A Scintillation Arc Survey of 22 Pulsars with Low to Moderate Dispersion Measures

Abstract

Context: By providing information about the location of scattering material along the line of sight (LoS) to pulsars, scintillation arcs are a powerful tool for exploring the distribution of ionized material in the interstellar medium. Here, we present observations that probe the ionized ISM on scales of $\sim$~0.001 -- 30~au. Aims: We have surveyed pulsars for scintillation arcs in a relatively unbiased sample with DM < 100 pc cm-3. We present multi-frequency observations of 22 low to moderate DM pulsars. Many of the 54 observations were also observed at another frequency within a few days. Methods: For all observations we present dynamic spectra, autocorrelation functions, and secondary spectra. We analyze these data products to obtain scintillation bandwidths, pulse broadening times, and arc curvatures. Results: We detect definite or probable scintillation arcs in 19 of the 22 pulsars and 34 of the 54 observations, showing that scintillation arcs are a prevalent phenomenon. The arcs are better defined in low DM pulsars. We show that well-defined arcs do not directly imply anisotropy of scattering. Only the presence of reverse arclets and a deep valley along the delay axis, which occurs in about 20\% of the pulsars in the sample, indicates substantial anisotropy of scattering. Conclusions: The survey demonstrates substantial patchiness of the ionized ISM on both au size scales transverse to the line of sight and on $\sim$~100~pc scales along it. We see little evidence for distributed scattering along most lines of sight in the survey.