The physics of pulsar halos: Research progress and prospect

Abstract

Diffusive TeV gamma-ray emissions have been recently discovered extending beyond the pulsar wind nebulae of a few middle-aged pulsars, implying that energetic electron/ positron pairs are escaping from the pulsar wind nebulae and radiating in the ambient interstellar medium. It has been suggested that these extended emissions constitute a distinct class of nonthermal sources, termed “pulsar halos”. In this paper, I will review the research progress on pulsar halos and discuss our current understanding on their physics, including the multiwavelength observations, different theoretical models, as well as implications for the origin of cosmic-ray positron excess and Galactic diffuse gamma-ray emission.