Bursts before Burst: A Comparative Study on FRB 200428-associated and FRB-absent X-ray Bursts from SGR J1935+2154

TL;DR

This study compares X-ray bursts associated with FRB 200428 to those without, revealing spectral differences and supporting the magnetar origin hypothesis for cosmological FRBs, while highlighting the rarity of FRB-associated X-ray bursts.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of FRB-associated and non-associated X-ray bursts from SGR J1935+2154, emphasizing spectral distinctions and implications for FRB origins.

Findings

FRB-associated X-ray burst has a nonthermal spectrum and higher spectral peak energy.

The energy distribution of X-ray bursts is similar to that of FRB 121102.

Magnetar burst event rate density is about 150 times higher than FRB rate density.

Abstract

Accompanied by an X-ray burst, the fast radio burst (FRB) FRB 200428 was recently confirmed as originating from the Galactic magnetar soft gamma repeater (SGR) SGR J1935+2154. Just before and after FRB 200428 was detected, the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) had been monitoring SGR J1935+2154 for eight hours. From UTC 2020 April 27 23:55:00 to 2020 April 28 00:50:37, FAST detected no pulsed radio emission from SGR J1935+2154, while Fermi/Gamma-ray Burst Monitor registered 34 bursts in the X/soft $\gamma$-ray band, forming a unique sample of X-ray bursts in the absence of FRBs. After a comprehensive analysis on light curves, time-integrated, and time-resolved spectral properties of these FRB-absent X-ray bursts, we compare this sample with the FRB-associated X-ray burst detected by Insight-HXMT, INTEGRAL, and Konus-Wind. The FRB-associated burst distinguishes itself from other X-ray bursts by its nonthermal spectrum and a higher spectral peak energy, but otherwise is not atypical. We also compare the cumulative energy distribution of our X-ray burst sample with that of first repeating FRB source, FRB 121102, with the calibration of FRB 200428-X-ray burst association. We find a similarity between the two, offering indirect support of the magnetar origin of cosmological FRBs. The event rate density of magnetar bursts is about $\sim 150$ times higher than the FRB event rate density at the energy of FRB 200428. This again suggests that, if all FRBs originate from magnetars, only a small fraction of X-ray bursts are associated with FRBs.