CONSTRAINING GALACTIC MAGNETIC FIELD MODELS WITH STARLIGHT POLARIMETRY

This paper provides testable predictions about starlight polarizations to constrain the geometry of the Galactic magnetic field, in particular the nature of the poloidal component. Galactic dynamo simulations and Galactic dust distributions from the literature are combined with a Stokes radiative tr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Astrophysical journal 2011-10, Vol.740 (1)
Main Author: Pavel, Michael D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
DISTRIBUTION
DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS
DUSTS
ENERGY TRANSFER
FORECASTING
FUNCTIONS
GALAXIES
HEAT TRANSFER
MAGNETIC FIELDS
POLARIMETRY
POLARIZATION
RADIANT HEAT TRANSFER
SIMULATION
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Summary:This paper provides testable predictions about starlight polarizations to constrain the geometry of the Galactic magnetic field, in particular the nature of the poloidal component. Galactic dynamo simulations and Galactic dust distributions from the literature are combined with a Stokes radiative transfer model to predict the observed polarizations and position angles of near-infrared starlight, assuming that the light is polarized by aligned anisotropic dust grains. S0 and A0 magnetic field models and the role of magnetic pitch angle are all examined. All-sky predictions are made, and particular directions are identified as providing diagnostic power for discriminating among the models. Cumulative distribution functions of the normalized degree of polarization and plots of polarization position angle versus Galactic latitude are proposed as tools for testing models against observations.
ISSN:0004-637X
1538-4357
DOI:10.1088/0004-637X/740/1/21;COUNTRYOFINPUT:INTERNATIONALATOMICENERGYAGENCY(IAEA)