Beam Measurements of Full Stokes Parameters for the FAST L-band 19-beam Receiver

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Abstract
The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) has been fully operational since 2020 January 11. We present a comprehensive analysis of the beam structure for each of the 19 feed horns on FAST's L-band receiver across the Stokes I, Q, U, and V parameters. Using an on-the-fly mapping pattern, we conducted simultaneous sky mapping using all 19 beams directed toward polarization calibrators J1407+2827 and J0854+2006 from 2020 to 2022. Electromagnetic simulations were also performed to model the telescope's beam patterns in all Stokes parameters. Our findings reveal a symmetrical Gaussian pattern in the Stokes I parameter of the central beam without strong sidelobes, while the off-center beams exhibit significant asymmetrical shapes that can be fitted using a combination of log-normal and Gaussian distributions. The inner beams have higher relative beam efficiencies and smaller beam sizes compared to those of the outer beams. The sidelobes of the inner beams contribute approximately 2% of the total flux in the main lobe, increasing to 5% for outer beams, with a peak at 6.8%. In Stokes U, a distinct four-lobed cloverleaf beam squash structure is observed, with similar intensity levels in both inner and outer beams. In Stokes V, a two-lobed beam squint structure is observed in the central beam, along with a secondary eight-lobed structure. The highest squint peak in Stokes V is about 0.3% of the Stokes I in the outer beams. These results align closely with the simulations, providing valuable insights for the design of radio multibeam observations.
Funding Information
  • The National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.12403037)
  • The National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.12373026)
  • the Leading Innovation and Entrepreneurship Team of Zhejiang Province of China (No.2023R01008)
  • the Key R\&D Program of Zhejiang (No.2024SSYS0012)

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