A NuSTAR and Chandra Investigation of the Misaligned Outflow of PSR J1101–6101 and the Lighthouse Pulsar Wind Nebula

Abstract

Abstract PSR J1101–6101 is an energetic young pulsar that powers the remarkable Lighthouse pulsar wind nebula (PWN). The pulsar belongs to the rare type of radio- and gamma-ray-quiet pulsars that are bright in hard X-rays. Moreover, the Lighthouse PWN is remarkable for its misaligned outflow (which gave rise to the PWN’s nickname). Also known as “pulsar filaments,” these collimated parsec-scale X-ray structures have been recently discovered in the vicinity of a handful of fast-moving pulsars, and they appear unaffected by the ram pressure that confines pulsar tails. We report on NuSTAR observations of PSR J1101–6101 and its misaligned outflow—the first observation of such a structure above ∼10 keV. We detect the outflow up to 25 keV, spatially resolve its spectral evolution with distance from the pulsar, find unambiguous evidence of spectral cooling with distance from the pulsar, and infer physical properties of the particles and magnetic field in the outflow. We also reanalzye archival Chandra data and discuss the outflow’s small-scale structure. We detect pulsations from PSR J1101–6101 up to 20 keV, present the X-ray pulse profile, confirm its period derivative, and perform phase-resolved spectroscopy. Finally, we discuss the X-ray source 2CXO J110158.4–605649 = 2XMM J110158.5–605651 (a serendipitously observed blazar) and suggest it may be the X-ray counterpart to the GeV source 4FGL J1102.0–6054.