Astronomers from the United States and Poland have come a long riddle that is associated with radio waves, which emit pulsars. According to researchers, the reason that this type of neutron star acts as a beacon, is the interaction between electric and magnetic fields at the surface of the object. This was reported in an article published in the journal Physical Review Letters.
Strong electric fields rip electrons from the surface of the neutron star and accelerated to their extreme energies, with the result that they begin to emit gamma rays. Gamma rays are absorbed by the superstrong magnetic field of the pulsar that produces a flow of electrons and their antiparticles — positrons. These charged particles cause an electric field to oscillate and produce a flow of electromagnetic waves. The simulation results showed that these waves correspond to radio waves.
Pulsars are characterized by fast rotation (up to 700 revolutions per second) that generates a powerful electric field. At the same time the magnetic poles are emitted in a continuous and coherent beams of radio waves. During the rotation of the pulsar rays describe a circle if the beam passes through the field of view of terrestrial observers, then there are characterized impulses. The frequency of these pulses on the accuracy can exceed the atomic clock. However, scientists for a long time could not understand the exact mechanism of their appearance.
