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Magnetars: The strongest magnets in the Universe
Author(s) -
Rea N.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
astronomische nachrichten
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.394
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1521-3994
pISSN - 0004-6337
DOI - 10.1002/asna.201312041
Subject(s) - magnetar , physics , neutron star , astrophysics , context (archaeology) , magnetic field , stars , gauss , quantum mechanics , paleontology , biology
Neutron stars provide a unique environment where we can test (at the same time) our understanding of matter with extreme density, temperature, and magnetic field. In particular, the properties of matter under the influence of magnetic fields and the role of electromagnetism in physical processes are key areas of research in physics. However, despite decades of research, our limited knowledge on the physics of strong magnetic fields is clear: we only need to note that the strongest steady magnetic field achieved in terrestrial laboratories is some millions Gauss, only thousands of times stronger than a common refrigerator magnet. In this general context, I will review here the state of the art of our research on the most magnetic objects in the Universe, a small sample of neutron stars called magnetars. The study of the strong high energy emission, and the flares from these strongly magnetised (∼10 15 G) neutron stars is providing crucial information about the physics involved at these extremes conditions, resulting in many unexpected discoveries. (© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)