Observations of pulsars at 9 millimetres

TL;DR

This study reports high-frequency observations of pulsars at 9mm, detecting three pulsars for the first time at this wavelength and analyzing their spectral behavior to understand emission mechanisms.

Contribution

It provides new detections of pulsars at 9mm and confirms spectral models, advancing understanding of pulsar emission at millimeter wavelengths.

Findings

First-time detection of three pulsars at 9mm

All pulsar spectra fit a simple three-parameter model

Identified the importance of nano-pulse lifetime in emission

Abstract

The behaviour of the pulsar spectrum at high radio frequencies can provide decisive information about the nature of the radio emission mechanism. We report recent observations of a selected sample of pulsars at lambda=9mm (32 GHz) with the 100-m Effelsberg radio telescope.Three pulsars, PSR B0144+59, PSR B0823+26, and PSR B2022+50, were detected for the first time at this frequency. We confirm the earlier flux density measurements for a sample of six pulsars, and we are able to place upper flux density limits for another 12 pulsars. We find that all pulsar spectra have a simple form that can be described using only three parameters, one of which is the lifetime of short nano-pulses in the emission region.The study of the transition region from coherent to incoherent emission needs further and more sensitive observations at even higher radio frequencies.