05.02.2012 Alter: 1 year

Stellar Astrophysics Helps Explain Spin Puzzle in Fast Rotating Neutron Stars

Since the discovery of the first radio millisecond pulsar in 1982, it has been well known how old, magnetized neutron stars are being spun up to high rotational frequencies via accretion of mass and angular momentum from a companion star in a binary system. New research reveals that these millisecond pulsars apparently puts on a brake when finalizing their stellar cannibalism. This result can explain some puzzles on millisecond pulsars: for example why the accreting X-ray millisecond pulsars apparently spin faster than the radio millisecond pulsars, or why the so-called characteristic ages of radio millisecond pulsars are untrustworthy indicators of their true ages.

The work is presented in Science's 3 Feb. issue.

This research, performed by AIfA astrophysicist Thomas Tauris, has profited from a recent effort to bridge the Stellar Physics group at the Argelander-Institut für Astronomie (AIfA) at University of Bonn (led by Prof.Dr. Norbert Langer) with the Fundamental Physics in Radio Astronomy group at the Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie (led by Prof.Dr. Michael Kramer).

Link to Science paper:
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/335/6068/561.abstract

Link to Physics World article about the new findings:
http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/48517

Link to Bonn Uni. press release (in German):
http://idw-online.de/pages/de/news461962

Link to MPIfR press release (in German)
http://www.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de/public/pr/pr-pulsar-ttauris-feb2012-dt.html

Link to MPIfR press release (in English)
http://www.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de/public/pr/pr-pulsar-ttauris-feb2012-en.html

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