A model for the energetic emission from pulsars

Abstract

A current sheet separates, beyond the closed part of the pulsar magnetosphere, two half-spaces with oppositely directed magnetic fields. It is shown that reconnection in this sheet may provide a source for high-energy emission. Particles heated in the sheet just beyond the closed part of the magnetosphere emit gamma-rays. Electron-positron pairs produced around the sheet due to γ - γ interaction emit in the infrared and optical band. If the number density of the new-born pairs is large enough, they affect the structure of the current sheet and it emits also X-rays. Luminosities in the gamma-ray, X-ray and IR-optical bands are estimated and shown to be consistent with those observed from rapidly-spinning pulsars.