Pulsar polarization as a direct consequence of the emission process

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Abstract
A calculation is presented of the polarization properties of the radiation emitted by a particle accelerated simultaneously both by the curvature of the predetermined trajectory and parallel to the instantaneous velocity. Arguments are put forth that such a phase-coherent mixing of acceleration perpendicular and parallel to the velocity is likely to occur in pulsars. Many of the characteristic polarization properties of pulsars (e.g. the two-mode behaviour of the PA, the wide range of transition times between these two modes in individual subpulses and/or micropulses, and the increased depolarization at higher frequency due to an equalization of the radiation in the two modes) can be explained by assuming that the particle distribution has structure on an angular scale comparable to the beamwidth of the individual particle. Furthermore, the shape of the particle distribution is important for the observed polarization; for example, if the circular polarization results from the emission process directly, then the particle distribution must be elongated in the meridian plane.

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