The Thousand-Pulsar-Array programme on MeerKAT XIX: single-pulse data analysis, nulling and pulse energy distributions

Journal article

We present the Thousand Pulsar Array (TPA) single-pulse data release, obtained with the MeerKAT radio telescope and comprising time-series observations of 1192 pulsars, typically containing consecutive pulses per source. We describe the MeerTime Single Pulse software pipeline which calibrates the data and automatically excises interference signals to produce data products suitable for typical single-pulse studies. To demonstrate the capabilities of the data set, we carry out a population-level study of phase-averaged single-pulse energy distributions and nulling behaviour. Pulse energy distributions are modelled within a Bayesian framework choosing from a range of intrinsic energy distributions, and including an explicit nulling fraction. We find that approximately half of the pulsars require multicomponent intrinsic energy distributions, while the remainder are consistent with single-component models. Nulling is detected or constrained for most pulsars in the sample, and both the occurrence and inferred nulling fraction show systematic variation across the P– diagram. In particular, nulling fractions increase with spin period and exhibit only a weak dependence on period derivative. We also examine trends in the preferred forms of pulse energy distributions as a function of spin-down luminosity, finding modest evidence for population-level evolution. Estimates of single-pulse luminosities indicate that individual pulses can exceed the long-term average luminosity by large factors, particularly for low- pulsars. These results characterize the statistical properties of single-pulse emission across a large pulsar sample and highlight the limitations of phase-averaged energy distributions for capturing the full complexity of pulsar emission variability.

Authors: Keith, MJ; Weltevrede, P; Oswald, L; Karastergiou, A; Song, X

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Journal: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
• Volume: 550
• Issue: 1
• Pages: stag1108
• Article number: stag1108
• Publication date: 2026-06-10
• Acceptance date: 2026-06-08
• DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stag1108
• EISSN: 1365-2966
• ISSN: 0035-8711
• Language: English
• Keywords: pulsars: general