Discovery of Soft X-Ray Pulsations from PSR J1231–1411 using NICER

Abstract

We report the discovery of soft X-ray pulsations from the nearby millisecond pulsar PSR J1231−1411 using the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer ( NICER ). The pulsed emission is characterized by a broad and asymmetric main pulse and a much fainter secondary interpulse, with a total pulsed count rate of 0.055 c s −1 in the 0.35–1.5 keV band. We analyzed Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) data to update the pulse timing model covering 10 yr of data and used that model to coherently combine NICER data over a year of observations. Spectral modeling suggests that the flux is dominated by thermal emission from a hot spot (or spots) on the neutron star surface. The phase relationship between the X-ray pulse and the radio and γ rays provides insight into the geometry of the system.