Black widow pulsars: the price of promiscuity
(2003) In Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 345. p.678-682- Abstract
- The incidence of evaporating `black widow' pulsars (BWPs) among all millisecond pulsars is far higher in globular clusters than in the field. This implies a special formation mechanism for them in clusters. Cluster millisecond pulsars in wide binaries with white dwarf companions exchange them for turnoff-mass stars. These new companions eventually overflow their Roche lobes because of encounters and tides. The millisecond pulsars eject the overflowing gas from the binary, giving mass loss on the binary evolution time-scale. The systems are only observable as BWPs at epochs where this evolution is slow, making the mass loss transparent and the lifetime long. This explains why observed BWPs have low-mass companions. We suggest that at least... (More)
- The incidence of evaporating `black widow' pulsars (BWPs) among all millisecond pulsars is far higher in globular clusters than in the field. This implies a special formation mechanism for them in clusters. Cluster millisecond pulsars in wide binaries with white dwarf companions exchange them for turnoff-mass stars. These new companions eventually overflow their Roche lobes because of encounters and tides. The millisecond pulsars eject the overflowing gas from the binary, giving mass loss on the binary evolution time-scale. The systems are only observable as BWPs at epochs where this evolution is slow, making the mass loss transparent and the lifetime long. This explains why observed BWPs have low-mass companions. We suggest that at least some field BWPs were ejected from globular clusters or entered the field population when the cluster itself was disrupted. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/768200
- author
- King, A.R. ; Davies, Melvyn B LU and Beer, M.E.
- publishing date
- 2003
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- volume
- 345
- pages
- 678 - 682
- publisher
- Oxford University Press
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:0142138673
- ISSN
- 1365-2966
- DOI
- 10.1046/j.1365-8711.2003.06990.x
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 77a061bc-489c-4dbf-bc3d-c3a7371f416e (old id 768200)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-04 11:46:00
- date last changed
- 2022-01-29 22:25:41
@article{77a061bc-489c-4dbf-bc3d-c3a7371f416e, abstract = {{The incidence of evaporating `black widow' pulsars (BWPs) among all millisecond pulsars is far higher in globular clusters than in the field. This implies a special formation mechanism for them in clusters. Cluster millisecond pulsars in wide binaries with white dwarf companions exchange them for turnoff-mass stars. These new companions eventually overflow their Roche lobes because of encounters and tides. The millisecond pulsars eject the overflowing gas from the binary, giving mass loss on the binary evolution time-scale. The systems are only observable as BWPs at epochs where this evolution is slow, making the mass loss transparent and the lifetime long. This explains why observed BWPs have low-mass companions. We suggest that at least some field BWPs were ejected from globular clusters or entered the field population when the cluster itself was disrupted.}}, author = {{King, A.R. and Davies, Melvyn B and Beer, M.E.}}, issn = {{1365-2966}}, language = {{eng}}, pages = {{678--682}}, publisher = {{Oxford University Press}}, series = {{Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society}}, title = {{Black widow pulsars: the price of promiscuity}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-8711.2003.06990.x}}, doi = {{10.1046/j.1365-8711.2003.06990.x}}, volume = {{345}}, year = {{2003}}, }