Division of Electronics, Detectors and Computing for Physics (DEDIP)

Magnetars are neutron stars displaying the most intense magnetic fields observed in the Universe. To tackle the still-open question of the origin of these extreme magnetic fields, a scenario was proposed by a team from the Department of Astrophysics (DAp) at CEA Saclay, invoking the Tayler-Spruit dynamo mechanism, triggered by matter falling onto the young neutron star after the supernova explosion. The team of scientists had shown in 2022 through analytical analysis that this type of dynamo could explain the intensity of the magnetic field of magnetars. In this new study, the team confirms this result through three-dimensional numerical simulations. This will have significant implications for understanding the origin of magnetic fields, not only for magnetars but also for stellar evolution where the same dynamo mechanism could be at work.

This new study was published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters.