Observational constraints on light cosmic strings from photometry and pulsar timing

We constrain the cosmological density of cosmic string loops using two observational signatures -- gravitational microlensing and the Kaiser-Stebbins effect. Photometry from RXTE and CoRoT space missions and pulsar timing from Parkes Pulsar Timing Array, Arecibo and Green Bank radio telescopes allow us to probe cosmic strings in a wide range of tensions $Gμ/c^2=10^{-16}\div10^{-10}$. We find that pulsar timing data provide the most stringent constraints on the abundance of light strings at the level $Ω_s \sim 10^{-3}$. Future observational facilities such as the Square Kilometer Array will allow one to improve these constraints by orders of magnitude.

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