The Astrophysical Journal (Jan 2023)
A Large-scale Magneto-ionic Fluctuation in the Local Environment of Periodic Fast Radio Burst Source FRB 20180916B
- R. Mckinven,
- B. M. Gaensler,
- D. Michilli,
- K. Masui,
- V. M. Kaspi,
- M. Bhardwaj,
- T. Cassanelli,
- P. Chawla,
- F. (Adam) Dong,
- E. Fonseca,
- C. Leung,
- D. Z. Li,
- C. Ng,
- C. Patel,
- E. Petroff,
- A. B. Pearlman,
- Z. Pleunis,
- M. Rafiei-Ravandi,
- M. Rahman,
- K. R. Sand,
- K. Shin,
- P. Scholz,
- I. H. Stairs,
- K. Smith,
- J. Su,
- S. Tendulkar
Affiliations
- R. Mckinven
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada; Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada; David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- B. M. Gaensler
- ORCiD
- Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada; David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- D. Michilli
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- K. Masui
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- V. M. Kaspi
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada
- M. Bhardwaj
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada
- T. Cassanelli
- ORCiD
- Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada; David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- P. Chawla
- ORCiD
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam , Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- F. (Adam) Dong
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics and Astronomy , 6224 Agricultural Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1, Canada
- E. Fonseca
- ORCiD
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering , 1220 Evansdale Drive, P.O. Box 6109, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA; Center for Gravitational Waves and Cosmology, West Virginia University , Chestnut Ridge Research Building, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA; Department of Physics and Astronomy, West Virginia University , P.O. Box 6315, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
- C. Leung
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- D. Z. Li
- ORCiD
- Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, California Institute of Technology , 1216 E. California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
- C. Ng
- ORCiD
- Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- C. Patel
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- E. Petroff
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada; Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam , Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- A. B. Pearlman
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada
- Z. Pleunis
- ORCiD
- Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- M. Rafiei-Ravandi
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada
- M. Rahman
- ORCiD
- Sidrat Research , P.O. Box 73527 RPO Wychwood, Toronto, ON M6C 4A7, Canada
- K. R. Sand
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]; McGill Space Institute, McGill University , 3550 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2A7, Canada
- K. Shin
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- P. Scholz
- ORCiD
- Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, Canada
- I. H. Stairs
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics and Astronomy , 6224 Agricultural Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1, Canada
- K. Smith
- ORCiD
- Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics , 31 Caroline Street N, Waterloo, ON N2L 2Y5, Canada
- J. Su
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics, McGill University , 3600 rue University, Montréal, QC H3A 2T8, Canada ; [email protected]
- S. Tendulkar
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research , Mumbai, 400005, India; National Centre for Radio Astrophysics , Post Bag 3, Ganeshkhind, Pune, 411007, India
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acc65f
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 950,
no. 1
p. 12
Abstract
Fast radio burst (FRB) source FRB 20180916B exhibits a 16.33-day periodicity in its burst activity. It is as of yet unclear what proposed mechanism produces the activity, but polarization information is a key diagnostic. Here we report on the polarization properties of 44 bursts from FRB 20180916B detected between 2018 December and 2021 December by CHIME/FRB, the FRB project on the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment. In contrast to previous observations, we find significant variations in the Faraday rotation measure (RM) of FRB 20180916B. Over the 9-month period 2021 April and 2021 December we observe an apparent secular increase in RM of ∼50 rad m ^−2 (a fractional change of over 40%) that is accompanied by a possible drift of the emitting band to lower frequencies. This interval displays very little variation in the dispersion measure (ΔDM ≲ 0.8 pc cm ^−3 ), which indicates that the observed RM evolution is likely produced from coherent changes in the Faraday-active medium’s magnetic field. Burst-to-burst RM variations appear unrelated to the activity cycle phase. The degree of linear polarization of our burst sample (≳80%) is consistent with the negligible depolarization expected for this source in the 400–800 MHz bandpass of CHIME. FRB 20180916B joins other repeating FRBs in displaying substantial RM evolution. This is consistent with the notion that repeater progenitors may be associated with young stellar populations by their preferential occupation of dynamic magnetized environments commonly found in supernova remnants, in pulsar wind nebulae, or near high-mass stellar companions.
Keywords
