Frequency-dependent Polarization of Repeating Fast Radio Bursts Reveals Their Origin
The research team analyzed the observational data of FAST and GBT (the Green Bank Telescope). A mechanism that can uniformly explain the polarization frequency evolution of repeating FRB is proposed for the first time. Based on this, a single parameter, "RM dispersion", which can describe the surrounding environment of the FRBs is derived. This mechanism supports the repeating FRB in a complex ionizing environment which is similar to supernova remnants. The possible evolution stage of FRBs is determined by polarization observation, which provides key observational evidence for the origin of the FRBs. The greater the "RM dispersion" of the FRB, the more change of its surrounding environment. Therefore, it is also likely to be younger, which has the potential to become an "ID card" to identify repeating bursts. The results were published in Science on March 18.
Mar 17, 2022