Related papers: Why pulsars rotate and move: kicks at birth
The role of binary progenitors of neutron stars in the apparent distribution of space velocities and spin-velocity alignment observed in young pulsars is studied. A Monte-Carlo synthesis of pulsar population from single and binary stars…
A typical young pulsar slows down at an imperceptible rate, its spin period increasing by less than 10 microseconds over the course of a year. However, the inertia of a pulsar is so extreme that to effect this tiny change in rotation rate,…
Neutron stars receive velocity kicks at birth in supernovae. Those formed in electron-capture supernovae from super asymptotic giant branch stars -- the lowest mass stars to end their lives in supernovae -- may receive significantly lower…
Millisecond pulsars are old neutron stars that have been spun up to high rotational frequencies via accretion of mass from a binary companion star. An important issue for understanding the physics of the early spin evolution of millisecond…
Neutron Stars are among the most exotic objects in the Universe. A neutron star, with a mass of 1.4-2 Solar masses within a radius of about 10-15 km, is the most compact stable configuration of matter in which degeneracy pressure can still…
Millisecond pulsars are neutron stars (NSs) that are thought to have been spun-up by mass accretion from a stellar companion. It is unknown whether there is a natural brake for this process, or if it continues until the centrifugal breakup…
The paucity of old isolated accreting neutron stars in ROSAT observations is used to derive a lower limit on the mean velocity of neutron stars at birth. The secular evolution of the population is simulated following the paths of a…
Evidence from pulsar wind nebula symmetry axes and radio polarization observations suggests that pulsar motions correlate with the spin directions. We assemble this evidence for young isolated pulsars and show how it can be used to…
This paper suggests the idea that all neutron stars experienced at birth an ultrafast decay of their magnetic fields from their initial values to their current surface values. If the electromagnetic energy radiated during this field decay…
The fact that the spatial velocity of pulsars is generally higher than that of their progenitor stars has bothered astronomers for nearly 50 years. It has been extensively argued that the high pulsar velocity should be acquired during a…
We show that kicks generated by topological currents may be responsible for the large velocities seen in a number of pulsars. The majority of the kick builds up within the first second of the star's birth and generates a force about two…
We examine available observations on pulsars for evidence pertaining to mechanisms proposed to explain the origin of their velocities. We find that mechanisms predicting a correlation between the rotation axis and the pulsar velocity are…
Observations of binary pulsars and pulsars in globular clusters suggest that at least some pulsars must receive weak natal kicks at birth. If all pulsars received strong natal kicks above \unit[50]{\kms}, those born in globular clusters…
Observations using the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer have discovered dozens of accreting neutron stars with millisecond spin periods in low-mass binary star systems. Eighteen are millisecond X-ray pulsars powered by accretion or nuclear…
Neutron stars (NSs) are thought to receive natal kicks at their formation in supernovae. In order to investigate the magnitude of these kicks, we analyze the proper motions and distance estimates -- either through parallax or dispersion…
More than 50 years after the discovery of pulsars and confirmation of their association with supernova explosions, the origin of the initial spin and velocity of pulsars remains largely a mystery. The typical space velocities of several…
Recent observations of pulsar wind nebulae and radio polarization profiles revealed a tendency of the alignment between the spin and velocity directions in neutron stars. We study the condition for spin-kick alignment using a toy model, in…
The origin of pulsar kicks is reviewed in the framework of the spin-flip conversion of neutrinos propagating in the gravitational field of a magnetized protoneutron star. We find that for a mass in rotation with angular velocity ${\bbox…
It is thought that isolated neutron stars receive a natal kick velocity at birth nearly aligned with their spin axis. Direct observational confirmation of this alignment is currently limited to a single source in a supernova remnant (PSR…
The high speeds seen in rapidly rotating pulsars after supernova explosions present a longstanding puzzle in astrophysics. Numerous theories have been suggested over the years to explain this sudden "kick" imparted to the neutron star, yet…