Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.3/25856

Title

Radio astronomical polarimetry and point-source calibration

Author(s)

van Straten, W.

Abstract

A mathematical framework is presented for use in the experimental determination of the polarimetric response of observatory instrumentation. Elementary principles of linear algebra are applied to model the full matrix description of the polarization measurement equation by least-squares estimation of nonlinear, scalar parameters. The formalism is applied to calibrate the center element of the Parkes Multibeam receiver using observations of the millisecond pulsar PSR J0437-4715 and the radio galaxy 3C 218 (Hydra A).

Publication type

Journal article

Source

Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, Vol. 152, no. 1 (May 2004), p. 129-135

Publication year

2004

Keyword(s)

Data analysis methods;  Instrumentation;  Polarimeters;  Polarimetric techniques;  Polarisation;  PSR J0437-4715;  Radio galaxies;  Pulsars

Publisher

University of Chicago Press

ISSN

0067-0049

Publisher URL

http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/383187

Copyright

Copyright © 2004 The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. The American Astronomical Society does not allow institutions to archive either the accepted manuscript or the published version of the article. However, you can find an earlier version of the full text here: http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0401536.

Peer reviewed