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Novel Clues to the Physics of Magnetars as Probed with Detailed Pulse-Timing Studies
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 February 2023
Abstract
Broadband X-ray data of five magnetars show that their hard X-ray pulses suffer periodic phase modulations, at a period ∼ 104 times their pulse period. The phenomenon is interpreted as a result of free precession of neutron stars that are prolately deformed to an asphericity of ∼ 10−4, by the magnetic stress of toroidal fields reaching ∼ 1016 G. The behavior is absent in their soft X-ray pulses, probably due to a higher emission symmetry. The ultra-high toroidal fields, considered common to magnetars, may persist longer than their dipole fields.
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- This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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- © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of International Astronomical Union
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