High-time Resolution Astrophysics and Pulsars

TL;DR

This paper reviews the advancements and challenges in high-time resolution astrophysics focusing on pulsar observations, emphasizing the need for ultra-fast, sensitive detectors to study rapid flux variations and polarization.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive review of optical pulsar observations and discusses future prospects with next-generation telescopes like the ELT.

Findings

Detection of flux variations less than 1 nanosecond during giant pulses

Requirement for microsecond and sub-microsecond time resolution in future instruments

Assessment of pulsar observability with current and upcoming telescopes

Abstract

The discovery of pulsars in 1968 heralded an era where the temporal characteristics of detectors had to be reassessed. Up to this point detector integration times would normally be measured in minutes rather seconds and definitely not on sub-second time scales. At the start of the 21st century pulsar observations are still pushing the limits of detector telescope capabilities. Flux variations on times scales less than 1 nsec have been observed during giant radio pulses. Pulsar studies over the next 10 to 20 years will require instruments with time resolutions down to microseconds and below, high-quantum quantum efficiency, reasonable energy resolution and sensitive to circular and linear polarisation of stochastic signals. This chapter is review of temporally resolved optical observations of pulsars. It concludes with estimates of the observability of pulsars with both existing telescopes and into the ELT era.