Related papers: Dark neutron stars
X-ray emission is a common feature of all varieties of isolated neutron stars (INS) and, thanks to the advent of sensitive instruments with good spectroscopic, timing, and imaging capabilities, X-ray observations have become an essential…
Modifications to polar-gap models for pulsars are discussed for the case where the surface magnetic field, $B_\S$, of the neutron star is strong. For $B\ga4\times10^8\rm\,T$, the curvature $\gamma$-quanta emitted tangentially to the curved…
We analytically investigate the condition for a particle accelerator to be active in the outer magnetosphere of a rotation-powered pulsar. Within the accelerator (or the gap), magnetic-field-aligned electric field accelerates electrons and…
Positrons are known to be produced in interactions between cosmic-ray nuclei and interstellar matter ("secondary production"). Positrons may, however, also be created by dark matter particle annihilations in the galactic halo or in the…
Recent work has shown that axions can be efficiently produced via non-stationary pair plasma discharges in the polar cap region of pulsars. Here, we point out that for axion masses $10^{-9} \, {\rm eV} \lesssim m_a \lesssim 10^{-4} \, \rm…
Neutrons travel along straight lines in free space, but only survive for a distance which depends on their energy. Thus, detecting neutrons in space in principle provides directional and distance information. Apart from secondary neutrons…
Neutrino--antineutrino ($\nu\bar\nu$) pair production is one of the main processes responsible for the energy loss of stars. Apart from the collision of two ($\gamma\gamma\to\nu\bar\nu$) or three ($\gamma\gamma\gamma\to\nu\bar\nu$) real…
We investigate the kinetic heating of neutron stars due to dark matter scattering in minimal models with scalar lepton partners mediating interactions which can account for the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon. In particular, such…
Strange quark matter with the density of ~ 5\times 10^{14} g cm^{-3} might exist up to the surface of a strange star. This differs qualitatively from the case of a neutron star and opens observational possibilities to distinguish strange…
We discuss the possibility of exploring an unbroken U(1) gauge interaction in the dark sector by means of gravitational waves. Dark sector states charged under the dark force can give a macroscopic charge to astronomical bodies. Yet the…
The origin of the diffuse extragalactic gamma-ray background, which was measured with the large area telescope (LAT) aboard the Fermi satellite at energy below 820 GeV, and of the diffuse cosmic background of neutrinos, which was observed…
There are now a half dozen young pulsars detected in high energy photons by the Compton GRO, showing a variety of emission efficiencies and pulse profiles. We present here a calculation of the pattern of high energy emission on the sky in a…
The formation of neutron stars (NSs), both from collapses of massive stars and mergers of compact objects, can be usually indicated by bright transients emitted from explosively-ejected material. In particular, if the newborn NSs can rotate…
Pulsar magnetospheres admit non-stationary vacuum gaps that are characterized by non-vanishing ${\bf{E}} \cdot {\bf{B}}$. The vacuum gaps play an important role in plasma production and electromagnetic wave emission. We show that these gaps…
Recent observations show that the thermal X-ray spectra of many isolated neutron stars are featureless and in some cases (e.g., RX J1856.5-3754) well fit by a blackbody. Such a perfect blackbody spectrum is puzzling since radiative…
Isolated neutron stars undergoing non-radial oscillations are expected to emit gravitational waves in the kilohertz frequency range. To date, radio astronomers have located about 1,300 pulsars, and can estimate that there are about 2 times…
Cosmic rays of energies up to a few PeV are believed to be of galactic origin, yet individual sources have still not been firmly identified. Due to inelastic collisions with the interstellar gas, cosmic-ray nuclei produce a diffuse flux of…
Cosmogenic neutrinos originate from photo-hadronic interactions of cosmic ray protons with the cosmic microwave background (CMB). The neutrino production rate can be constrained through the accompanying electrons, positrons and gamma-rays…
We calculate the rate of production of dark photons from electron-positron pair annihilation in hot and dense matter characteristic of supernova progenitors. Given the non-linear dependence of the emission rate on the dark photon mass and…
Calculations of weak-interaction transition rates and of nuclear formation enthalpies show that in isolated neutron stars, the solid phase, above the neutron-drip threshold, is amorphous and heterogeneous in nuclear charge. The neutrino…