Energy Loss of Newborn Magnetars by Schwinger Process

Abstract

We investigate electron--positron pair creation through the Schwinger process in newborn magnetars with millisecond spin periods and surface dipole fields close to or above the QED critical field, $B_{\mathrm{Q}}=4.414\times 10^{13}\mathrm{G}$. In the unscreened field scenario, we derive the analytical global pair creation flux and recast it into a compact form with accurate analytic approximations. For a fiducial model with $B_{\mathrm{p}}=10^{14}\mathrm{G}$ and $P_0=1\mathrm{ms}$, the Schwinger channel exceeds the classical Goldreich--Julian particle supply by many orders of magnitude and becomes the dominant source of charges at the earliest stage of the magnetar. The associated discharge removes about $90\%$ of the initial rotational energy within 30 ms, suppresses the gravitational-wave loss channel, and implies that the observable millisecond phase is extremely short in this unscreened scenario. The rapid energy release over such a short timescale may also provide a viable power source for astrophysical transients. Extending the same fiducial model to $10^4\mathrm{yr}$ gives spin periods of order seconds, linking newborn millisecond magnetars to the mature magnetar population.

Accepted for publication in the Journal of High Energy Astrophysics

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