Bigradient Phase Referencing

We propose bigradient phase referencing (BPR), a new radio-observation technique, and report on its performance using the Japanese very-long-baseline-interferometry network (JVN). In this method, a weak source is detected by phase-referencing using a primary calibrator, in order to play a role as a secondary calibrator for phasereferencing to a weak target. We will be given the opportunity to select a calibrator from lots of milli-Jansky sources, one of which may be located at a position closer to the target. With such a smaller separation, high-quality phase-referencing can be achieved. A subsequent more-sophisticated calibration can relocate the array’s focus to a hypothetical point much closer to the target; a higher quality of phase referencing is available. Our demonstrative observations with strong radio sources have proved the capabilities of the BPR in terms of the image dynamic ranges and astrometric reproducibility. The image dynamic range on a target has been improved by a factor of about six compared to that of normal phase-referencing; the resultant position difference of the target’s emission between two epochs was only 62 ±50 microarcsecond, even with less than 2300-km baselines at 8.4GHz and fast-switching between a target–calibrator pair separated by a 2. ◦ 1.