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Descrizione
Magnetic fields play a fundamental role in shaping the observational properties and evolution of compact objects across multiple scales. I will review some advances highlighting the impact of strong magnetic fields in neutron stars and white dwarfs, with particular emphasis on new observational results.
Magnetars represent the most extreme case, where ultra-strong magnetic fields (≳10¹⁴ G) dominate the emission physics. Recent X-ray polarimetric observations with IXPE have provided the first direct measurements of high degrees of polarization, offering crucial constraints on emission geometries, radiative transfer in strongly magnetized plasmas, and quantum electrodynamics effects.
Then, the emerging class of Long Period Radio Transients (LPRTs), initially interpreted as the long-period tail of the pulsar or magnetar population. However, accumulating evidence now suggests that at least a fraction of these sources are highly magnetized white dwarfs, challenging our understanding of coherent radio emission mechanisms and expanding the landscape of magnetically powered transients.
Next, I will address ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs), where strong magnetic fields in accreting neutron stars might be responsible for enabling super-Eddington luminosities. These systems provide key laboratories to study extreme accretion regimes regulated by magnetic fields.
Finally, I will briefly explore compact double white dwarf ultra compact binaries, such as HM Cnc, where magnetic coupling may enforce spin–orbit synchronization, potentially powering the observed emission, similar to the Io-Jupiter interaction.
Together, these examples illustrate how magnetic fields are a unifying ingredient in compact object astrophysics, driving diverse and often extreme observational regimes.
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