Analysing the transverse structure of the relativistic jets of active galactic nuclei

This paper describes a method of fitting total intensity and polarization profiles in very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) images of astrophysical jets to profiles predicted by a theoretical model. As an example, the method is used to fit profiles of the jet in the active galactic nucleus (AGN) Mrk 501 with profiles predicted by a model in which a cylindrical jet of synchrotron plasma is threaded by a magnetic field with helical and disordered components. This fitting yields model Stokes Q profiles that agree with the observed profiles to within the 1-2α uncertainties; the I model and observed profiles are overall not in such good agreement, with the model I profiles being generally more symmetrical than the observed profiles. Consistent fitting results are obtained for profiles derived from 6-cm VLBI images at two distances from the core, and also for profiles obtained for different wavelengths at a single location in the VLBI jet. The most striking success of the model is its ability to reproduce the spine-sheath polarization structure observed across the jet. Using the derived viewing angle in the jet rest frame, δ' ≃ 83°, together with a superluminal speed reported in the literature, β_app = 3.3, yields a solution for the viewing angle and velocity of the jet in the observer's frame, δ ≃ 15° and β ≃ 0.96. Although these results for Mrk 501 must be considered tentative, the combined analysis of polarization profiles and apparent component speeds holds promise as a means of further elucidating the magnetic field structures and other parameters of parsec-scale AGN jets.