A targeted observation for fast radio bursts from a radio source with likely magnetar origin

Zhao, Shiqian

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are transient astrophysical events characterized by millisecond-duration， bright radio signals emitted from extragalactic sources. Understanding the origin and nature of FRBs remains a significant challenge in modern astrophysics. Up to now， what we are aware is that at least some of them can be produced from magnetars， which are extremely strong magnetized compact objects in the universe. In this work， we conduct targeted search for fast radio bursts from a radio source， VT 1137-0337， which has exhibited a series of multiwavelength characteristics of magnetar wind nebula similar with active repeaters like FRB 20121102A and FRB 190520B. Using the FAST and Parkes radio telescopes， we have been monitoring this radio source in 2023-2024 with a total observing time of 28 hours. After the data reduction based on TransientX， we found a candidate single pulse with a signal-to-noise ratio of 7.6 that has a dispersion measure consistent with theoretical inference for its host galaxy. If this event were confirmed as actual detection， it would be the first time that FRB is discovered from target observation from unknown radio sources. The outcome would also reinforce the association between magnetars and FRBs， which can provide us more insights into the nature of FRBs.