Correlated Rapid Optical and Radio Polarization Variability in a Sample of Blazars

Details Correlated Rapid Optical and Radio Polarization Variability in a Sample of Blazars Correlated Rapid Optical and Radio Polarization Variability in a Sample of Blazars

Dec 2007

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007aas...211.0408d&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #211, #04.08; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 39, p.731

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

We present the results of two multiwavelength campaigns - in October of 2005 and March of 2006 - during which we observed a number of blazars in order to determine their polarization characteristics. We performed highly-sampled optical and infrared polarimetry over ten days, and imaged the parsec scale jet at the VLBA at 43 GHz on three epochs during each campaign. Through comparison of rapid variability in polarization percentage and electric vector position angle (EVPA), we connect the unresolved optical emission with a location in the resolved 43 GHz VLBA jet. We observed 25 blazars, 18 of which had sufficient data for multiwavelength correlation. Of these 18 blazars, 13 showed convincing correlation in variable polarization characteristics between the optical emission and the emission of the 43 GHz core, with most of the objects demonstrating a substantial rotation of EVPA at both wavelengths. The remaining 5 objects are neither conclusively correlated nor uncorrelated, but warrant further study. After correction for Faraday rotation, the majority of the observed blazars had optical and radio core EVPAs that were agreeable to within 15 degrees. From this survey, we are able to conclude that, for most blazars, optical emission originates in the 43 GHz core. This research was funded in part by the National Science Foundation through grant AST-0406865.

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