Measuring and calibrating Galactic synchrotron emission

Our position inside the Galaxy requires all-sky surveys to reveal its large-scale properties. The zero-level calibration of all-sky surveys differs from standard 'relative' measurements, where a source is measured in respect to its surroundings. All-sky surveys aim to include emission structures of all angular scales exceeding their angular resolution including isotropic emission components. Synchrotron radiation is the dominating emission process in the Galaxy up to frequencies of a few GHz, where numerous ground based surveys of the total intensity up to 1.4 GHz exist. Its polarization properties were just recently mapped for the entire sky at 1.4 GHz. All-sky total intensity and linear polarization maps from WMAP for frequencies of 23 GHz and higher became available and complement existing sky maps. Galactic plane surveys have higher angular resolution using large single-dish or synthesis telescopes. Polarized diffuse emission shows structures with no relation to total intensity emission resulting from Faraday rotation effects in the interstellar medium. The interpretation of these polarization structures critically depends on a correct setting of the absolute zero-level in Stokes U and Q.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures. To be published in "Cosmic Magnetic Fields: From Planets, to Stars and Galaxies", K.G. Strassmeier, A.G. Kosovichev & J.E. Beckman, eds., Proc. IAU Symp. 259, CU

A statistical analysis of a Galactic all sky survey at 1.4 GHz

Radio surveys at frequencies of about 1 GHz allow to map the synchrotron emission in a frequency range where (except for very low Galactic latitudes or towards localized regions) it dominates over the other radio components. New all sky total intensity and polarization data at 1.4 GHz have been recently collected. We focus on the Galactic radio emission correlation properties described in terms of angular power spectrum (APS). We present for the first time the APS, in both total intensity and polarization modes, for some representative Galactic cuts and suitable APS power law parametrizations.Comment: Comments: 2 pages, 2 figures; in Astronomische Nachrichten, Vol.327, Issue 5/6, p.491 (2006); Proceedings of International Conference "The Origin and Evolution of Cosmic Magnetism", 29 August - 2 September 2005, CNR Area della Ricerca, Bologna, Italy, eds. R. Beck, G. Brunetti, L. Feretti, and B. Gaensle

Exciton resonances quench the photoluminescence of zigzag carbon nanotubes

We show that the photoluminescence intensity of single-walled carbon nanotubes is much stronger in tubes with large chiral angles - armchair tubes - because exciton resonances make the luminescence of zigzag tubes intrinsically weak. This exciton-exciton resonance depends on the electronic structure of the tubes and is found more often in nanotubes of the +1 family. Armchair tubes do not necessarily grow preferentially with present growth techniques; they just have stronger luminescence. Our analysis allows to normalize photoluminescence intensities and find the abundance of nanotube chiralities in macroscopic samples.Comment: 4 pages and 2 supplementary pages; 6 figure

Question/answer congruence and the semantics of wh-phrases

This paper is about the semantics of wh-phrases. It is argued that wh-phrases should not be analyzed as indefinites as, for example, Karttunen (1977) and many others have done, but as functional expressions with an indefinite core -their function being to restrict possible focus/background structures in direct or congruent answers. This will be argued for on the basis of observations made with respect to the distribution of term answers in well-formed question/answer sequences. This claim having been established, it will be integrated in a categorial variant of Schwarzschild's (1999) information-theoretic approach to F-marking and accent placement, and – second – its consequences with respect to the focus/background structure of wh-questions will be outlined

Radio Observations of Supernova Remnants

Supernovae release an enormous amount of energy into the interstellar medium. Their remnants can observationally be traced up to several ten-thousand years. So far more than 230 Galactic supernova remnants (SNRs) have been identified in the radio range. Detailed studies of the different types of SNRs give insight into the interaction of the blast wave with the interstellar medium. Shock accelerated particles are observed, but also neutron stars left from the supernova explosion make their contribution. X-ray observations in conjunction with radio data constrain models of supernova evolution. A brief review of the origin and evolution of SNRs is given, which are compared with supernova statistics and observational limitations. In addition the morphology and characteristics of the different types of SNRs are described, including some recent results and illustrated by SNRs images mostly obtained with the Effelsberg 100-m telescope.Comment: 11 pages, 15 figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the 270. WE-Heraeus Seminar on Neutron Stars, Pulsars and Supernova Remnants, Jan. 21-25, 2002, Physikzentrum Bad Honnef, eds W. Becker, H. Lesch & J. Truemper. Proceedings are available as MPE-Report 27

G181.1+9.5, a new high-latitude low-surface brightness supernova remnant

More than 90% of the known Milky Way supernova remnants are within 5 degrees of the Galactic Plane. We present the discovery of the supernova remnant G181.1+9.5, a new high-latitude SNR, serendipitously discovered in an ongoing survey of the Galactic Anti-centre High-Velocity Cloud complex, observed with the DRAO Synthesis Telescope in the 21~cm radio continuum and HI spectral line. We use radio continuum observations (including the linearly polarized component) at 1420~MHz (observed with the DRAO ST) and 4850~MHz (observed with the Effelsberg 100-m radio telescope) to map G181.1+9.5 and determine its nature as a SNR. High-resolution 21~cm HI line observations and HI emission and absorption spectra reveal the physical characteristics of its local interstellar environment. Finally, we estimate the basic physical parameters of G181.1+9.5 using models for highly-evolved SNRs. G181.1+9.5 has a circular shell-like morphology with a radius of about 16~pc at a distance of 1.5 kpc some 250 pc above the mid-plane. The radio observations reveal highly linearly polarized emission with a non-thermal spectrum. Archival ROSAT X-ray data reveal high-energy emission from the interior of G181.1+9.5 indicative of the presence of shock-heated ejecta. The SNR is in the advanced radiative phase of SNR evolution, expanding into the HVC inter-cloud medium with a density of 1$~cm$^{-3}$. Basic physical attributes of G181.1+9.5 calculated with radiative SNR models show an upper-limit age of 16,000 years, a swept-up mass of more than 300 solar masses, and an ambient density in agreement with that estimated from HI observations. G181.1+9.5 shows all characteristics of a typical mature shell-type SNR, but its observed faintness is unusual and requires further study.Comment: A&A accepted, 11 pages, 13 figure

A radio continuum survey of the southern sky at 1420 MHz. Observations and data reduction

We describe the equipment, observational method and reduction procedure of an absolutely calibrated radio continuum survey of the South Celestial Hemisphere at a frequency of 1420 MHz. These observations cover the area 0h < R.A. < 24h for declinations less than -10 degree. The sensitivity is about 50 mK T_B (full beam brightness) and the angular resolution (HPBW) is 35.4', which matches the existing northern sky survey at the same frequency.Comment: 9 pages with 9 figures, A&A, in pres

Obvious natural morphisms of sheaves are unique

We prove that a large class of natural transformations (consisting roughly of those constructed via composition from the "functorial" or "base change" transformations) between two functors of the form $\cdots f^* g_* \cdots$ actually has only one element, and thus that any diagram of such maps necessarily commutes. We identify the precise axioms defining what we call a "geofibered category" that ensure that such a coherence theorem exists. Our results apply to all the usual sheaf-theoretic contexts of algebraic geometry. The analogous result that would include any other of the six functors remains unknown.Comment: 52 pages. Final draft, version accepted to TA