FRBs and magnetar activity statistics

TL;DR

This paper uses observational data and a simple model to explore whether super-repeating and one-off FRBs originate from the same magnetar population, suggesting they could be different activity stages of magnetars.

Contribution

It proposes a toy model linking FRB repetition patterns to magnetar activity stages, challenging the idea that all FRBs come from a single population.

Findings

Super-repeaters may be identified among known sources.

Intervals between strong FRBs match expected giant flare times.

Active magnetar phase lasts a few thousand years.

Abstract

With simple estimates based on recent observational data and the assumption that among known FRB sources most repeaters with extremely high rates of repetition (super-repeaters) are already identified, we demonstrate that the hypothesis that super-repeaters and one-off events come from the same population of magnetars is not self-contradictory. In this toy model, the super-repeater stage has a duration of about a few years and the period when one-off events are mostly emitted corresponds to the active life of a magnetar $\sim $few$\times 10^3$~years. Intervals between strong events (observed as one-off FRBs) from the same source are $\sim10$~years, corresponding to the expected time interval between giant flares.