Point-like Off-pulse GeV Emission from the Millisecond Pulsar PSR J0437-4715

TL;DR

This study analyzes Fermi-LAT gamma-ray data of PSR J0437-4715 to characterize off-pulse emission and explore its connection to bow-shock pulsar wind nebulae, providing insights into pulsar emission mechanisms.

Contribution

The paper presents the first detailed analysis of off-pulse GeV emission from PSR J0437-4715 and investigates its potential link to bow-shock pulsar wind nebulae.

Findings

No spatial extension detected for off-pulse emission, with an upper limit radius of 0.12 degrees.

The gamma-ray luminosity correlates with X-ray luminosity among pulsars with bow-shock PWN.

The conversion efficiency from spin-down power to GeV emission aligns with the outer gap model near the pulsar.

Abstract

PSR J0437-4715 is a gamma-ray millisecond pulsar, which has been detected by Fermi-LAT. For understanding the nature, we analyze the GeV gamma-ray data obtained with Fermi-LAT around the pulsar region. Based on the pulsar timing ephemeris, we derived the gamma-ray pulse profile and defined on-pulse and off-pulse phase intervals. A binned likelihood analysis was performed to investigate the spectral properties of the pulsar across different phase ranges. No spatial extension was detected for off-pulse, with an upper limit radius of 0.12 degree. We further investigate the relationship between gamma-ray luminosity, X-ray luminosity, and bow-shock radius for a sample of pulsars with detected bow-shock PWN. The relationship between gamma-ray luminosity and X-ray luminosity is explored. The conversion efficiency from spin-down power to GeV emission of outer gap model is consistent with a termination shock located close to the pulsar. We discuss the potential nature of off-pulse GeV emission and the connection to bow shock pulsar wind nebulae.