Different twins in the millisecond pulsar recycling scenario: optical polarimetry of PSR J1023+0038 and XSS J12270-4859

Abstract

We present the first optical polarimetric study of the two transitional pulsars PSR J1023+0038 and XSS J12270-4859. This work is focused on the search for intrinsical linear polarisation (LP) in the optical emission from the two systems. We carried out multiband optical and NIR photo-polarimetry of the two systems using the ESO NTT at La Silla (Chile), equipped with the EFOSC2 and the SOFI instruments. XSS J12270-4859 was observed during its radio-pulsar state; we did not detect LP in all bands, with 3 sigma upper limits of, e.g., 1.4% in the R-band. We built the NIR-optical averaged spectral energy distribution (SED) of the system, that could be well described by an irradiated black body with radius $R_{\ast }=0.33\pm 0.03R_{\odot }$ and albedo $\eta =0.32\pm 0.05$, without the need of further components (thus excluding the visible presence of an extended accretion disc and/or of relativistic jets). The case was different for PSR J1023+0038, that was in its accretion phase during our campaign. We measured a LP of $1.09\pm 0.27\%$ and $0.90\pm 0.17\%$ in the V and R bands, respectively. The phase-resolved polarimetric curve of the source in the R-band reveals a hint of a sinusoidal modulation at the source 4.75 hr orbital period, peaked at the same orbital phase as the light curve. The measured LP of PSR J1023+0038 could in principle be interpreted as scattering with free electrons (that can be found in the accretion disc of the system or even in the hot corona that surrounds the disc itself) or to synchrotron emission from a relativistic particles jet or outflow. However, the NIR-optical SED of the system built starting from our dataset did not suggest the presence of a jet. We conclude that the optical LP observed for PSR J1023+0038 is possibly due to Thomson scattering with electrons in the disc, as also suggested from the possible modulation of the R-band LP at the system orbital period.

arXiv comment10 pages, 8 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in Sec. 7. Stellar structure and evolution of Astronomy and Astrophysics

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• Pulsating in unison at optical and X-ray energies: simultaneous high-time resolution observations of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038
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• Accreting pulsars: mixing-up accretion phases in transitional systems
• Precise optical timing of PSR J1023+0038, the first millisecond pulsar detected with Aqueye+ in Asiago
• The first continuous optical monitoring of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038 with Kepler
• Orbital Dynamics of Candidate Transitional Millisecond Pulsar 3FGL J1544.6-1125: An unusually face-on system
• Matter ejections behind the highs and lows of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038
• Variable polarisation and Doppler tomography of PSR J1023+0038 - Evidence for the magnetic propeller during flaring?
• Simultaneous broadband observations and high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038
• Probing jet launching in neutron star X-ray binaries: the variable and polarized jet of SAX J1808.4-3658
• Peering at the outflow mechanisms in the transitional pulsar PSR J1023+0038: simultaneous VLT, XMM-Newton, and Swift high-time resolution observations
• Mid-UV Studies of the Transitional Millisecond Pulsars XSS J12270-4859 and PSR J1023+0038 During Their Radio Pulsar States
• A 2 day orbital period for a redback millisecond pulsar candidate in the globular cluster NGC 6397
• Diagnosing pulsar winds in black-widow, redback, and other binary millisecond pulsar systems
• Polarized multiwavelength emission from pulsar wind - accretion disk interaction in a transitional millisecond pulsar
• X-ray study of high-and-low luminosity modes and peculiar low-soft-and-hard activity in the transitional pulsar XSS J12270-4859
• Optical/infrared polarised emission in X-ray binaries