Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T01:38:17.675Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

High Time Resolution Astronomical Polarimetry with GASP

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 June 2018

Eoin G.P. O’Connor ,
Andrew Shearer ,
Christian Gouiffes  and
Philippe Laurent
Eoin G.P. O’Connor
Affiliation:
Centre for Astronomy, School of Physics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland email: [email protected]
Andrew Shearer
Affiliation:
Centre for Astronomy, School of Physics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland email: [email protected]
Christian Gouiffes
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/Service d’Astrophysique, C.E.A. Saclay, France
Philippe Laurent
Affiliation:
CEA/DSM/IRFU/Service d’Astrophysique, C.E.A. Saclay, France
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The Galway Astronomical Stokes Polarimeter (GASP) is a high time resolution, full-Stokes imaging polarimeter which utilises a Fresnel rhomb prism as a beam-splitter and quarter wave retarder. The ability to perform optical photometry and polarimetry at high frame rates enables more detailed studies of a multitude of compact objects including; optical pulsars, magnetars and Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). We present a brief discussion of the instruments’ current capabilities and hardware design. GASP is currently configured with two Electron Multiplying Charge-Coupled Devices (EMCCDs), which offer sub-millisecond frame readout speeds over a defined region of interest on the sensor. We will report results from an observational campaign at the William Herschel Telescope (WHT) in December, 2015. During this campaign GASP was used to study the Crab Pulsar, V404 Cygni and polarisation standards. As a subset of our analysis we have identified a significant contribution from the Interstellar Medium (ISM) and the interaction of a varying polarised source with the ISM, the subsequent conversion of linearly polarised light to circular, and its dependence on the angle of the source emission electric field orientation. Further to the presentation of results we will discuss future observational work, which is planned for September 2017 and subsequent improvements to increase the temporal resolution of the detectors.

Keywords

instrumentation: polarimeterstechniques: polarimetricinstrumentation: detectors
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 13 , Symposium S337: Pulsar Astrophysics the Next Fifty Years , September 2017 , pp. 384 - 385
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2018 

References

Collins, P., Kyne, G., & Lara, D., et al. 2013, Experimental Astronomy, 36, 479Google Scholar
Cocke, W. J., Disney, M. J., & Gehrels, T. 1969, Nature, 223, 576CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cocke, W. J., Disney, M. J., & Muncaster, G. W., 1970, Nature, 227, 1327CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cocke, W. J., Ferguson, D. C., & Muncaster, G. W., 1973, ApJ, 183, 987Google Scholar
Ferguson, D. C., Cocke, W. J., & Gehrels, T., 1974, ApJ, 190, 375Google Scholar
Gouiffes, C., Laurent, P., Shearer, A., O’Connor, E., & Moran, P. 2016, Proceedings of the 11th INTEGRAL Conference Gamma-Ray Astrophysics in Multi-Wavelength Perspective.10-14 October 2016 Amsterdam, The Netherlands (INTEGRAL2016)Google Scholar
Jones, D. H. P., Smith, F. G., & Wallace, P. T., 1981, MNRAS, 196, 943CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kristian, J., Visvanathan, N., Westphal, J. A., & Snellen, G. H., 1970, ApJ, 162, 475Google Scholar
Kyne, G., Lara, D., Hallinan, G., Redfern, M., & Shearer, A., 2016, Experimental Astronomy, 41, 43Google Scholar
Moran, P., Shearer, A., Mignani, R. P., et al. 2013, MNRAS, 433, 2564CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moran, P., Kyne, G., & Gouiffès, C., et al. 2016, MNRAS, 456, 2974CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Słowikowska, A., Kanbach, G., Kramer, M., & Stefanescu, A., 2009, MNRAS, 397, 103Google Scholar
Smith, F. G., Jones, D. H. P., Dick, J. S. B., & Pike, C. D., 1988, MNRAS, 233, 305CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wampler, E. J., Scargle, J. D., & Miller, J. S., 1969, apjl, 157, L1Google Scholar
Warner, B., Nather, R. E., & Macfarlane, M., 1969, Nature, 222, 233CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Visvanathan, N., 1971, The Crab Nebula, 46, 152CrossRefGoogle Scholar