Constraints on the Persistent Radio Source Associated with FRB 20190520B Using the European VLBI Network
Journal article, 2023
We present very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations of a continuum radio source potentially associated with the fast radio burst source FRB 20190520B. Using the European VLBI network, we find the source to be compact on VLBI scales with an angular size of <2.3 mas (3 sigma). This corresponds to a transverse physical size of <9 pc (at the z = 0.241 redshift of the host galaxy), confirming it to be as fast radio burst (FRB) persistent radio source (PRS) like that associated with the first-known repeater FRB 20121102A. The PRS has a flux density of 201 +/- 34 mu Jy at 1.7 GHz and a spectral radio luminosity of L-1.7 GHz = (3.0 +/- 0.5) x 10(29) erg s(-1) Hz(-1) (also similar to the FRB 20121102A PRS). Compared to previous lower-resolution observations, we find that no flux is resolved out on milliarcsecond scales. We have refined the PRS position, improving its precision by an order of magnitude compared to previous results. We also report the detection of the FRB 20190520B burst at 1.4 GHz and find the burst position to be consistent with the PRS position, at less than or similar to 20 mas. This strongly supports their direct physical association and the hypothesis that a single central engine powers both the bursts and the PRS. We discuss the model of a magnetar in a wind nebula and present an allowed parameter space for its age and the radius of the putative nebula powering the observed PRS emission. Alternatively, we find that an accretion-powered hypernebula model also fits our observational constraints.
Author
Shivani Bhandari
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)
University of Amsterdam
Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE)
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
Benito Marcote
Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE)
Navin Sridhar
Columbia University
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Columbia Univ, Theoret High Energy Astrophys THEA Grp
Tarraneh Eftekhari
Northwestern University
Jason W. T. Hessels
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
University of Amsterdam
Dante M. Hewitt
University of Amsterdam
Franz Kirsten
Chalmers, Space, Earth and Environment, Onsala Space Observatory
Omar S. Ould-Boukattine
University of Amsterdam
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
Zsolt Paragi
Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE)
Mark P. Snelders
University of Amsterdam
Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)
Astrophysical Journal Letters
2041-8205 (ISSN) 2041-8213 (eISSN)
Vol. 958 2 L19Onsala space observatory infrastructure
Swedish Research Council (VR) (2017-00648), 2018-01-01 -- 2021-12-31.
Opticon RadioNet Pilot
European Commission (EC) (EC/H2020/101004719), 2021-03-01 -- 2025-02-28.
Subject Categories
Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology
DOI
10.3847/2041-8213/ad083f