Propagation and stability of superluminal waves in pulsar winds

Abstract

Nonlinear electromagnetic waves with superluminal phase velocity can propagate in the winds around isolated pulsars, and around some pulsars in binary systems. Using a short-wavelength approximation, we find and analyze an integrable system of equations that govern their evolution in spherical geometry. A confined mode is identified that stagnates to finite pressure at large radius and can form a precursor to the termination shock. Using a simplified criterion, we find this mode is stable for most isolated pulsars, but may be unstable if the external pressure is high, such as in the pulsar wind nebulae in starburst galaxies and in W44. Pulsar winds in eccentric binary systems, such as PSR 1259-63, may go through phases with stable and unstable electromagnetic precursors, as well as phases in which the density is too high for these modes to propagate.

published version; correction of fig 2

References in corpus (4)

• Gamma-ray binaries: pulsars in disguise ?
• Particle acceleration in the driven relativistic reconnection
• Deep Chandra Observation of the Pulsar Wind Nebula Powered by the Pulsar J1846-0258 in the Supernova Remnant Kes 75
• The Role of Superluminal Electromagnetic Waves in Pulsar Wind Termination Shocks

Cited by in corpus (8)

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• Radiative damping and emission signatures of strong superluminal waves in pulsar winds
• Pulsar striped winds
• The Evolution of High Temperature Plasma in Magnetar Magnetospheres and its Implications for Giant Flares
• Electron acceleration at pulsar wind termination shocks
• Inductive acceleration of ions in Poynting-flux dominated outflows
• The stability of strong waves and its implications for pulsar wind shocks