Polarization Sweeps in Rotation Powered Pulsars

Abstract

We re-examine the characteristic polarization angle sweep of rotation-powered pulsars and calculate the expected deviations from this sweep caused by aberrational effects and by polar-cap current flow. We find that in addition to the previously known phase shift of the entire sweep by $\Delta \Phi = -4 r/R_L$, aberration shifts the polarization angle itself by $\Delta \Psi = -(10/3) (r/R_L) \cos \alpha$. Similarly, current flow above the polar cap shifts the polarization sweep by $\Delta \Psi = (10/3) (r/R_L) (J/J_{GJ}) \cos \alpha$, potentially providing a method of directly measuring the magnitude of the current. The competition between these two effects produces a potentially observable signature in the polarization angle sweep. Although these effects may appear similar to orthogonal mode shifts, they are an independent phenomenon with distinct observational characteristics.