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Binary X-ray pulsars

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Abstract

There are nine known X-ray pulsars, which are widely believed to be rotating magnetised neutron stars that are accreting matter from their binary stellar companions. The observed pulse profiles provide information on the physics of the accretion process. We present representative profiles of all nine sources for comparison of general features, and we discuss some of these features in terms of the accreting neutron-star model.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics and Center for Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139

    S. Rappaport & P. C. Joss

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  1. S. Rappaport
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  2. P. C. Joss
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Rappaport, S., Joss, P. Binary X-ray pulsars. Nature 266, 123–125 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/266123a0

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