Can Pulsars Power Ultra-High-Energy Cosmic Rays? A Theoretical Simulation and Comparison with Observational Data from the Pierre Auger Observatory

This project explores whether pulsars — rapidly rotating neutron stars with intense magnetic fields — can accelerate particles to ultra-high-energy cosmic ray (UHECR) levels, defined as energies greater than 10^18 eV using Goldreich- Julian Potential Model. By modeling the electric potential generated by spinning magnetized neutron stars and calculating the maximum energy for protons and iron nuclei, we tried to identify which types of pulsars are viable UHECR sources. To compare the simulated pulsar acceleration values with observed UltraHigh-Energy Cosmic Ray (UHECR) data, we look at typical UHECR energy ranges detected by the Pierre Auger Observatory The analysis suggests that none are capable of producing cosmic rays near this threshold, even if if heavy nuclei are accelerated. Even extreme pulsars modeled in this study fall short of the UHECR threshold, Heavier elements (like iron) reach higher energies due to higher charge (Z), but still not enough to account for the >10¹⁸ eV events. Pulsars might contribute to lower-energy cosmic rays. UHECRs likely originate from extragalactic sources, such as active galactic nuclei (AGN), gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), or interactions involving supermassive black holes