Investigating the neutron star physics through observations of several young pulsars in the dipole-field re-emergence scenario

Abstract

The observed timing data, magnetic tilt angle χ, and age of young pulsars could be used to probe some important issues about neutron star (NS) physics, e.g., the NS internal magnetic field configuration, and the number of precession cycles ξ. Both quantities are critical in studying the continuous gravitational wave emission from pulsars, and the latter generally characterizes the mutual interactions between superfluid neutrons and other particles in the NS interior. The timing behavior of pulsars can be influenced by the dipole field evolution, which instead of decaying, may increase with time. An increase in the dipole field may result from the re-emergence of the initial dipole field B_d,i that was buried into the NS interior shortly after the birth of the NS. In this work, the field re-emergence scenario ξ and the internal field configuration of several young pulsars, as well as their B_d,i are investigated by assuming typical accreted masses ΔM. Moreover, since the Crab pulsar has an exactly known age and its tilt angle change rate can be inferred from observations, we can set stringent constraints on its ξ, B_d,i, and ΔM. Although for other young pulsars without exactly known ages and tilt angle change rates, these quantities cannot be accurately determined, we find that their ξ are generally within ∼10⁴–10⁶, and some of them probably have magnetar-strength B_d,i. Our work could be important for investigating the transient emissions associated with NSs, the origin of strong magnetic fields of NSs, pulsar population, continuous gravitational wave emission from pulsars, and accretion under extreme conditions in principle.