Magnetic fields play a fundamental role in the evolution of astrophysical systems. These fields can be studied through wide-field spectropolarimetry, which allows for faint polarised signals to be detected at relatively low radio frequencies. An interferometric polarisation mode has recently become available at the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). A detailed analysis of the GMRT’s instrumental response is presented. The findings are used to create a polarisation pipeline, which in combination with rotation measure (RM) Synthesis is used for the detection of extended linearly polarised emission at 610 MHz. A number of compact sources are detected and their Faraday depth and polarisation fraction are reported for the first time. New holography observations of the GMRT’s primary beam are presented. Instantaneous off-axis polarisation is substantial and scales with the Stokes I beam. The developed beam models are used to reduce direction-dependent instrumental polarisation, and the Stokes I beam is shown to deviate from circular symmetry. A new technique for electric vector polarisation angle calibration is developed that removes the need for known sources on the sky, eliminates ionospheric effects, and avoids a flaw in current methods which could erroneously yield multiple Faraday components for sources that are well-parameterised by a single RM. A sample of nine galaxies from two Southern Compact Groups are then presented, with constraints being placed on the polarised fraction, RM, spectral index, star formation rate, companion sources, and hydrodynamical state. One galaxy has a displaced peak of radio emission that is extended beyond the disk in comparison to the near-IR disk – suggesting the radio disturbance may be a consequence of ram pressure stripping. Linear polarisation is detected from the core of NGC 7552 at 610 MHz, while another three galaxies ESO 0353–G036, NGC 7590, and NGC 7599 are found to be unpolarised. An analysis of additional extended sources allows for an FR-I and an FR-II radio source to be morphologically classified. Finally, spatial spectral variations are identified in the youngest known Galactic supernova remnant G1.9+0.3, with flatter spectra in the NW and SE. Models of cosmic ray acceleration at oblique shocks suggest the variation is most consistent with an ambient B field perpendicular to the axis of bilateral symmetry. For the first time, the presence of polarised emission is detected. There is increased ordering of the B field in the NW and strong Faraday depolarisation must also be present. An intrinsically radially-oriented field could be provided by a systematic gradient in RM of 140 rad m-2 from N to S and can also explain the depolarisation. Such a gradient may be caused by an anisotropic regular magnetic field within the remnant or in an intervening Faraday screen. The lack of strong constraints on the RM, and the remnant’s current evolutionary stage, leave open the possibility that Rayleigh–Taylor instability formation has not yet fully taken place.

The research for this dissertation project began with the goal to construct a snapshot imaging spectropolarimeter forthe visible spectrum. The instrument integrates a channeled spectropolarimeter (CHSP) into a computed tomographicimaging spectrometer (CTIS), the result being an instrument that measures the complete spatially- andspectrally-resolved Stokes vectors of a scene. It is not the first of its kind, since a similar instrument has beenbuilt before for use in the short-wave infrared. However, that instrument encountered severe difficulties due tolimitations of available hardware. Visible spectrum work generally enjoys the best instrumentation available, providingan ideal place to attempt a proof-of-concept demonstration.The main body of the research is focused on finding ways to improve the CTIS measurement technique, especially in waysallowing it to integrate with channeled spectropolarimetry. The first effort is a careful analysis and reworking of thecalibration procedure for the instrument, followed by a survey and comparison of ideas for alternative CTIS designs.The second effort makes use of the new calibration approach to develop an alternative way of thinking about CTISreconstructions based on the geometry and physics of the instrument rather than on abstract matrix mathematics. Thisopens up ways to improve their accuracy and to achieve reconstructions at a much higher speed.Experimental results from the instrument illustrate the improvements obtained from using the new methods, showing itscurrent capabilities and limitations.

In this work, three methods of measuring the polarization state of light in the thermal infrared (3-12 microns) are modeled, simulated, calibrated and experimentally verified in the laboratory. The first utilizes the method of channeled spectropolarimetry (CP) to encode the Stokes polarization parameters onto the optical power spectrum. This channeled spectral technique is implemented with the use of two Yttrium Vanadate (YVO4) crystal retarders. A basic mathematical model for the system is presented, showing that all the Stokes parameters are directly present in the interferogram. Theoretical results are compared with real data from the system, an improved model is provided to simulate the effects of absorption within the crystal, and a modified calibration technique is introduced to account for this absorption. Lastly, effects due to interferometer instabilities on the reconstructions, including nonuniform sampling and interferogram translations, are investigated and techniques are employed to mitigate them.Second is the method of prismatic imaging polarimetry (PIP), which can be envisioned as the monochromatic application of channeled spectropolarimetry. Unlike CP, PIP encodes the 2-dimensional Stokes parameters in a scene onto spatial carrier frequencies. However, the calibration techniques derived in the infrared for CP are extremely similar to that of the PIP. Consequently, the PIP technique is implemented with a set of four YVO4 crystal prisms. A mathematical model for the polarimeter is presented in which diattenuation due to Fresnel effects and dichroism in the crystal are included. An improved polarimetric calibration technique is introduced to remove the diattenuation effects, along with the relative radiometric calibration required for the BPIP operating with a thermal background and large detector offsets. Data demonstrating emission polarization are presented from various blackbodies, which are compared to data from our Fourier transform infrared spectropolarimeter. Additionally, limitations in the PIP technique with regards to the spectral bandwidth and F/# of the imaging system are analyzed. A model able to predict the carrier frequency's fringe visibility is produced and experimentally verified, further reinforcing the PIP's limitations.The last technique is significantly different from CP or PIP and involves the simulation and calibration of a thermal infrared division of amplitude imaging Stokes polarimeter. For the first time, application of microbolometer focal plane array (FPA) technology to polarimetry is demonstrated. The sensor utilizes a wire-grid beamsplitter with imaging systems positioned at each output to analyze two orthogonal linear polarization states simultaneously. Combined with a form birefringent wave plate, the system is capable of snapshot imaging polarimetry in any one Stokes vector (S1, S2 or S3). Radiometric and polarimetric calibration procedures for the instrument are provided and the reduction matrices from the calibration are compared to rigorous coupled wave analysis (RCWA) and raytracing simulations. The design and optimization of the sensor's wire-grid beam splitter and wave plate are presented, along with their corresponding prescriptions. Polarimetric calibration error due to the spectrally broadband nature of the instrument is also overviewed. Image registration techniques for the sensor are discussed and data from the instrument are presented, demonstrating a microbolometer's ability to measure the small intensity variations corresponding to polarized emission in natural environments.

Our knowledge of stellar magnetic fields relies almost entirely on circular polarization observations, which has historically limited our understanding of the stellar magnetic field topologies. Recently, it has become possible to obtain phase-resolved high-resolution spectropolarimetric observations in all four Stokes parameters for early-type magnetic stars. Interpretation of such observations with the Magnetic Doppler imaging technique has uncovered a new, previously unknown, level of complexity of surface stellar magnetic fields. This new insight is critical for understanding the origin, evolution and structure of magnetic fields in early-type stars. In this study we observed the magnetic, chemically peculiar Ap stars HD 24712 (DO Eri, HR 1217) and HD 125248 (CS Vir, HR 5355) in all four Stokes parameters with the HARPSpol spectropolarimeter at the ESO 3.6-m telescope. The resulting spectra have high signal-to-noise ratio and superb resolving power, by far surpassing the quality of any existing stellar Stokes parameter observations. We studied variation of the spectrum and magnetic observables of HD 24712 as a function of rotational phase (paper I). In the subsequent magnetic Doppler imaging investigation of this star, we interpreted the phase-resolved Stokes line profile observations (paper II). This analysis showed that HD 24712, unlike more massive Ap stars studied in all four Stokes parameters, has a dominant dipolar field component with a negligible contribution of small-scale magnetic structures. Simultaneously with magnetic mapping we derived surface abundance distributions of Fe, Nd, Na, and Ca. Building upon the technique of Magnetic Doppler imaging, we developed the first three-dimensional abundance inversion code and applied it to reconstruct the abundance distributions of Fe and Ca in three dimensions in the atmosphere of HD 24712 (paper III). We also performed Magnetic Doppler imaging analysis of the spectropolarimetric observations of HD 125248 (paper IV). The reconstructed detailed maps of the surface abundance distribution and magnetic field topology of HD 125248 revealed a magnetic field with significant deviations from the canonical dipolar field geometry, and strong surface abundance inhomogeneities for Cr and several rare earth elements. We assessed our inversion results in the context of magnetic Doppler imaging studies of other magnetic, chemically peculiar Ap stars and latest theoretical research on the evolution and stability of magnetic fields in radiative stellar interiors. Our analysis suggests that old or less massive Ap stars have predominantly dipolar magnetic fields while more massive or younger stars exhibit more complicated field topologies. We also compared our three-dimensional chemical abundance maps of HD 24712 to the predictions of theoretical atomic diffusion calculations in magnetized stellar atmospheres, generally finding a lack of agreement between theory and observations.

Mercury-manganese (HgMn) stars belong to the class of chemically peculiar (CP) stars. It was recently discovered that some HgMn stars have spots of chemical elements on their surfaces. According to conventional picture of CP stars, magnetic field facilitates the formation and long term stability of chemical spots by controlling stratification of elements in stellar atmosphere. However, previous attempts to find magnetic field in HgMn stars set an upper limit on its strength at the level of about 20-100 Gauss. Observational evidence suggested that even weaker magnetic fields can be responsible for the formation of chemical spots. The main goal of our work was to verify this possibility. The search for weak magnetic fields requires the use of least-squares deconvolution (LSD) technique.  This method combines information from many spectral lines providing a mean line profile with increased signal-to-noise ratio. Up to now there was no extensive comparison of the LSD profile with real spectral lines. We showed that the LSD profile of the intensity spectrum does not behave like a real spectral line as a function of chemical composition. However, for circular polarization, LSD profile resembles the profile of a spectral line with mean atomic parameters. We performed a comprehensive search for magnetic field in 47 HgMn stars and their companions, based on high-quality spectropolarimetric data obtained with the HARPSpol polarimeter at the ESO 3.6-m telescope. With the help of LSD technique, an upper limit on the mean longitudinal magnetic field was brought down to 2-10 G for most stars. We concluded that magnetic field is not responsible for the spot formation in HgMn stars. We obtained full rotational phase coverage for the HgMn stars φ Phe and 66 Eri. This enabled us to investigate line profile variability, reconstruct surface maps of chemical elements, and perform a search for magnetic field with very high sensitivity. For φ Phe we derived surface maps of Y, Sr, Ti, Cr, and obtained an upper limit of 4 G on the field strength. We also found marginal indication of vertical stratification of Y and Ti. No magnetic field was detected in both components of 66 Eri, with an upper limit of 10-24 G. We discovered chemical spots of Y, Sr, Ba, and Ti, in the primary star. We demonstrated a relation between the binary orbit and the morphology of these spots.

Solar magnetic fields span a wide range of spatial scales from sunspots and plages to magnetic bright points. A clear understanding of the physical processes underlying the evolution of these magnetic features requires high-resolution spectropolarimetric observations of solar active regions and comparisons with synthetic data from simulations. This thesis is based on observations with the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope (SST) and the CRISP imaging spectropolarimeter which, processed with a sophisticated image restoration technique, produce data of unsurpassed quality. The Fe I 630.25 nm line is used for all the spectropolarimetric observations. It appears likely that present telescopes resolve the fundamental scales of penumbral filaments. However, the penumbrae of sunspots are still not fully understood, with various theoretical models competing to explain their fine structure and flows. We analyze spectropolarimetric observations with a resolution close to the SST diffraction limit of 0.16 arcsecond. Using inversion techniques, we map the line-of-sight velocities and the magnetic-field configuration of dark-cored penumbral filaments. Over the past decade, sunspots and quiet sun magnetic fields have received considerable attention, with intermediate plage regions being somewhat neglected. We perform a detailed analysis of a plage region and present the first observational evidence of a small-scale granular magneto-convection pattern associated with a plage region. Magnetic bright points are believed to be formed due to magnetic field intensification caused by flux-tube collapse involving strong downflows. Although magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) simulations agree with this view, only a few observations with adequate spatial resolution exist in support of the simulations. We present several cases of bright-point formation associated with strong downflows, which qualitatively agree with simulations and past observations. However, we find the field intensification to be transient rather than permanent. / At the time of the doctoral defense, the following paper was unpublished: Paper 3: Accepted.

One of the earliest indications of magnetic fields acting in the solar atmosphere came at the beginning of the 20th century when George Hale noted a "decided definiteness of structure" in photographs within the Hydrogen Balmer-alpha line core. Fine structure both in the chromosphere and in the corona result from processes that are not well understood but accepted as a consequence of the solar magnetic field. Our knowledge of this field is lacking, and until recently, the assumed relationship between fine thermal structure and the magnetic field remained untested. Here, spectropolarimetric diagnostics of fine structures in the solar chromosphere and cool corona are advanced using the infrared He I triplet at 1083 nm. Precise calibration procedures are developed for the Facility Infrared Spectropolarimeter (FIRS), recently commissioned at the Dunn Solar Telescope. Together with high-order adaptive optics, we simultaneously map fine structures while obtaining a polarimetric sensitivity of up to 2 x 10 ⁻⁴ of the incoming intensity. These instrument improvements result in the first maps of the He I polarized signatures within an active region superpenumbra, where Hale first recognized fine-structuring. Selective absorption and emission processes due to non-equilibrium optical pumping are recognized. Our interpretation, using advanced inversions of the He I triplet, provides confirmation of Hale's initial suspicion--the fine structures of the solar chromosphere are visual markers for the magnetic field. Yet, the fine chromospheric thermal structure is not matched by an equivalently fine magnetic structure. Our ability to measure this field suggests the utility of the He I triplet as an inner boundary condition for the inner heliospheric magnetic field. In the corona itself, we infer the vector properties of a catastrophically-cooled coronal loop, uniting space-based and ground-based instrumentation. We determine how fine loops are anchored in the photosphere via a narrow umbral flare, the consequence of a supersonic downflow of cooled material. A stereoscopic reconstruction as well as full-Stokes inversions of the He I measurements provide the first comparison of the 3D thermal structure and 3D magnetic structure of a fine-scaled coronal loop.

Supergiant stars of spectral types B and A are characterized by variable and structured winds, as revealed by variability of optical and ultraviolet spectral lines. Non- radial pulsations and magnetically supported loops have been proposed as explanations for these phenomena. The latter hypothesis is tested using a time series of 65 high-resolution (λ/∆λ ∼ 65, 000) circular polarization (Stokes I and V ) spectra of the late B type supergiant Rigel (β Ori, B8 Iae), obtained with the instruments ESPaDOnS and Narval at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope and the Bernard Lyot Telescope, respectively. Examination of the unpolarized (Stokes I) spectra using standard spectral analysis tools confirms complex line profile variability during the 5 month period of observations; the high spectral resolution allows the identification of a weak, transient Hα feature similar in behaviour to a High Velocity Absorption event. Analysis of the Stokes V spectra using the cross-correlation technique Least Squares Deconvolution (LSD) yields no evidence of a magnetic field in either LSD Stokes V profiles or longitudinal field measurements, with longitudinal field 1σ error bars of ∼ 12 G for individual observations, and a mean field in the best observed period of 3 ± 2 G. Synthetic LSD profiles fit to the observations using a Monte Carlo approach yield an upper limit on the surface dipolar field strength of Bdip ≤ 50 G for most orientations of the rotational and magnetic axes, lowered to Bdip ≤ 35 G if the mean LSD profile from the most densely time-sampled epoch (with an LSD SNR of ∼80,000) is used. A simple two-spot geometry representing the footpoints of a magnetic loop emerging from the photosphere yields upper limits on the spot magnetic fields of 60–600 G, depending on the filling factor of the spots. Given existing measurements of the mass loss rate and the wind terminal velocity, these results cannot rule out a magnetically confined wind as, for Bdip ≤ 15 G, η∗ ≥ 1. However, the detailed pattern of line profile variability seems inconsistent with the periodic wind modulation characteristic of known magnetic early-type stars, suggesting that magnetic fields do not play a dominant role in Rigel’s variable winds. / Thesis (Master, Physics, Engineering Physics and Astronomy) -- Queen's University, 2012-04-29 02:10:41.308

No description available.

Les étoiles Miras sont des étoiles froides et évoluées (étoiles AGB), caractérisées par une variation de luminosité régulière et de longue période liée à une pulsation radiale. Cela se traduit par une atmosphère froide, étendue et faiblement liée gravitationnellement. Dans le spectre de ces étoiles, la détection variable d'émissions intenses dans les raies de Balmer de l'hydrogène est usuellement reliée à la propagation périodique d'une onde de choc radiative hypersonique dans l'atmosphère. Mon travail de thèse a eu d'abord pour objectif de confirmer l'existence d'une forte signature de polarisation linéaire accompagnant ces émissions, d'origine inconnue et déjà observée auparavant, et de caractériser son évolution temporelle. Je me base sur un suivi spectropolarimétrique inédit et effectué dans le cadre de ma thèse avec l'instrument NARVAL pour plusieurs Miras afin d'établir cette caractérisation. Ces suivis ont été réalisé sur tous les paramètres de Stokes (polarisation linéaire et circulaire) et surtout à des phases autour du maximum de luminosité.Un résultat majeur de ces observations est la détection systématique de signatures polarisées (polarisation surtout linéaire mais aussi parfois circulaire) liées aux émissions en intensité dans les raies de Balmer. L'utilisation d'un code de simulation d'atmosphère dynamique m'a permis de confirmer le lien entre une onde de choc et la présence d'émission dans ces raies, chose qui n'avait jamais été montrée par un modèle jusque là. Ces éléments me font affirmer que le mécanisme de polarisation est intrinsèque à l'onde de choc. La discussion sur l'origine de cette polarisation comporte deux grands axes : l'asymétrie globale de l'onde de choc amenant à une polarisation nette du rayonnement et la production locale dans le front du choc d'un champ magnétique responsable d'une polarisation par impact dans la zone de production des photons Balmer, c'est-à-dire le sillage du choc. D'autre part, j'invoque la possibilité d'une instabilité de Parker comme deuxième facteur de polarisation par impact et je discute le rôle potentiel de l'effet Hanle. / Mira stars are cool and evolved stars (AGB stars), characterized by a regular luminosity variation and a long period linked to a radial pulsation. All this imply a cool and extended atmosphere which is weakly linked by gravity. In the spectra of those stars, the variable detection of intense emissions in the Balmer lines of hydrogen are usually linked to the periodical propagation of a hypersonic radiative shock wave in the atmosphere. My thesis work's first objective was to confirm the existence of a strong polarimetric signature accompanying those emissions, whose origin is still unknown and already observed before, and to characterize its evolution through time. I rely on a novel spectropolarimetric survey, done in the framework of my thesis with the NARVAL instrument for several Mira stars in order to establish this characterization. Those surveys were done on all Stokes parameters (linear and circular polarization) and mainly during phases around the maximum of luminosity.A major result of these observations is the systematic detection of polarized signatures (mainly linear polarization but also circular sometimes) linked to the emissions in intensity in the Balmer lines. The use of a dynamical atmosphere simulation code allowed me to confirm the link between a shock wave and the presence of emissions in those lines. Such a result has never been been produced by a model until now. These elements make me state that the polarization mechanism is intrinsic to the shock wave. The discussion on the origin of such polarization consists of two main axes : the global asymmetry of the shock wave leading to a net polarization of the radiation and the local production in the shock's front of a magnetic field responsible for an impact polarization in the area of production of Balmer photons, namely the shock's wake. Besides that, I mention the possibility of a Parker instability as a second factor of impact polarization and I discuss the potential role of the Hanle effect.