Period variations in pulsating X-ray sources. II - Torque variations and stellar response

Abstract

A statistical description of variations in the torque acting on a rotating neutron star is developed in terms of stationary random processes and is used to calculate the torque power spectrum, stellar response power spectrum, and the total mean square variation in the crustal angular velocity of the star. The response of a star with a finite frequency internal mode is calculated with the aid of phenomenological equations which correspond to a generalized two-component model of the star. The form of the stellar response functions is examined in a number of limiting cases of physical interest, and the dependence of the response power on both the period of observation and the time over which fluctuating torques have been acting is discussed.