Prof. Dipankar Bhattacharya

Neutron Stars harbour the strongest magnetic fields known in nature, with surface values reaching up to 1000 Teragauss. Observational and theoretical studies over the past five decades have unveiled many fascinating aspects of the physics involving these strong fields. However, regarding the origin and evolution of neutron star magnetic fields much still remains unknown. This talk will review our current state of understanding of this topic and illustrate how long-term evolutionary behaviour may provide clues to the origin of the field. Numerous physical processes, including thermoelectric battery, magnetohydrodynamics, Ohmic diffusion, Hall effect, ambipolar diffusion, proton superconductivity and spin alignment may play important roles in various aspects of the origin and the evolution of the magnetic field, which will be discussed. Some directions of future investigations will also be outlined.