A LOFAR census of non-recycled pulsars: extending below 80 MHz

We present the results from the low-frequency (40--78 MHz) extension of the first LOFAR pulsar census of non-recycled pulsars. We have used the Low-Band Antennas of the LOFAR core stations to observe 87 pulsars out of 158 that have been detected previously with the High-Band Antennas. Forty-three pulsars have been detected and we present here their flux densities and flux-calibrated profiles. Seventeen of these pulsars have not been, to our knowledge, detected before at such low frequencies. We re-calculate the spectral indices using the new low-frequency flux density measurements from the LOFAR census and discuss the prospects of studying pulsars at the very low frequencies with the current and upcoming facilities, such as NenuFAR

Constraining the magnetic field geometry of the millisecond pulsar PSRJ0030+0451 from joint radio, thermal X-ray, and γ-ray emission

Context. With the advent of multi-wavelength electromagnetic observations of neutron stars - spanning many decades in photon energies - from radio wavelengths up to X-rays and γ-rays, it has become possible to significantly constrain the geometry and the location of the associated emission regions. Aims. In this work, we use results from the modelling of thermal X-ray observations of PSR J0030+0451 from the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) mission and phase-aligned radio and γ-ray pulse profiles to constrain the geometry of an off-centred dipole that is able to reproduce the light curves in these respective bands simultaneously. Methods. To this aim, we deduced a configuration with a simple dipole off-centred from the location of the centre of the thermal X-ray hot spots. We show that the geometry is compatible with independent constraints from radio and -ray pulsations only, leading to a fixed magnetic obliquity of α ≈ 75° and a line-of-sight inclination angle of ζ ≈ 54°. Results. We demonstrate that an off-centred dipole cannot be rejected by accounting for the thermal X-ray pulse profiles. Moreover, the crescent shape of one spot is interpreted as the consequence of a small-scale surface dipole on top of the large-scale off-centred dipole

The MeerKAT telescope as a pulsar facility: System verification and early science results from MeerTime

We describe system verification tests and early science results from the pulsar processor (PTUSE) developed for the newly commissioned 64-dish SARAO MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa. MeerKAT is a high-gain ( ) low-system temperature ( ) radio array that currently operates at 580–1 670 MHz and can produce tied-array beams suitable for pulsar observations. This paper presents results from the MeerTime Large Survey Project and commissioning tests with PTUSE. Highlights include observations of the double pulsar , pulse profiles from 34 millisecond pulsars (MSPs) from a single 2.5-h observation of the Globular cluster Terzan 5, the rotation measure of Ter5O, a 420-sigma giant pulse from the Large Magellanic Cloud pulsar PSR , and nulling identified in the slow pulsar PSR J0633–2015. One of the key design specifications for MeerKAT was absolute timing errors of less than 5 ns using their novel precise time system. Our timing of two bright MSPs confirm that MeerKAT delivers exceptional timing. PSR exhibits a jitter limit of whilst timing of PSR over almost 11 months yields an rms residual of 66 ns with only 4 min integrations. Our results confirm that the MeerKAT is an exceptional pulsar telescope. The array can be split into four separate sub-arrays to time over 1 000 pulsars per day and the future deployment of S-band (1 750–3 500 MHz) receivers will further enhance its capabilities

Pulsars with NenuFAR: Backend and pipelines

Context. NenuFAR (New extension in Nançay upgrading LOFAR) is a new radio telescope developed and built on the site of the Nançay Radio Observatory. It is designed to observe the largely unexplored frequency window from 10 to 85 MHz, offering a high sensitivity across its full bandwidth. NenuFAR has started its “early science” operation in July 2019, with 58% of its final collecting area. Aims. Pulsars are one of the major phenomena utilized in the scientific exploitation of this frequency range and represent an important challenge in terms of instrumentation. Designing instrumentation at these frequencies is complicated by the need to compensate for the effects of both the interstellar medium and the ionosphere on the observed signal. We have designed a dedicated backend and developed a complete pulsar observation and data analysis pipeline, which we describe in detail in the present paper, together with first science results illustrating the diversity of the pulsar observing modes. Methods. Our real-time pipeline LUPPI (Low frequency Ultimate Pulsar Processing Instrumentation) is able to cope with a high data rate and provide real-time coherent de-dispersion down to the lowest frequencies reached by NenuFAR (10 MHz). The full backend functionality is described, as the available pulsar observing modes (folded, single-pulse, waveform, and dynamic spectrum). Results. We also present some of the early science results of NenuFAR on pulsars: the detection of 12 millisecond pulsars (eight of which are detected for the first time below 100 MHz); a high-frequency resolution mapping of the PSR B1919+21 emission profile and a detailed observation of single-pulse substructures from PSR B0809+74 down to 16 MHz; the high rate of giant-pulse emission from the Crab pulsar detected at 68.7 MHz (43 events per minute); and the illustration of the very good timing performance of the instrumentation, which allows us to study dispersion measure variations in great detail

A census of the pulsar population observed with the international LOFAR station FR606 at low frequencies (25–80 MHz)

ontext. To date, only 69 pulsars have been identified with a detected pulsed radio emission below 100 MHz. A LOFAR-core LBA census and a dedicated campaign with the Nançay LOFAR station in stand-alone mode were carried out in the years 2014–2017 in order to extend the known population in this frequency range. Aims. In this paper, we aim to extend the sample of known radio pulsars at low frequencies and to produce a catalogue in the frequency range of 25–80 MHz. This will allow future studies to probe the local Galactic pulsar population, in addition to helping explain their emission mechanism, better characterising the low-frequency turnover in their spectra, and obtaining new information about the interstellar medium through the study of dispersion, scattering, and scintillation. Methods. We observed 102 pulsars that are known to emit radio pulses below 200 MHz and with declination above −30°. We used the Low Band Antennas (LBA) of the LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) international station FR606 at the Nançay Radio Observatory in stand-alone mode, recording data between 25 and 80 MHz