9.10. The cause of the spectral turnover in the GPS source 0108+388: free-free absorption or SSA?

Abstract

The radio source 0108 + 388 is a canonical example of a class of extragalactic radio sources, referred to as Gigahertz-Peaked Spectrum (GPS) sources, whose spectra peak at high frequencies. There are two competing models for the cause of the high frequency turnover: free-free absorption (f-f) of the lower frequency radiation by ionized gas in the host galaxies (e.g. van Breugel 1984), or synchrotron self-absorption (SSA) due to exceptionally large magnetic fields, (e.g. Hodges, Mutel, & Phillips 1984).