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A Coherent Timing Solution for the Nearby Isolated Neutron Star RX J0720.4-3125

D. L. Kaplan·M. H. van Kerkwijk
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Abstract

We present the results of a dedicated effort to measure the spin-down rate of the nearby isolated neutron star RX J0720.4-3125. Comparing arrival times of the 8.39-sec pulsations for data from Chandra we derive an unambiguous timing solution for RX J0720.4-3125 that is accurate to <0.1 cycles over >5 years. Adding data from XMM and ROSAT, the final solution yields Pdot=(6.98+/-0.02)x10^(-14) s/s; for dipole spin-down, this implies a characteristic age of 2 Myr and a magnetic field strength of 2.4e13 G. The phase residuals are somewhat larger than those for purely regular spin-down, but do not show conclusive evidence for higher-order terms or a glitch. From our timing solution as well as recent X-ray spectroscopy, we concur with recent suggestions that RX J0720.4-3125 is most likely an off-beam radio pulsar with a moderately high magnetic field.

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D. L. Kaplan, M. H. van Kerkwijk. 2005-06-17. A Coherent Timing Solution for the Nearby Isolated Neutron Star RX J0720.4-3125. https://doi.org/10.1086/432536

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