# Characterizing the population of pulsars in the inner Galaxy with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

## TL;DR

This study identifies approximately 135 potential gamma-ray pulsar candidates in the inner Galaxy using Fermi LAT data, supporting the hypothesis that unresolved pulsars contribute to the Galactic Center gamma-ray excess.

## Contribution

The paper develops new selection criteria to identify gamma-ray pulsar candidates and applies them to Fermi LAT data using two different interstellar emission models, revealing a significant candidate population.

## Key findings

- Approximately 135 pulsar candidates identified.
- 66 candidates are consistent across different emission models.
- Supports pulsar population as a source of the Galactic Center gamma-ray excess.

## Abstract

An excess of $\gamma$-ray emission from the Galactic Center (GC) region with respect to predictions based on a variety of interstellar emission models and $\gamma$-ray source catalogs has been found by many groups using data from the {\it Fermi} Large Area Telescope (LAT). Several interpretations of this excess have been invoked. In this paper we search for members of an unresolved population of $\gamma$-ray pulsars located in the inner Galaxy that are predicted by the interpretation of the GC excess as being due to a population of such sources. We use cataloged LAT sources to derive criteria that efficiently select pulsars with very small contamination from blazars. We search for point sources in the inner $40^\circ\times40^\circ$ region of the Galaxy, derive a list of approximately 400 sources, and apply pulsar selection criteria to extract pulsar candidates among our source list. We performed the entire data analysis chain with two different interstellar emission models (IEMs), and found a total of 135 pulsar candidates, of which 66 were selected with both IEMs.