Microvariability in the optical polarization of 3C279

Abstract

We present results of a microvariability polarization study in the violently variable quasar 3C279. We have resolved the polarization curves in the V band for this object down to timescales of minutes. We found two main components in the evolution of the degree of linear polarization, one consisting of a flicker with timescales of several tens of minutes and other component with far more significant variations on timescales of a few days. The linear polarization descended from $\sim 17$ % down to $\sim 8$ % in three nights. The polarization angle underwent a sudden change of more that 10 degrees in a few hours, perhaps indicating the injection of a new shock in the jet. The amplitude of the intranight flickering in the degree of polarization is at the level of $\sim 1$%. These are probably the best sampled polarization data ever obtained for this object. We also performed IR observations and we provide a follow-up of the evolution of this source at such energies after the main polarization outburst.

10 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in A&A

References in corpus (4)

• Multi-Epoch Multiwavelength Spectra and Models for Blazar 3C~279
• Ultraviolet and Multiwavelength Variability of the Blazar 3C 279: Evidence for Thermal Emission
• Kinematics of the Parsec-Scale Relativistic Jet in Quasar 3C 279: 1991 - 1997
• Day-Scale Variability of 3C 279 and Searches for Correlations in Gamma-Ray, X-Ray, and Optical Bands

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