X-Radiation from the Millisecond Pulsar J0437-4715

We report on spectral and timing observations of the nearest millisecond pulsar, J0437-4715, with the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. The pulsar spectrum, detected up to 7 keV, cannot be described by a simple one-component model. We suggest that it consists of two components: a nonthermal power-law spectrum generated in the pulsar magnetosphere, with a photon index γ~2, and a thermal spectrum emitted by heated polar caps, with a temperature decreasing outward from 2 to 0.5 MK. The lack of spectral features in the thermal component suggests that the neutron star surface is covered by a hydrogen (or helium) atmosphere. The timing analysis shows one X-ray pulse per period, with a pulsed fraction of about 40% and the peak at the same pulse phase as the radio peak. No synchrotron pulsar-wind nebula is seen in X-rays.