Multiband Optical Polarimetry of the BL Lacertae Object PKS 2155–304: Intranight and Long-Term Variability

The polarized and total flux of the BL Lac object PKS 2155-304 were monitored intensively and simultaneously in the optical UBVRI bands with the Turin photopolarimeter at the CASLEO 2.15 m telescope during four campaigns in 1998 June, August, and November and 1999 August. The effective observation time amounted to ∼47 hr. PKS 2155-304 showed a linear polarization percentage (P) usually ranging between 3% and 7% and a polarization position angle (P.A.) mainly between 70° and 120°. The highest temporal resolution of our observations, 15 minutes, is unprecedented for polarimetric monitoring of this source and has allowed us to detect amplitude variations of the linear polarization percentage from 6% to 7.5% in timescales of hours. In some nights the polarization percentage seems to increase toward shorter wavelengths; however, the polarized spectrum does not vary significantly with time. The most remarkable variability event occurred on 1998 June 18, when the degree of linear polarization decreased by more than a factor 2 in 1 day in all bands, while the P.A. rotated by 90°. This is consistent with the presence of two emission components, of different polarization degree and position angle. Intranight variability of P and P.A. can be interpreted with small-amplitude physical or geometrical changes within the jet. Measurements of the circular polarization over time intervals of days set upper limits of 0.2%. Simultaneous photometry taken with the Turin Photopolarimeter and with a CCD camera at Córdoba Astronomical Observatory did not show light variations correlated with those of the linearly polarized flux.