High-precision broadband linear polarimetry of early-type binaries IV. Binary system of DH Cephei in the open cluster of NGC 7380

DH~Cephei is a well known massive O+O-type binary system on the northern sky, residing in the young open cluster NGC~7380. Our high-precision multi-band polarimetry has clearly revealed that variations of linear polarizations in this system are synchronous with the phase of the orbital period. We have used the observed variations of Stokes parameters $q$ and $u$ to derive the orbital inclination $i$, orientation $\Omega$, and the direction of rotation. In order to determine the contribution from interstellar polarization, we have carried out new observations of polarization of field stars with precisely measured parallaxes. The variations of Stokes parameters in all three $B$, $V$, and $R$ passbands clearly exhibit an unambiguous periodic signal at 1.055 d with the amplitude of variations $\sim$$0.2\%$ which corresponds to half of known orbital period of 2.11 d. This type of polarization variability is expected for a binary system with light scattering material distributed symmetrically with respect to the orbital plane. Even though most of the observed polarization ($\sim$2$\%$) is of interstellar origin, about one third of it is due to the intrinsic component. In addition to the regular polarization variability, there is a non-periodic component, strongest in the $B$ passband. We obtained in the $V$ passband our most reliable values for the orbital inclination $i = 46^{\circ}+11^{\circ}/-46^{\circ}$ and the orientation of the orbit on the sky $\Omega = 105^{\circ} \pm 55^{\circ}$, with 1$\sigma$ confidence intervals. The direction of the binary system rotation on the plane of the sky is clockwise

High-precision broadband linear polarimetry of early-type binaries

Aims. The fact that the O-type close binary star system AO Cassiopeiae exhibits variable phase-locked linear polarization has been known since the mid-1970s. In this work, we re-observe the polarization arising from this system more than 50 yr later to better estimate the interstellar polarization and to independently derive the orbital parameters, such as inclination, i, orientation, Omega, and the direction of the rotation for the inner orbit from the phase-folded polarization curves of the Stokes q and u parameters.Methods. The Dipol-2 polarimeter was used to obtain linear polarization measurements of AO Cassiopeiae in the B, V, and R passbands with the T60 remotely controlled telescope at an unprecedented accuracy level of similar to 0.003%. We have obtained the first proper quantification of the interstellar polarization in the direction heading towards AO Cas by observing the polarization of three neighboring field stars. We employed a Lomb-Scargle algorithm and detected a clear periodic signal for the orbital period of AO Cas. The standard analytical method based on a two-harmonics Fourier fit was used to obtain the inclination and orientation of the binary orbit.Results. Our polarimetric data exhibited an unambiguous periodic signal at 1.76 days, thus confirming the orbital period of the binary system of 3.52 days. Most of the observed polarization is of interstellar origin. The de-biased values of the orbital inclination are i = 63. + 2. /-3. and orientation of Omega = 29.(209.) +/- 8.. The direction of the binary system rotation on the plane of the sky is clockwise.</p

Highly sensitive search for magnetic fields in white dwarfs using broad-band circular polarimetry

Circular polarisation measurements of white dwarfs of various ages and spectral types are useful to understand the origin and evolution of the magnetic field in degenerate stars. In the latest stages of white dwarf evolution, when stars are so cool that spectral lines are no longer formed in the normal H- or He-dominated atmospheres, magnetic fields can be probed only by means of circular polarimetry of the continuum. The study of the fields of featureless DC white dwarfs may reveal whether Ohmic decay acts on magnetic white dwarfs, or if magnetic fields continue to be generated even several billion years after white dwarf formation. Compared to spectropolarimetry, broad-band circular polarisation measurements have the advantage of reaching a higher accuracy in the continuum, with the potential of detecting magnetic fields as weak as a fraction of a MG in DC stars, if the telescope size is adequate for the star's magnitude. Here we present the results of a first (short) observing campaign with the DIPol-UF polarimeter, which we have used to measure broad-band circular polarisation of white dwarfs. Our observing run was in part aimed to fully characterise the instrument, and in part to study the relationship between magnetic field strength (when known from spectropolarimetry) and circular polarisation of the continuum. We also observed a small number of previously unexplored DC white dwarfs, and we present the discovery of two new magnetic white dwarfs of spectral class DC, probably the first discovery of this kind made with broad-band circular polarimetric techniques since the late 1970s. We also discuss the characteristics of our instrument, and predict the level of polarimetric accuracy that may be reached as a function of stellar magnitude, exposure time, and telescope size

High-precision optical polarimetry of the accreting black hole V404 Cyg during the 2015 June outburst

Our simultaneous three-colour (BVR) polarimetric observations of the low-mass black hole X-ray binary V404 Cyg show a small but statistically significant change of polarization degree (Delta(p) similar to 1 per cent) between the outburst in 2015 June and the quiescence. The polarization of V404 Cyg in the quiescent state agrees within the errors with that of the visually close (1.4 arc-sec) companion (pR = 7.3 +/- 0.1 per cent), indicating that it is predominantly of interstellar origin. The polarization pattern of the surrounding field stars supports this conclusion. From the observed variable polarization during the outburst, we show that the polarization degree of the intrinsic component peaks in the V band, p(V) = 1.1 +/- 0.1 per cent, at the polarization position angle of theta(V) =-7 degrees+/- 2 degrees, which is consistent in all three passbands. We detect significant variations in the position angle of the intrinsic polarization in the R band from -30. to similar to 0 degrees during the outburst peak. The observed wavelength dependence of the intrinsic polarization does not support non-thermal synchrotron emission from a jet as a plausible mechanism, but it is in better agreement with the combined effect of electron (Thomson) scattering and absorption in a flattened plasma envelope or outflow surrounding the illuminating source. Alternatively, the polarization signal can be produced by scattering of the disc radiation in a mildly relativistic polar outflow. The position angle of the intrinsic polarization, nearly parallel to the jet direction (i. e. perpendicular to the accretion disc plane), is in agreement with these interpretations

Peering into the tilted heart of Cyg X-1 with high-precision optical polarimetry

We present the high-precision optical polarimetric observations of black hole X-ray binary Cyg X-1, spanning several cycles of its 5.6 day orbital period. Week-long observations on two telescopes located in opposite hemispheres allowed us to track the evolution of the polarization within one orbital cycle with the highest temporal resolution to date. Using the field stars, we determine the interstellar polarization in the source direction and subsequently its intrinsic polarization. The optical polarization angle is aligned with that in the X-rays as recently obtained with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer. Furthermore, it is consistent, within the uncertainties, with the position angle of the radio ejections. We show that the intrinsic PD is variable with the orbital period with the amplitude of $\sim$0.2% and discuss various sites of its production. Assuming the polarization arises from a single Thomson scattering of the primary star radiation by the matter that follows the black hole in its orbital motion, we constrain the inclination of the binary orbit $i>120^\circ$ and its eccentricity $e<0.08$. The asymmetric shape of the orbital profiles of Stokes parameters implies also the asymmetry of the scattering matter distribution about the orbital plane, which may arise from the tilted accretion disk. We compare our data to the polarimetric observations made over 1975-1987 and find good, within $1^\circ$, agreement between the intrinsic polarization angles. On the other hand, the PD decreased by 0.4% over half a century, suggesting the presence of secular changes in the geometry of accreting matter.Comment: 12 pages, 18 figure

Orbital variability of the optical linear polarization of the γ\gamma-ray binary LS I +61 303 and new constraints on the orbital parameters

We studied the variability of the linear polarization and brightness of the $\gamma$-ray binary LS I +61 303. High-precision BVR photopolarimetric observations were carried out with the Dipol-2 polarimeter on the 2.2 m remotely controlled UH88 telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory and the 60 cm Tohoku telescope at Haleakala Observatory (Hawaii) over 140 nights in 2016--2019. We determined the position angle of the intrinsic polarization $\theta \simeq 11^\circ$, which can either be associated with the projection of the Be star's decretion disk axis on the plane of sky, or can differ from it by $90^\circ$. Using the Lomb-Scargle method, we performed timing analyses and period searches of our polarimetric and photometric data. We found statistically significant periodic variability of the normalized Stokes parameters $q$ and $u$ in all passbands. The most significant period of variability, $P_\text{Pol} = 13.244 \pm 0.012$ d, is equal to one half of the orbital period $P_\text{orb} = 26.496$ d. Using a model of Thomson scattering by a cloud that orbits the Be star, we obtained constraints on the orbital parameters, including a small eccentricity $e<0.2$ and periastron phase of $\phi_\text{p}\approx 0.6$, which coincides with the peaks in the radio, X-ray, and TeV emission. These constraints are independent of the assumption about the orientation of the decretion disk plane on the sky. We also extensively discuss the apparent inconsistency with the previous measurements of the orbital parameters from radial velocities. By folding the photometry data acquired during a three-year time span with the orbital period, we found a linear phase shift of the moments of the brightness maximum, confirming the possible existence of superorbital variability.Comment: 15 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Probing Interstellar Grain Growth through Polarimetry in the Taurus Cloud Complex

The optical and near-infrared (OIR) polarization of starlight is typically understood to arise from the dichroicextinction of that light by dust grains whose axes are aligned with respect to a local magnetic field. The sizedistribution of the aligned grain population can be constrained by measurements of the wavelength dependence of the polarization. The leading physical model for producing the alignment is that of radiative alignment torques (RAT), which predicts that the most efficiently aligned grains are those with sizes larger than the wavelengths of light composing the local radiation field. Therefore, for a given grain size distribution, the wavelength at which the polarization reaches a maximum (max) should correlate with the characteristic reddening along the line of sight between the dust grains and the illumination source. A correlation between max and reddening has been previously established for extinctions up to AV 4 mag. We extend the study of this relationship to a larger sample of stars in the Taurus cloud complex, including extinctions AV > 10 mag. We confirm the earlier results for AV </p