The supernova explosion of massive stars usually leaves behind an ultradense neutron star formed by the collapse of the iron core of the former star. The pulse duration corresponds to the spin period of the neutron star and ranges from about 1 ms to 10 s. Millisecond pulsars – the most rapidly rotating – are thought to have been spun-up via accretion of matter from a companion star ( CERN Courier December 2010 p10). While extrasolar planets are continuously being discovered around normal stars ( CERN Courier November 2010 p13), planets around pulsars are extremely rare.