, we report gamma-ray spectra for 61 millisecond pulsars, finding…
A forefront area of research concerns the exploration of the properties of hadronic matter under extreme conditions of temperature and density, and the determination of the equation of state--the relation between pressure, temperature and…
High-energy photons are a powerful probe for astrophysics and for fundamental physics in extreme conditions. During the recent years, our knowledge of the most violent phenomena in the Universe has impressively progressed thanks to the…
The observational properties of Soft Gamma Repeaters and Ano\-malous X-ray Pulsars (SGR/AXP) indicate to necessity of the energy source different from a rotational energy of a neutron star. The model, where the source of the energy is…
We review the observational properties of the class of young neutron stars known as "anomalous X-ray pulsars," emphasizing the tremendous progress that has been made in recent years, and explain why these objects, like the "soft gamma…
Ultramagnetized neutron stars or magnetars are magnetically powered neutron stars. Their strong magnetic fields dominate the physical processes in their crusts and their surroundings. The past few years have seen several advances in our…
Radio pulsars are unique laboratories for a wide range of physics and astrophysics. Understanding how they are created, how they evolve and where we find them in the Galaxy, with or without binary companions, is highly constraining of…
We perform global particle-in-cell simulations of pulsar magnetospheres including pair production, ion extraction from the surface, frame dragging corrections, and high energy photon emission and propagation. In the case of oblique…
Gamma-ray bursts are the most luminous explosions in the Universe, whose origin and mechanism is the focus of intense interest. They appear connected to supernova remnants from massive stars or the merger of their remnants, and their…
Both neutron stars and strange stars are capable of supporting fast rotations observed in pulsars. On the basis of this it has been argued that some of the pulsars could be strange stars. We investigate whether strange stars can sustain…
Thermal surface emissions have now been detected from more than a dozen isolated neutron stars, including radio pulsars, radio-quiet neutron stars and magnetars. These detections can potentially provide important information on the interior…
Pulsars are known to be efficient accelerators that produce copious amounts of relativistic particles and inject them into the Galactic medium. The radiation emitted by such a pulsar wind can be seen from radio through gamma-rays as a…
Magnetars are young and highly magnetized neutron stars which display a wide array of X-ray activity including short bursts, large outbursts, giant flares and quasi-periodic oscillations, often coupled with interesting timing behavior…