Searching for Gamma Rays From FRB Source Locations with the HAWC Observatory

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are a class of short-duration, high-fluence transients in radio wavelengths, with some sources observed to repeat, while others are single-burst. In response, there have been several multi-wavelength searches for coincident transient activity and analysis of the host environments to gain clues to the origin of these events. The recent discovery of an FRB from the direction of SGR1935+2154, a Galactic magnetar, that was observed to be flaring by Fermi and Swift-BAT encourages multi-wavelength follow-up into gamma-ray energies. The HAWC gamma-ray observatory contributes to this multi-wavelength coverage with a wide field of view and consistent live-time suited to observation of transient source locations. While attenuation of gamma rays over extragalactic distances makes long-distance flux measurements difficult, data from the HAWC observatory can provide useful first upper limits of flux from the source locations of FRBs. For each FRB in the declination band of -20 to +60, since January 1, 2016, a steady-state flux upper limit has been set, and a search for transient activity around the burst time has been conducted with upper limits also presented for this search.