X-ray Observations of Disrupted Recycled Pulsars: No Refuge for Orphaned Central Compact Objects

Abstract

We present a Chandra X-ray survey of the disrupted recycled pulsars (DRPs), isolated radio pulsars with P > 20 ms and B_s < 3E10 G. These observations were motivated as a search for the immediate descendants of the approx. 10 central compact objects (CCOs) in supernova remnants, three of which have similar timing and magnetic properties as the DRPs, but are bright, thermal X-ray sources consistent with minimal neutron star cooling curves. Since none of the DPRs were detected, there is no evidence that they are "orphaned" CCOs, neutron stars whose supernova remnants has dissipated. Upper limits on their thermal X-ray luminosities are in the range log Lx[erg/s] = 31.8-32.8, which implies cooling ages > 1E4 - 1E5 yr, roughly 10 times the ages of the approximately 10 known CCOs in a similar volume of the Galaxy. The order of a hundred CCO descendants that could be detected by this method are thus either intrinsically radio quiet, or occupy a different region of (P,B_s) parameter space from the DRPs. This motivates a new X-ray search for orphaned CCOs among radio pulsars with larger B-fields, which could verify the theory that their fields are buried by fall-back of supernova ejecta, but quickly regrow to join the normal pulsar population.

6 pages, 2 Figures, 2 Tables, Latex emulateapj, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal

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• X-ray bounds on cooling, composition, and magnetic field of the Cassiopeia A neutron star and young central compact objects
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• Constraining the Evolutionary Fate of Central Compact Objects: "Old" Radio Pulsars in Supernova Remnants
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• Unifying neutron star sub-populations in the supernova fallback accretion model
• Accuracy and Applicability of the Hartle-Thorne and Komatsu-Eriguchi-Hachisu Methods for Modeling Rotating Neutron Stars