Polarization sounding of pulsar magnetosphere

TL;DR

This paper explores a method to probe pulsar magnetospheres by analyzing polarization changes in pulsar radio emissions across different frequencies, using models of the magnetosphere and propagation medium.

Contribution

It introduces a polarization sounding technique for pulsar magnetospheres utilizing intrinsic emission and models the propagation effects in stratified media.

Findings

Frequency-dependent polarization parameters can reveal magnetospheric structure.

Broadband polarization measurements enable deep magnetospheric sounding.

Models account for electron density and magnetic fluctuations in the propagation medium.

Abstract

The possibility of a polarization sounding of the pulsar magnetosphere is examined, using intrinsic pulsar emission as a probe signal, for modern radio telescopes operating in the meter and decameter wavelength range. Different models of the pulsar magnetosphere at altitudes higher than a radius of critical polarization are used. The propagation medium besides magnetosphere is described by the stratified model, in which each layer has its own density of free electrons and vector of magnetic induction, as well as the spatial and temporal fluctuation scales of these parameters. The frequency dependence of the polarization parameters of the pulsar radio emission, obtained in the broad band for a selected pulse phase, will enable a sounding deep into the pulsar magnetosphere.