SIMBAD references

The relationship between the polarization characteristics of drifting subpulses and the corresponding components in the average pulsar profile is examined. It is assumed that the polarization position angle swings throughout each subpulse and the circular polarization reverses sense near the subpulse maximum. It is shown that in the averaging process this signature is preserved in the core components, which correspond to subpulses stationary in phase, while in conal components corresponding to systematically drifting subpulses, the mean polarization angle is flattened and the circular polarization is almost completely canceled. This could be a natural explanation of the apparent difference in circular polarization between the core and the conal profile components.