Narrow Atomic Features from Rapidly Spinning Neutron Stars

Abstract

Neutron stars spinning at moderate rates (~300-600Hz) become oblate in shape and acquire a nonzero quadrupole moment. In this paper, we calculate profiles of atomic features from such neutron stars using a ray-tracing algorithm in the Hartle-Thorne approximation. We show that line profiles acquire cores that are much narrower than the widths expected from pure Doppler effects for a large range of observer inclinations. As a result, the effects of both the oblateness and the quadrupole moments of neutron stars need to be taken into account when aiming to measure neutron star radii from rotationally broadened lines. Moreover, the presence of these narrow cores substantially increases the likelihood of detecting atomic lines from rapidly spinning neutron stars.