Uncertainty in Measurements of the Distances of Scattering Screens in Pulsar Observations

TL;DR

This paper investigates the uncertainties in determining the locations of scattering screens in pulsar observations by exploring complex models that include both thin screens and distributed media, improving localization accuracy estimates.

Contribution

It introduces advanced models combining thin screens and distributed media to better estimate scattering screen locations and their contributions.

Findings

Estimated localization accuracy of scattering screens.

Quantified contributions of thin screens and distributed media.

Improved understanding of scattering material distribution.

Abstract

In our previous paper (Popov et al. (2016)) we investigated properties of the ionized interstellar medium in the direction of three distant pulsars: B1641-45, B1749-28, and B1933+16. We found that uniformly distributed scattering material cannot explain measured temporal and angular broadening. We applied a model for a thin scattering screen and found the distances to the scattering screens in all directions. In this paper we consider more complicated models of scattering material distribution, such as models containing both uniformly distributed medium and thin screen. Based on these models we estimate the accuracy of localisation of scattering screens and possible relative contribution of each scattering component.