Deep optical observations of the fields of two nearby millisecond pulsars with the VLT

Sutaria, Firoza; Ray, Alak; Reisenegger, Andreas; Hertling, G.; Quintana, H.; Minniti, D.

doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20030703

Cited by 14 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The pulsar is undetected down to a flux limit of V ∼ 27.8, the deepest obtained so far for an object of this class. Unfortunately, this result adds to the list of non-detections of millisecond pulsars deriving from (shallower) observations recently performed with the VLT, namely PSR J1024−0719, PSR J1744−1134 (Sutaria et al 2002) and PSR J0030+0451 (Koptsevich et al 2002). Future observations of these objects in the near-UV with the HST will probably offer higher chanches of detection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

VLT observations of the solitary millisecond pulsar PSR J2124-3358

Mignani

Becker

2004

Advances in Space Research

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About 100 millisecond (ms) pulsars have been identified in the Galaxy, and only ≈ 10% of them are solitary, i.e. without a binary companion. Nothing is known on the optical emission properties of millisecond pulsars. Observations of solitary millisecond pulsars are the only way to detect their faint optical radiation, otherwise buried by the brighter white dwarf companion. As in the case of solitary, non millisecond pulsars, an X-ray detection represents the first step for a follow-up identification campaign in the optical. Among the X-ray detected millisecond pulsars, PSR J2124−3358 stands out as an ideal case because it is very close (≤ 270 pc) and little absorbed. Here, we report on recent VLT observations of the PSR J2124−3358 aimed at the identification of its optical counterpart. No optical emission from the pulsar has been detected down to a limiting flux of V ∼ 27.8.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

VLT observations of the solitary millisecond pulsar PSR J2124-3358

Mignani

Becker

2004

Advances in Space Research

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“…All were identified prior to the launch of Fermi, mostly in the 1990s (Mignani 2011). In the last decade possible counterparts were found for PSR B1951+32 (Butler et al 2002) and the solitary MSP PSR J1024−0719 (Sutaria et al 2003), prior to their detection as gamma-ray pulsars. Furthermore, PSR J1124−5916 has been associated with a bright, optical PWN, although no point source has been identified as a potential counterpart (Zharikov et al Notes.…”

Section: Optical Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

THE SECOND FERMI LARGE AREA TELESCOPE CATALOG OF GAMMA-RAY PULSARS

Abdo¹,

Ajello²,

Allafort³

et al. 2013

ApJS

838

1,129

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This catalog summarizes 117 high-confidence 0.1 GeV gamma-ray pulsar detections using three years of data acquired by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi satellite. Half are neutron stars discovered using LAT data through periodicity searches in gamma-ray and radio data around LAT unassociated source positions. The 117 pulsars are evenly divided into three groups: millisecond pulsars, young radio-loud pulsars, and young radio-quiet pulsars. We characterize the pulse profiles and energy spectra and derive luminosities when distance information exists. Spectral analysis of the off-peak phase intervals indicates probable pulsar wind nebula emission for four pulsars, and off-peak magnetospheric emission for several young and millisecond pulsars. We compare the gammaray properties with those in the radio, optical, and X-ray bands. We provide flux limits for pulsars with no observed gamma-ray emission, highlighting a small number of gamma-faint, radio-loud pulsars. The large, varied gamma-ray pulsar sample constrains emission models. Fermi's selection biases complement those of radio surveys, enhancing comparisons with predicted population distributions.

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“…Nonetheless, deep VLT observations of the field of PSR J1024−0719 conducted by Sutaria et al (2003) revealed the presence of two stars near the position of the pulsar. One possibility could therefore be that PSR J1024−0719 is associated with one of the two nearby stars, in a wide orbit causing the MSP to undergo acceleration along our line of sight.…”

Section: Psr J1024−0719mentioning

confidence: 99%

The gamma-ray millisecond pulsar deathline, revisited

Guillemot

Smith

Laffon

et al. 2016

A&A

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Context. Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) represent nearly half of the more than 160 currently known γ-ray pulsars detected by the Large Area Telescope on the Fermi satellite, and a third of all known MSPs are seen in γ rays. The least energetic γ-ray MSPs enable us to probe the so-called deathline for high-energy emission, i.e., the spin-down luminosity limit under which pulsars (PSRs) cease to produce detectable high-energy radiation. Characterizing the MSP luminosity distribution helps to determine their contribution to the Galactic diffuse γ-ray emission. Aims. Because of the Shklovskii effect, precise proper motion and distance measurements are key ingredients for determining the spin-down luminosities of MSPs accurately. Our aim is to obtain new measurements of these parameters for γ-ray MSPs when possible, and clarify the relationship between the γ-ray luminosity of pulsars and their spin-down luminosity. Detecting low spin-down luminosity pulsars in γ rays and characterizing their spin properties is also particularly interesting for constraining the deathline for high-energy emission. Methods. We made use of the high-quality pulsar timing data recorded at the Nançay Radio Telescope over several years to characterize the properties of a selection of MSPs. For one of the pulsars, the dataset was complemented with Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope observations. The rotation ephemerides derived from this analysis were also used to search the LAT data for new γ-ray MSPs. Results. For the MSPs considered in this study, we obtained new transverse proper motion measurements or updated the existing ones, and placed new distance constraints for some of them, with four new timing parallax measurements. We discovered significant GeV γ-ray signals from four MSPs, i.e., PSRs J0740+6620, J0931−1902, J1455−3330, and J1730−2304. The latter is now the least energetic γ-ray pulsar found to date. Despite the improvedĖ and L γ estimates, the relationship between these two quantities remains unclear, especially at lowĖ values.

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Deep optical observations of the fields of two nearby millisecond pulsars with the VLT

Cited by 14 publications

References 37 publications

VLT observations of the solitary millisecond pulsar PSR J2124-3358

VLT observations of the solitary millisecond pulsar PSR J2124-3358

THE SECOND FERMI LARGE AREA TELESCOPE CATALOG OF GAMMA-RAY PULSARS

The gamma-ray millisecond pulsar deathline, revisited

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