A Ray-Tracing Model of the Vela Pulsar
Abstract
In the relativistic plasma surrounding a pulsar, a subluminal ordinary-mode electromagnetic wave will propagate along a magnetic field line. After some distance, it can break free of the field line and escape the magnetosphere to reach an observer. We describe a simple model of pulsar radio emission based on this scenario and find that applying this model to the case of the Vela pulsar reproduces qualitative characteristics of the observed Vela pulse profile.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- May 2001
- DOI:
- 10.1086/320629
- arXiv:
- arXiv:astro-ph/0101339
- Bibcode:
- 2001ApJ...553..358H
- Keywords:
-
- Stars: Pulsars: General;
- pulsars: individual (Vela pulsar);
- Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 23 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ