Polarization Vector Rotations: Real, Spurious, Hidden and Imaginary

Abstract

Large and variable polarization is an inherent property of a majority of blazars. Systematic rotations of the polarization vector have been claimed for several blazars. In some cases, however, the reality of these rotations may be questionable. We suggest an additional method for the verification of the reality of polarization position angle rotations based on the correlation of the normalized Stokes parameters.

Keywords

• blazars
• polarimetry
• methods of analysis