6,212 research outputs found
String Approach to QCD Quarks in Fundamental Representations
Straightforward use of AdS/CFT correspondence can give QCD with quarks in
adjoint representations. Using an asymmetric orbifold approach we obtain
nonsupersymmetric QCD with four quark flavors in fundamental representations of
color.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figure. Talk at Eighth Workshop on Nonperturbative Quantum
Chromodynamics, l'Institut Astrophysique de Paris, June 7-11, 200
WR 110: A Single Wolf-Rayet Star With Corotating Interaction Regions In Its Wind?
A 30-day contiguous photometric run with the MOST satellite on the WN5-6b
star WR 110 (HD 165688) reveals a fundamental periodicity of P = 4.08 +/- 0.55
days along with a number of harmonics at periods P/n, with n ~ 2,3,4,5 and 6,
and a few other possible stray periodicities and/or stochastic variability on
timescales longer than about a day. Spectroscopic RV studies fail to reveal any
plausible companion with a period in this range. Therefore, we conjecture that
the observed light-curve cusps of amplitude ~ 0.01 mag that recur at a 4.08 day
timescale may arise in the inner parts, or at the base of, a corotating
interaction region (CIR) seen in emission as it rotates around with the star at
constant angular velocity. The hard X-ray component seen in WR 110 could then
be a result of a high velocity component of the CIR shock interacting with the
ambient wind at several stellar radii. Given that most hot, luminous stars
showing CIRs have two CIR arms, it is possible that either the fundamental
period is 8.2 days or, more likely in the case of WR 110, there is indeed a
second weaker CIR arm for P = 4.08 days, that occurs ~ two thirds of a rotation
period after the main CIR. If this interpretation is correct, WR 110 therefore
joins the ranks with three other single WR stars, all WN, with confirmed CIR
rotation periods (WR 1, WR 6, and WR 134), albeit with WR 110 having by far the
lowest amplitude photometric modulation. This illustrates the power of being
able to secure intense, continuous high-precision photometry from space-based
platforms such as MOST. It also opens the door to revealing low-amplitude
photometric variations in other WN stars, where previous attempts have failed.
If all WN stars have CIRs at some level, this could be important for revealing
sources of magnetism or pulsation in addition to rotation periods.Comment: 25 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables, accepted in Ap
Long-term magnetic field stability of Vega
We present new spectropolarimetric observations of the normal A-type star
Vega, obtained during the summer of 2010 with NARVAL at T\'elescope Bernard
Lyot (Pic du Midi Observatory). This new time-series is constituted of 615
spectra collected over 6 different nights. We use the
Least-Square-Deconvolution technique to compute, from each spectrum, a mean
line profile with a signal-to-noise ratio close to 20,000. After averaging all
615 polarized observations, we detect a circularly polarized Zeeman signature
consistent in shape and amplitude with the signatures previously reported from
our observations of 2008 and 2009. The surface magnetic geometry of the star,
reconstructed using the technique of Zeeman-Doppler Imaging, agrees with the
maps obtained in 2008 and 2009, showing that most recognizable features of the
photospheric field of Vega are only weakly distorted by large-scale surface
flows (differential rotation or meridional circulation).Comment: Proceedings of the conference "Stellar polarimetry: from birth to
death", 2011 Jun 27-30, Madiso
Evry Leon Schatzman
This article describes the life and work of French astrophysicist Evry
Schatzman (1920-2010). He was a pioneer in the study of white dwarfs during the
1940s and was one of the proponents of the wave heating theory of the solar
corona. He made important contributions to the fields of internal stellar
structure, novae, mechanisms of acceleration of cosmic rays, the role of
turbulent diffusion in stellar evolution and its consequences for the lithium
abundance, and the rate of solar neutrinos. Schatzman is mostly recognized as
the creator of the French school of theoretical astrophysics. Although he was
not the first theoretician of astrophysics in his country, he was the first to
have felt the need for a rapid development of this subject in France, and the
first to teach it and to guide the path of many young researchers. Many of them
became involved, and some leaders, in space science.Comment: 5 pages. Published in Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers,
Thomas Hockey (ed.), 201
What Powers Lyman alpha Blobs?
Lyman alpha blobs (LABs) are spatially extended lyman alpha nebulae seen at
high redshift. The origin of Lyman alpha emission in the LABs is still unclear
and under debate. To study their heating mechanism(s), we present Australia
Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) observations of the 20 cm radio emission and
Herschel PACS and SPIRE measurements of the far-infrared (FIR) emission towards
the four LABs in the protocluster J2143-4423 at z=2.38. Among the four LABs, B6
and B7 are detected in the radio with fluxes of 67+/-17 microJy and 77+/-16
microJy, respectively, and B5 is marginally detected at 3 sigma (51+/-16
microJy). For all detected sources, their radio positions are consistent with
the central positions of the LABs. B6 and B7 are obviously also detected in the
FIR. By fitting the data with different templates, we obtained redshifts of
2.20 for B6 and 2.20 for B7 which are
consistent with the redshift of the lyman alpha emission within uncertainties,
indicating that both FIR sources are likely associated with the LABs. The
associated FIR emission in B6 and B7 and high star formation rates strongly
favor star formation in galaxies as an important powering source for the lyman
alpha emission in both LABs. However, the other two, B1 and B5, are
predominantly driven by the active galactic nuclei or other sources of energy
still to be specified, but not mainly by star formation. In general, the LABs
are powered by quite diverse sources of energy.Comment: 7 pages and 3 figurs, accepted by A&
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Curvature sensor for the measurement of the static corneal topography and the dynamic tear film topography in the human eye
A system to measure the topography of the first optical surface of the human eye noninvasively by using a curvature sensor is described. The static corneal topography and the dynamic topography of the tear film can both be measured, and the topographies obtained are presented. The system makes possible the study of the dynamic aberrations introduced by the tear film to determine their contribution to the overall ocular aberrations in healthy eyes, eyes with corneal pathologies, and eyes wearing contact lenses
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