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Y. Gupta

Publications and source records attributed to Y. Gupta.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Pulsars with gigahertz-peaked spectra

We investigate a high frequency turn-over effect in radio spectra for pulsars with positive or flat spectral index. Using GMRT and Effelsberg observatory, we estimated the flux density to reconstruct pulsar spectra. We find objects that have a maximum flux in their spectrum above 1 GHz and whose spectral indices are positive at lower frequencies. Some pulsars with a turn-over in their spectrum at high frequencies are found to exist in very interesting environments. We call these objects gigahertz-peaked spectra pulsars.

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Understanding the effects of geometry and rotation on pulsar intensity profiles

We have developed a method to compute the possible distribution of radio emission regions in a typical pulsar magnetosphere, taking into account the viewing geometry and rotational effects of the neutron star. Our method can estimate the emission altitude and the radius of curvature of particle trajectory as a function of rotation phase for a given inclination angle, impact angle, spin-period, Lorentz factor, field line constant and the observation frequency. Further, using curvature radiation as the basic emission mechanism, we simulate the radio intensity profiles that would be observed from a given distribution of emission regions, for different values of radio frequency and Lorentz factor. We show clearly that rotation effects can introduce significant asymmetries into the observed radio profiles. We investigate the dependency of profile features on various pulsar parameters. We find that the radiation from a given ring of field lines can be seen over a large range of pulse longitudes, originating at different altitudes, with varying spectral intensity. Preferred heights of emission along discrete sets of field lines are required to reproduce realistic pulsar profiles, and we illustrate this for a known pulsar. Finally, we show how our model provides feasible explanations for the origin of core emission, and also for one-sided cones which have been observed in some pulsars.

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On the aberration-retardation effects in pulsars

The magnetospheric locations of pulsar radio emission region are not well known. The actual form of the so--called radius--to--frequency mapping should be reflected in the aberration--retardation (A/R) effects that shift and/or delay the photons depending on the emission height in the magnetosphere. Recent studies suggest that in a handful of pulsars the A/R effect can be discerned w.r.t the peak of the central core emission region. To verify these effects in an ensemble of pulsars we launched a project analysing multi--frequency total intensity pulsar profiles obtained from the new observations from the Giant Meterwave Radio Telescope (GMRT), Arecibo Observatory (AO) and archival European Pulsar Network (EPN) data. For all these profiles we measure the shift of the outer cone components with respect to the core component which is necessary for establishing the A/R effect. Within our sample of 23 pulsars 7 show the A/R effects, 12 of them (doubtful cases) show a tendency towards this effect, while the remaining 4 are obvious counter examples. The counter--examples and doubtful cases may arise from uncertainties in determination of the location of the meridional plane and/or the core emission component. It hence appears that the A/R effects are likely to operate in most pulsars from our sample. We conclude that in cases where those effects are present the core emission has to originate below the conal emission region.

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Results from multi-frequency observations of PSR B0826-34

We report new results obtained from multi-frequency observations of PSR B0826-34 with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). (1) We find no evidence of weak emission during the typical long null state of this pulsar, simultaneously at 303 and 610 MHz, as well as individually at 157, 325, 610 and 1060 MHz at separate epochs. Our limit of non-detection is at ~ 1% or better of the peak of the active state profile, and corresponds to ~ 2 mJy at 610 MHz. (2) Significant correlation in the total intensity of the individual pulses between 303 and 610 MHz is reported from the simultaneous dual frequency observations, which is indicative of the broadband nature of the emission. We also report correlation between total energy in the main pulse and inter-pulse region from the high sensitivity single frequency observations at 610 and 1060 MHz. (3) Though we find the drift pattern to be very similar in the simultaneous 303 and 610 MHz data, we observe that the drift band separation (P2) evolves significantly between these two frequencies, and in a manner opposite to the average profile evolution. In addition, we confirm the dependence of P2 on pulse longitude at 303 MHz and find indications for the same at 610 MHz. We also present results for subpulse width at different frequencies, and as well as a function of pulse longitude. (4) As a natural out-come of the simultaneous dual frequency observations, we obtain an accurate DM value, equal to 52.2(6) pc/cc, for this pulsar.

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Discovery of a remarkable subpulse drift pattern in PSR B0818-41

We report the discovery of a remarkable subpulse drift pattern in the relatively less studied wide profile pulsar, B0818-41, using high sensitivity GMRT observations. We find simultaneous occurrence of three drift regions with two different drift rates: an inner region with steeper apparent drift rate flanked on each side by a region of slower apparent drift rate. Furthermore, these closely spaced drift bands always maintain a constant phase relationship. Though these drift regions have significantly different values for the measured P2, the measured P3 value is the same and equal to 18.3 P1. We interpret the unique drift pattern of this pulsar as being created by the intersection of our line of sight (LOS) with two conal rings on the polar cap of a fairly aligned rotator (inclination angle alpha ~ 11 deg), with an ``inner'' LOS geometry (impact angle beta ~ -5.4 deg). We argue that both the rings have the same values for the carousel rotation periodicity P4 and the number of sparks Nsp. We find that Nsp is 19-21 and show that it is very likely that, P4 is the same as the measured P3, making it a truly unique pulsar. We present results from simulations of the radiation pattern using the inferred parameters, that support our interpretations and reproduce the average profile as well as the observed features in the drift pattern quite well.

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The Geometry of PSR B0031-07

PSR B0031-07 is well known to exhibit three different modes of drifting sub-pulses (mode A, B and C). It has recently been shown that in a multifrequency observation, consisting of 2700 pulses, all driftmodes were visible at low frequencies, while at 4.85 GHz only mode-A drift or non-drifting emission was detected. This suggests that modes A and B are emitted in sub-beams, rotating at a fixed distance from the magnetic axis, with the mode-B sub-beams being closer to the magnetic axis than the mode-A sub-beams. Diffuse emission between the sub-beams can account for the non-drifting emission. Using the results of an analysis of simultaneous multifrequency observations of PSR B0031-07, we set out to construct a geometrical model that includes emission from both sub-beams and diffuse emission and describes the regions of the radio emission of PSR B0031-07 at each emission frequency for driftmodes A and B. Based on the vertical spacing between driftbands, we have determined the driftmode of each sequence of drift. To restrict the model, we calculated average polarisation and intensity characteristics for each driftmode and at each frequency. The model reproduces the observed polarisation and intensity characteristics, suggesting that diffuse emission plays an important role in the emission properties of PSR B0031-07. The model further suggests that the emission heights of this pulsar range from a few kilometers to a little over 10 kilometers above the pulsar surface. We also find that the relationships between height and frequency of emission that follow from curvature radiation and from plasma-frequency emission could not be used to reproduce the observed frequency dependence of the width of the average intensity profiles.

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Turn-over in pulsar spectra above 1 GHz

We present the first direct evidence for turn-over in pulsar radio spectra at high frequencies. Two pulsars are now shown to have a turn-over frequency > 1GHz. We also find some evidence that the peak frequency of turn-over in pulsar spectra appears to depend on dispersion measure and pulsar age.

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The geometry of PSR B0031-07

Here we present the results from an analysis of a multifrequency simultaneous observation of PSR B0031$-$07. We have constructed a geometrical model, based on an empirical relationship between height and frequency of emission, that reproduces many of the observed characteristics. The model suggests very low emission altitudes for this pulsar of only a few kilometers above the star's surface.

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Turn-over in pulsar spectra around 1 GHz

The main aim is to investigate the possibility of a high frequency turn-over in the radio spectrum of pulsars. Using the GMRT, multi-frequency flux density measurements of several candidate pulsars have been carried out and their spectra have been extended to lower frequencies. We present the first direct evidence for turn-over in pulsar radio spectra at high frequencies. A total of 3 pulsars (including 2 new ones from this study) are now shown to have a turn-over frequency > 1 GHz, and one is shown to have a turn-over at ~600 MHz.

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Simultaneous Single-Pulse Observations of Radio Pulsars: V. On the Broadband Nature of The Pulse Nulling Phenomenon in PSR B1133+16

We revisit the phenomenon of pulse nulling using high-quality single-pulse data of PSR B1133+16 from simultaneous multifrequency observations. Observations were made at 325, 610, 1400 and 4850 MHz as part of a joint program between the European Pulsar Network and the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope. The pulse energy time series are analysed to derive improved statistics of nulling pulses as well as to investigate the frequency dependence of the phenomenon. The pulsar is observed to be in null state for approximately 15% of the time; however, we find that nulling does not always occur simultaneously at all four frequencies of observation. We characterise this "selective nulling'' as a function of frequency, separation in frequency, and combination of frequencies. The most remarkable case is a significantly large number of nulls ($\approx$6%) at lower frequencies, that are marked by the presence of a fairly narrow emission feature at the highest frequency of 4850 MHz. We refer to these as "low frequency (LF) nulls." Our analysis shows that this high frequency emission tends to occur preferentially over a narrow range in longitude and with pulse widths typically of the order of a few milliseconds. We discuss the implications of our results for the pulsar emission mechanism in general and for the broadbandness of nulling phenomenon in particular. Our results signify the presence of an additional process of emission which does not turn off when the pulsar nulls at low frequencies, and becomes more prominent at higher frequencies. Our analysis also hints at a possible outer gap origin for this new population of pulses, and thus a likely connection to some high-energy emission processes that occur in the outer parts of the pulsar magnetosphere.

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The discovery of PSR J1833-1034 : the pulsar associated with the supernova remnant G21.5-0.9

We report the discovery of a young pulsar associated with the supernova remnant G21.5-0.9, using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) located near Pune, India. Discovered at a frequency of 610 MHz, J1833-1034 has a period of 61.86 ms and a period derivative of $2.0 \times 10^{-13}$, making it similar to other known young pulsars. The characteristic age of the pulsar is $\approx 4900$ yr, somewhat higher than estimates for the age of the remnant, but not incompatible with it. The pulsar has a spin-down luminosity of $3.3 \times 10^{37}$ erg s$^{-1}$, which is the second highest amongst all the known Galactic pulsars.

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Tracking pulsar dispersion measures using the GMRT

In this paper, we describe a novel experiment for the accurate estimation of pulsar dispersion measures using the Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope. This experiment was carried out for a sample of twelve pulsars, over a period of more than one year (January 2001 to May 2002) with observations about once every fortnight. At each epoch, the pulsar DMs were obtained from simultaneous dual frequency observations, without requiring any absolute timing information. The DM estimates were obtained from both the single pulse data streams and from the average profiles. The accuracy of the DM estimates at each epoch is ~ 1 part in 10^4 or better, making the data set useful for many different kinds of studies. The time series of DM shows significant variations on time scales of weeks to months for most of the pulsars. A comparison of the mean DM values from these data show significant deviations from catalog values (as well as from other estimates in literature) for some of the pulsars, with PSR B1642-03 showing the most notable changes. From our analysis results it appears that constancy of pulsar DMs (at the level of 1 in 10^3 or better) can not be taken for granted. For PSR B2217+47, we see evidence for a large-scale DM gradient over a one year period, which is modeled as being due to a blob of enhanced electron density sampled by the line of sight. For some pulsars, including pulsars with fairly simple profiles like PSR B1642-03, we find evidence for small changes in DM values for different frequency pairs of measurement, a result that needs to be investigated in detail. Another interesting result is that we find significant differences in DM values obtained from average profiles and single pulse data.

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The Frequency Evolution of Interstellar Pulse Broadening from Radio Pulsars

In this paper we report multi-frequency measurements of pulse broadening times (tau_d) for nine medium dispersion measure (DM $\approx 150-400$ pc cm$^{-3}$) pulsars observed over a wide frequency range. The low frequency data at 243, 325 and 610 MHz are new observations done with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). The frequency dependence of tau_d for all but one (PSR B1933+16) of our sources is consistent with the Kolmogorov spectrum of electron density fluctuations in a turbulent medium. PSR B1933+16, however, shows a very flat spectrum as previously observed for high DM pulsars. Our observations combined with earlier published results enable us to study the spectral index of tau_d over the whole observed DM range. While the spectral properties are generally consistent with a Kolmogorov spectrum, pulsars seen along line-of-sights towards the inner Galaxy or complex regions often show deviations from this expected behaviour.

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Unraveling the drift behaviour of the remarkable pulsar PSR B0826-34

We present new results from high sensitivity GMRT observations of PSR B0826-34. We provide a model to explain the observed subpulse drift properties of this pulsar, including the apparent reversals of the drift direction. In this model, PSR B0826-34 is close to being an aligned rotator. We solve for the emission geometry of this pulsar and show that the angle between the rotation and the magnetic axes is less than 5 deg. We see evidence for as many as 6 to 7 drifting bands in the main pulse at 318 MHz, which are part of a circulating system of about 15 spark-associated subpulse emission beams. We provide quantitative treatments of the aliasing problem and various effects of geometry. The observed drift rate is an aliased version of the true drift rate, such that a subpulse drifts to the location of the adjacent subpulse (or a multiple thereof) in about one pulsar period. We show that small variations, of the order of 3-8%, in the mean drift rate are then enough to explain the apparent reversals of drift direction. We find the mean circulation time of the drift pattern to be significantly longer than the predictions of the original RS75 model and propose an explanation for this, based on modified models with temperature regulated partial ion flow in the polar vacuum gap. From the variation of the mean subpulse separation across the main pulse window, we show that the spark pattern is not centred around the dipole axis, but around a point much closer (within a degree or so) to the rotation axis -- we discuss the implication of this.

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The PSR J0514-4002A binary system in NGC 1851

Using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT), we have discovered PSR J0514-4002A, a binary millisecond pulsar in the globular cluster NGC 1851. This pulsar has a rotational period of 4.99 ms and the most eccentric pulsar orbit yet found: e = 0.89. The orbital period is 18.8 days, and companion has a minimum mass of 0.9 M_sun; its nature is presently unclear. After accreting matter from a low-mass stellar companion, this pulsar exchanged it for its more massive present companion. This system presents the strongest evidence to date of such a process.

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Simultaneous single-pulse observations of radio pulsars - IV. Flux density spectra of individual pulses

In this paper we demonstrate that a large, unexplored reservoir of information about pulsar emission exists, that is directly linked to the radiating particles and their radiation process: We present a study of flux density measurements of individual pulses simultaneously observed at four different frequencies. Correcting for effects caused by the interstellar medium, we derive intrinsic flux density spectra of individual radio pulses observed at several frequencies for the first time. Pulsar B0329+54 was observed at 238, 626, 1412 and 4850 MHz, while observations of PSR B1133+16 were made at 341, 626, 1412 and 4850 MHz. We derive intrinsic pulse-to-pulse modulation indices which show a minimum around 1 GHz. Correlations between the flux densities of different frequency pairs worsen as the frequency separation widens and also tend to be worse for outer profile components. The single pulse spectra of PSR B0329+54 resemble the spectra of the integrated profile. However, the spectral index distributions for the single pulses of PSR B1133+16 show significant deviations from a Gaussian. This asymmetry is caused by very strong pulses with flux densities exceeding the mean value by more than a factor of ten. These strong pulses occur preferentially at the trailing edge of the leading component and appear to be broadband in most cases. Their properties are similar to those of so-called giant pulses, suggesting that these phenomena are related.

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Understanding the radio emission geometry of multi-component radio pulsars from retardation and aberration effects

We have conducted a detailed analysis of the emission geometry of a handful of radio pulsars that have prominent, multiple-component profiles at meter wavelengths. From careful determination of the total number of emission components and their locations in pulse longitude, we find that all of the six pulsars show clear evidence for retardation and aberration effects in the conal emission beams. Using this information, coupled with a dipolar field geometry, we obtain estimates of the height and transverse location in the magnetosphere, for each of the emitting cones in these pulsars. These results support our earlier conclusions for PSR B0329+54 in that we find successive outer cones (in cases of multi-cone pulsars) being emitted at higher altitudes in the magnetosphere. The range of inferred heights is from ~200 to ~2200 km. The set of ``active'' field lines from which the conal emissions originate are located in the region from ~0.22 to ~0.74 of the polar cap radius. At the neutron star surface, these conal rings map to radii of a few to several tens of meters and the separation between successive rings is about 10 to 20 meters. We discuss the implications of these findings for the understanding of the pulsar emission geometry and for current theories and models of the emission mechanism.

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Simultaneous single-pulse observations of radio pulsars: II. Orthogonal polarization modes in PSR B1133+16

In this paper, we present a study of orthogonal polarization modes in the radio emission of PSR B1133+16, conducted within the frame of simultaneous, multi-frequency, single-pulse observations. Simultaneously observing at two frequencies (1.41 GHz and 4.85 GHz) provides the means to study the bandwidth of polarization features such as the polarization position angle. We find two main results. First, that there is a high degree of correlation between the polarization modes at the two frequencies. Secondly, the modes occur more equally and the fractional linear polarization decreases towards higher frequencies. We discuss this frequency evolution and propose propagation effects in the pulsar magnetosphere as its origin.

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