-
13/05/2026, 13:00
-
13/05/2026, 14:00
-
13/05/2026, 14:15
Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are short (from millisecond to tens of millisecond) radio flashes originating from sources located across the whole Universe up (so far) to a redshift around 2. Although about 5000 sources have been now catalogued, the engine of the FRB emission is still unconstrained, and the nature of the underlying source(s) debated. This contribution will focus on some recent...
Go to contribution page -
13/05/2026, 14:40
Emission outside the radio band is predicted for most models trying to explain the FRB phenomenon. Its nature, however, is still to be determined, with the exception of the possible example provided by the Galactic FRB20200428A, where X-ray emission was observed simultaneously with the radio emission, with an energy ratio E_X/E_radio = 10^5.
Go to contribution page
I will review the targeted attempts to search for... -
13/05/2026, 15:05
Nearly two decades after their discovery, the origin of fast radio bursts (FRBs) remains a mystery.
Go to contribution page
To date their bright, coherent radio emission has no detected counterparts beyond the radio band,
with the only exception of FRB-like flares emitted by the galactic magnetar SGR 1935+215. The
latter lend support to the proposed association of FRB sources with a cosmic population of... -
13/05/2026, 15:30
Repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs) are prime targets for high–time-resolution optical searches
Go to contribution page
aimed at identifying fast optical counterparts. Between October 2022 and December 2023, we
monitored the highly active repeater FRB 20220912A at the Asiago Observatory using the fast
photon-counting instruments Aqueye+ and IFI+Iqueye. During prolonged optical observations,
we identified short (∼1... -
13/05/2026, 15:45
The long unexplored fast optical sky is now accessible thanks to new large ground-based telescopes
Go to contribution page
and new generation instruments. Studying it may lead to new discoveries, but it is also challenging
due to optical pollution.
In this talk, I will present our preliminary results obtained from an automated search and characterization
of mysterious Fast (millisecond) Optical Bursts (FOBs) in... -
13/05/2026, 16:00
The Crab pulsar is the youngest known neutron star and it has been monitored for over five decades.
Go to contribution page
Its giant pulses (GPs) provide a unique laboratory for probing neutron-star emission physics. Fast
radio bursts (FRBs), often linked to neutron stars, offer a complementary framework for studying
extreme energy-release processes. Crab GPs have typical fluences larger than a few tens of Jy... -
13/05/2026, 16:45
Magnetars are the most magnetised isolated neutron stars known in the Universe. Their signature
Go to contribution page
is the unpredictable and and variable flaring activity in the X/gamma-ray bands, with bursts lasting
from a few milliseconds to tens of seconds and reaching peak luminosities of 1037-1043 erg/s. These
flaring events are often accompanied by outbursts in which the persistent X-ray flux increases... -
13/05/2026, 17:10
Central compact objects (CCOs) are a rather unusual manifestation of neutron stars (NSs). They
Go to contribution page
show all the characteristics of being old compared to the bulk NS population; they have slower spin
periods, weaker surface magnetic fields and their pulsed emission is almost exclusively comprised
of thermal X-rays. We nevertheless know they must be young because they are found in the
centre of... -
13/05/2026, 17:25
Core-collapse supernovae are the birth sites of neutron stars and black holes, yet the properties of
Go to contribution page
the newly formed compact object remain elusive at optical wavelengths. Fast optical photometry
—with sub-second sampling —opens a new window on the rapidly evolving phases of supernovae
and on the late-time emission that may betray the presence of an active compact remnant.
We report on the... -
13/05/2026, 17:40
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the most energetic explosions in the Universe, yet the physics of
Go to contribution page
their prompt emission phase remains poorly constrained. Simultaneous optical observations during
the prompt γ-ray phase provide a unique and direct diagnostic of the jet structure, emission
mechanism, and outflow Lorentz factor. To date, only a handful of events have been captured in
optical light... -
13/05/2026, 17:55
The physical mechanism powering the prompt emission of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) —internal
Go to contribution page
shocks, magnetic reconnection, or photospheric dissipation —is one of the longest-standing open
questions in high-energy astrophysics. While gamma-ray observations alone cannot break the
model degeneracy, simultaneous optical monitoring at sub-second cadence offers a powerful and
largely unexploited... -
13/05/2026, 18:10
-
14/05/2026, 09:00
High-time resolution astronomy in the visible band has historically been limited by the readout
Go to contribution page
scales of standard detectors. SiFAP2, a fast optical photometer based on Silicon Photo-Multipliers
mounted at the 3.58m Telescopio Nazionale Galileo, overcomes these constraints by recording individual
photon arrival times with a sub-nanosecond resolution. This instrument has been pivotal
in... -
14/05/2026, 09:25
PSR J1023+0038 is a transitional millisecond pulsar (tMSP), the only one where coherent pulsations
Go to contribution page
were discovered in both the Optical and X-ray energy bands to date. We present a detailed
timing analysis of new Aqueye+ optical data taken from 2021 through 2023, obtaining an updated
timing solution for the pulsar. We perform a new measurement of the phase lag between optical
and X-ray... -
14/05/2026, 09:40
Transitional millisecond pulsars (tMSPs) represent a dynamic class of systems linking low-mass
Go to contribution page
X-ray binaries to rotation-powered millisecond radio pulsars, providing key laboratories to study
accretion–ejection physics and neutron star environments. These sources undergo transitions between
accretion- and rotation-powered states, and in their active phase, they display rapid... -
14/05/2026, 09:55
The discovery of millisecond optical pulsations in SAX J1808.4−3658 and PSR J1023+0038 has
Go to contribution page
opened a new window on the interplay between accretion, magnetic fields, and particle acceleration
in neutron-star binaries. In this talk I will review the main physical ideas that have been
proposed to explain these signals, from accretion-powered hotspot scenarios to synchrotron models
associated... -
14/05/2026, 10:20
Transitional millisecond pulsars constitute a peculiar subclass of neutron stars in which the pulsar
Go to contribution page
alternates between accretion-powered and rotation-powered states. A third intermediate state,
referred to as ‘sub-luminous disk state’, has been identified. During this state, the system exhibits
intriguing features, such as broad optical and X-ray pulsations characterized by an... -
14/05/2026, 11:00
Pulsars, thanks to their extreme characteristics and their clock-like nature, are unique laboratories
Go to contribution page
to probe many aspects of astrophysics and fundamental physics: from stellar and binary evolution
to the study of the interstellar medium and of the Galactic magnetic field, from nuclear physics to
relativistic gravity and gravitational waves.
The extraordinary sensitivity of the MeerkAT... -
14/05/2026, 11:25
About half of all currently known millisecond pulsars (MSPs) reside in globular clusters. These are
Go to contribution page
extremely ancient, self-gravitating, spherical stellar systems that orbit our Galaxy. In their cores,
the stellar density can exceed a million solar masses per cubic parsec, providing a formidable
breeding ground for the formation of binary systems in which a neutron star can be spun up by... -
14/05/2026, 11:50
High-time-resolution detectors are playing a crucial role in advancing our understanding of neutron
Go to contribution page
stars and transient phenomena, enabling precise measurements of their properties. SiFAP2,
the high-speed optical photometer permanently mounted at the 3.6m INAF Telescopio Nazionale
Galileo, obtained significant breakthroughs discovering optical pulsations of three millisecond pulsars
in... -
14/05/2026, 12:15
Since its launch in 2008, Fermi-LAT has been uncovering a new nearby population of compact
Go to contribution page
binary millisecond pulsars, also known as “spiders”. Expanding the currently known spider population
holds the key to finding the fastest-rotating and most massive neutron stars, which have
crucial implications for nuclear physics and gravitational wave astronomy. Although many of
these systems are... -
14/05/2026, 12:30
Neutron stars are among the faintest sources of optical radiation. Nonetheless, their study has
Go to contribution page
been pursued since right after the pulsar discovery and has continued through the years with
renewed effort. In this review, I will summarise the state of the art of optical and UV observations
of neutron stars, with particular emphasis on the scientific implications of such observations... -
14/05/2026, 14:30
Accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars represent a key phase in the formation of rotation-powered
Go to contribution page
millisecond pulsars, providing a direct observational window onto the interaction between accretion
flows and magnetised neutron stars. Their X-ray pulsations offer a unique probe of how
angular momentum is transferred to the neutron star and how spin evolution proceeds under the
action of... -
14/05/2026, 14:55
SAX J1808.4-3658 is the prototype of accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars and the first of this class
Go to contribution page
to show optical and UV pulsations during an accretion outburst. These pulsations challenge standard
rotation- or accretion-powered scenarios and provide a unique window into the emission
mechanisms of pulsating neutron stars. I will present a multi-band timing study based on... -
14/05/2026, 15:10
Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in binary systems display a rich phenomenology, including spider pulsars,
Go to contribution page
commonly classified as black widows or redbacks, as well as transitional millisecond pulsars.
Understanding how these systems relate to one another within the broader MSP population remains
an open question.
In this talk, I present a set of algorithms in the context of graph theory,... -
14/05/2026, 15:25
Transitional millisecond pulsars (tMSPs) switch between a rotation-powered radio pulsar state and
Go to contribution page
an X-ray active state in which an accretion disc is present. What powers the emission in this active
state (pulsar rotation, mass accretion, or some combination of both) has been debated for over a
decade. Multiwavelength polarimetry offers a powerful tool to break this degeneracy.
In this... -
14/05/2026, 15:50
Millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are the quickest-spinning neutron stars (NSs) known. The X-ray pulsations
Go to contribution page
produced by hot spots on the NS surface encode information about the mass and size of
these compact objects; in this context, accreting MSPs (AMSPs) are among the best targets because
they become relatively bright X-ray sources during X-ray outbursts. Yet, breaking the degeneracy
among the... -
14/05/2026, 16:15
X-ray timing and broadband spectroscopy have been the main methods for studying the rich and
Go to contribution page
complex phenomenology of neutron stars with weak magnetic fields for a long time. Nowadays,
X-ray polarimetry offers the missing, independent set of observables that are directly relevant to
comprehending the geometry and nature of the emission regions: polarization degree and angle.
This allows... -
14/05/2026, 16:30
Fast X-ray timing of transient sources has historically been the domain of large, monolithic space
Go to contribution page
observatories. Here we show that, for the first time, sub-millisecond timing can be achieved with
a wide-field nanosatellite instrument operating without collimation. Using data from the HERMES
X/γ-ray spectrometer on board the SpIRIT CubeSat, we demonstrate sub-millisecond... -
14/05/2026, 17:15
Black Hole Transients (BHTs) are binary systems composed of a stellar-mass BH and a companion
Go to contribution page
star typically less massive than the Sun. These sources emit over a wide range of electromagnetic
frequencies, from radio to gamma-rays. Their multi-band spectral energy distribution is dominated
by two main components: an accretion disk, emitting from the optical to the X-rays, and a... -
14/05/2026, 17:40
Accretion onto compact objects is a fundamental process in astrophysics, powering some of the
Go to contribution page
brightest sources in the sky. It also drives powerful outflows that can shape the surrounding
environment, making accretion central to the broader inflow–outflow cycle. In recent years, subsecond
optical and infrared observations of accreting X-ray binaries have opened a new window
onto this... -
14/05/2026, 18:05
e-SIFAP has been designed to study sources characterized by quickly-variable polarized emission.
Go to contribution page
After a brief overview of polarimetric measurement methods, we provide a detailed description of
e-SIFAP. The discussion focuses on its unique capabilities, particularly its ultra-high temporal resolution
and its broad spectral coverage. e-SIFAP operates across an extensive range that... -
15/05/2026, 09:30
Timing neutron star systems is crucial to follow the evolution of binary and the interplay between
Go to contribution page
the two objects, test strong-field general relativity, and study the neutron star itself. Millisecond
pulsars in particular are ideal targets to probe the strong interaction at supranuclear densities
and search for continuous gravitational wave (CW) sources. I will review the main... -
15/05/2026, 09:55
Detecting periodic signals from accreting pulsars, including millisecond pulsars, is challenging due
Go to contribution page
to distortions introduced by orbital motion in binary systems. This talk presents the use of evolutionary
algorithms, specifically genetic algorithms, to efficiently explore the orbital parameter
space and reconstruct a corrected light curve, reducing computational cost compared to... -
15/05/2026, 10:10
Fast X-ray timing of transient sources has historically been the domain of large, monolithic space
Go to contribution page
observatories. Here we show that, for the first time, sub-millisecond timing can be achieved with
a wide-field nanosatellite instrument operating without collimation. Using data from the HERMES
X/γ-ray spectrometer on board the SpIRIT CubeSat, we demonstrate sub-millisecond... -
15/05/2026, 11:00
High-time-resolution detectors are playing a crucial role in advancing our understanding of neutron
Go to contribution page
stars and transient phenomena, enabling precise measurements of their properties. SiFAP2,
the high-speed optical photometer permanently mounted at the 3.6m INAF Telescopio Nazionale
Galileo, obtained significant breakthroughs discovering optical pulsations of three millisecond pulsars
in... -
15/05/2026, 11:25
Aqueye+ and Iqueye are two astronomical instruments designed to exploit the highest time resolution
Go to contribution page
achievable using modern electronics and detectors in the optical band. They are used
to explore the quantum properties of light (e.g., through intensity interferometry measurements)
and to enable the study of rapid optical variability down to the sub-millisecond level. This extreme
timing... -
15/05/2026, 11:50
Einstein Probe, launched in January 2024, is opening a new window on the transient X-ray Universe
Go to contribution page
through the wide-field capabilities of its Wide-field X-ray Telescope and the rapid, sensitive
follow-up provided by the Follow-up X-ray Telescope. In this talk, I will present the main characteristics
of the mission and its role in the discovery and characterization of X-ray transients,... -
15/05/2026, 12:10
SOXS (Son Of X-Shooter) will be a unique spectroscopic facility built by an international consortium
Go to contribution page
for the ESO-NTT 3.6-m telescope in La Silla (Chile). The design foresees a single-object,
high-efficiency spectrograph with a resolution-slit product of ~ 4,500, capable of simultaneously
observing the complete spectral range 350 - 2000 nm with a good sensitivity and with... -
15/05/2026, 12:30
-
15/05/2026, 12:50
Choose timezone
Your profile timezone: