Published 2009 | Version v1
Journal article

A Population of Gamma-Ray Millisecond Pulsars Seen with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

  • 1. Ctr Etud Nucl Bordeaux Gradignan, CNRS, IN2P3, UMR 5797, F-33175 Gradignan, (France)
  • 2. USN, Res Lab, Div Space Sci, Washington, DC 20375 (United States)
  • 3. Stanford Univ., WW Hansen Expt Phys Lab, Kavli Inst. Particle Astrophys and Cosmol, Dept. Phys, Stanford, CA 94305 (United States)
  • 4. Univ. Calif Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz Inst. Particle Phys, Dept. Phys, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States)
  • 5. Oskar Klein Ctr Cosmo Particle Phys, SE-10691 Stockholm, (Sweden)
  • 6. Stockholm Univ., Dept. Astron, SE-10691 Stockholm, (Sweden)
  • 7. Ist. Nazl Fis Nucl, Sez Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, (Italy)
  • 8. Univ. Paris Diderot, Lab. AIM, CEA Saclay, CEA IRFU CNRS, Serv. Astrophys, F-91191 Gif Sur Yvette, (France)

Description

Pulsars are born with sub-second spin periods and slow by electromagnetic braking for several tens of millions of years, when detectable radiation ceases. A second life can occur for neutron stars in binary systems. They can acquire mass and angular momentum from their companions, to be spun up to millisecond periods and begin radiating again. We searched Fermi Large Area Telescope data for pulsations from all known millisecond pulsars (MSPs) outside of globular clusters, using rotation parameters from radio telescopes. Strong gamma-ray pulsations were detected for eight MSPs. The gamma-ray pulse profiles and spectral properties resemble those of young gamma-ray pulsars. The basic emission mechanism seems to be the same for MSPs and young pulsars, with the emission originating in regions far from the neutron star surface. (authors)

Availability note (English)

Available from doi: http://dx.doi.org/DOI:10.1126/science.1176113

Additional details

Identifiers

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Science (Washington, D.C.)
Journal Volume
325
Journal Issue
no.5942
Journal Page Range
p. 848-852
ISSN
0036-8075

INIS

Country of Publication
United States
Country of Input or Organization
France
INIS RN
43049296
Subject category
S79: ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY;
Descriptors DEI
ANGULAR MOMENTUM; GAMMA RADIATION; NEUTRON STARS; PULSARS; TELESCOPES
Descriptors DEC
COSMIC RADIO SOURCES; ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION; IONIZING RADIATIONS; RADIATIONS; STARS

Optional Information

Notes
45 refs.