The first fast radio burst (FRB) to be precisely localized was associated with a luminous persistent radio source (PRS). Recently, a second FRB/PRS association was discovered for another repeating source of FRBs. However, it is not clear what makes FRBs or PRS or how they are related. We compile FRB and PRS properties to consider the population of FRB/PRS sources. We suggest a practical definition for PRS as FRB associations with luminosity greater than 1029erg s−1Hz−1that are not attributed to star formation activity in the host galaxy. We model the probability distribution of the fraction of FRBs with PRS for repeaters and nonrepeaters, showing there is not yet evidence for repeaters to be preferentially associated with PRS. We discuss how FRB/PRS sources may be distinguished by the combination of active repetition and an excess dispersion measure local to the FRB environment. We use CHIME/FRB event statistics to bound the mean per-source repetition rate of FRBs to be between 25 and 440 yr−1. We use this to provide a bound on the density of FRB-emitting sources in the local universe of between 2.2 × 102and 5.2 × 104Gpc−3assuming a pulsar-like beamwidth for FRB emission. This density implies that PRS may comprise as much as 1% of compact, luminous radio sources detected in the local universe. The cosmic density and phenomenology of PRS are similar to that of the newly discovered, off-nuclear “wandering” active galactic nuclei (AGN). We argue that it is likely that some PRS have already been detected and misidentified as AGN.
A repeating source of fast radio bursts (FRBs) is recently discovered from a globular cluster of M81. Association with a globular cluster (or other old stellar systems) suggests that strongly magnetized neutron stars, which are the most likely objects responsible for FRBs, are born not only when young massive stars undergo core-collapse, but also by mergers of old white dwarfs. We find that the fractional contribution to the total FRB rate by old stellar populations is at least a few per cent, and the precise fraction can be constrained by FRB searches in the directions of nearby galaxies, both star-forming and elliptical ones. Using very general arguments, we show that the activity time of the M81-FRB source is between 104 and 106 yr, and more likely of the order of 105 yr. The energetics of radio outbursts put a lower limit on the magnetic field strength of 10$^{13}\,$G, and the spin period $\gtrsim 0.2\,$s, thereby ruling out the source being a milli-second pulsar. The upper limit on the persistent X-ray luminosity (provided by Chandra), together with the high FRB luminosity and frequent repetitions, severely constrains (or rules out) the possibility that the M81-FRB is a scaled-up version of giant pulses from Galactic pulsars. Finally, the 50-ns variability time of the FRB light curve suggests that the emission is produced in a compact region inside the neutron star magnetosphere, as it cannot be accounted for when the emission is at distances $\gtrsim 10^{10}\rm \, cm$.
more » « less- Award ID(s):
- 2009619
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10361187
- Publisher / Repository:
- Oxford University Press
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Volume:
- 510
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 0035-8711
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 1867-1879
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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ABSTRACT The physical properties of fast radio burst (FRB) host galaxies provide important clues towards the nature of FRB sources. The 16 FRB hosts identified thus far span three orders of magnitude in mass and specific star formation rate, implicating a ubiquitously occurring progenitor object. FRBs localized with ∼arcsecond accuracy also enable effective searches for associated multiwavelength and multi-time-scale counterparts, such as the persistent radio source associated with FRB 20121102A. Here we present a localization of the repeating source FRB 20201124A, and its association with a host galaxy (SDSS J050803.48+260338.0, z = 0.098) and persistent radio source. The galaxy is massive (${\sim}3\times 10^{10}\, \text{M}_{\odot }$), star-forming (few solar masses per year), and dusty. Very Large Array and Very Long Baseline Array observations of the persistent radio source measure a luminosity of 1.2 × 1029 erg s−1 Hz−1, and show that is extended on scales ≳50 mas. We associate this radio emission with the ongoing star formation activity in SDSS J050803.48+260338.0. Deeper, high-resolution optical observations are required to better utilize the milliarcsecond-scale localization of FRB 20201124A and determine the origin of the large dispersion measure (150–220 pc cm−3) contributed by the host. SDSS J050803.48+260338.0 is an order of magnitude more massive than any galaxy or stellar system previously associated with a repeating FRB source, but is comparable to the hosts of so far non-repeating FRBs, further building the link between the two apparent populations.
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Abstract Since the discovery of the first fast radio burst (FRB) in 2007, and their confirmation as an abundant extragalactic population in 2013, the study of these sources has expanded at an incredible rate. In our 2019 review on the subject, we presented a growing, but still mysterious, population of FRBs—60 unique sources, 2 repeating FRBs, and only 1 identified host galaxy. However, in only a few short years, new observations and discoveries have given us a wealth of information about these sources. The total FRB population now stands at over 600 published sources, 24 repeaters, and 19 host galaxies. Higher time resolution data, sustained monitoring, and precision localisations have given us insight into repeaters, host galaxies, burst morphology, source activity, progenitor models, and the use of FRBs as cosmological probes. The recent detection of a bright FRB-like burst from the Galactic magnetar SGR 1935 + 2154 provides an important link between FRBs and magnetars. There also continue to be surprising discoveries, like periodic modulation of activity from repeaters and the localisation of one FRB source to a relatively nearby globular cluster associated with the M81 galaxy. In this review, we summarise the exciting observational results from the past few years. We also highlight their impact on our understanding of the FRB population and proposed progenitor models. We build on the introduction to FRBs in our earlier review, update our readers on recent results, and discuss interesting avenues for exploration as the field enters a new regime where hundreds to thousands of new FRBs will be discovered and reported each year.
