Pulsar Pulsar A pulsar (from "pulse" and "-ar" as in quasar) is a highly magnetized rotating neutron star that emits a beam of electromagnetic radiation. This radiation can be observed only when the beam of emission is pointing toward Earth (much like the way a lighthouse can be seen only when the light is pointed in the direction of an observer), and is responsible for the pulsed appearance of emission. Neutron stars are very dense, and have short, regular rotational periods. This produces a very precise interval between pulses that ranges from milliseconds to seconds for an individual pulsar. Pulsars are
Laser beam profiler beam intensity in one direction. By measuring the intensity curve in several directions, the original beam profile can be reconstructed using algorithms developed for x-ray tomography. The measuring instrument is based on high precision multiple knife edges each deployed on a rotating drum and having a different angle with respect to beam orientation. Scanned beam is then reconstructed using tomographic algorithms and provides 2D or 3D high resolution energy distribution plots. Because of the special scanning technique the system automatically zooms in onto the current beam size enabling high resolution measurements of sub micron beams as well as relative large