Andrzej Szary

Uniwersytet Zielonogórski

Sesja IV: Obiekty zwarte i astronomia wielozakresowa

Środa 13.09.2023 10:45 – 11:00

abstrakt:
For many pulsars the single pulse components, the so-called subpulses, exhibit systematic variation in position and/or intensity. The phenomenon was discovered in the early years of pulsar research, and still there is no consensus regarding the main feature of drift, namely the plasma drift direction in the pulsar magnetosphere. The models of the inner acceleration region assume the pair cascade localised in the form of discharges (called sparks) over the polar cap. Ruderman & Sutherland (1975) proposed the carousel model which assumes drift of sparks around the magnetic axis. In Szary & van Leeuwen (2017) we have shown that sparks rotate not around the magnetic axis per se, but around the location of the electric potential extremum of the polar cap.
This Modified Carousel model can be used to interpret the most extraordinary drifting behaviours. However, in recent years an alternative model, where drift is produced as plasma lags behind the corotation of the neutron star, gained momentum (see, e.g. Basu et al. 2020). The Lagging Behind Corotation model connects the drift with the rotation axis and stands with clear opposition to the carousel models. In this talk we will propose a project to perform a comprehensive study of the nature of drifting subpulses to solve this conundrum. The research program will be an important step in solving the mystery of the origin of radio emission observed from pulsars.