15,849 research outputs found
Higher Spin Alternating Sign Matrices
We define a higher spin alternating sign matrix to be an integer-entry square
matrix in which, for a nonnegative integer r, all complete row and column sums
are r, and all partial row and column sums extending from each end of the row
or column are nonnegative. Such matrices correspond to configurations of spin
r/2 statistical mechanical vertex models with domain-wall boundary conditions.
The case r=1 gives standard alternating sign matrices, while the case in which
all matrix entries are nonnegative gives semimagic squares. We show that the
higher spin alternating sign matrices of size n are the integer points of the
r-th dilate of an integral convex polytope of dimension (n-1)^2 whose vertices
are the standard alternating sign matrices of size n. It then follows that, for
fixed n, these matrices are enumerated by an Ehrhart polynomial in r.Comment: 41 pages; v2: minor change
Self-gravity at the scale of the polar cell
We present the exact calculus of the gravitational potential and acceleration
along the symmetry axis of a plane, homogeneous, polar cell as a function of
mean radius a, radial extension e, and opening angle f. Accurate approximations
are derived in the limit of high numerical resolution at the geometrical mean
of the inner and outer radii (a key-position in current FFT-based Poisson
solvers). Our results are the full extension of the approximate formula given
in the textbook of Binney & Tremaine to all resolutions. We also clarify
definitely the question about the existence (or not) of self-forces in polar
cells. We find that there is always a self-force at radius except if the
shape factor a.f/e reaches ~ 3.531, asymptotically. Such cells are therefore
well suited to build a polar mesh for high resolution simulations of
self-gravitating media in two dimensions. A by-product of this study is a newly
discovered indefinite integral involving complete elliptic integral of the
first kind over modulus.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, A&A accepte
Local geometry of random geodesics on negatively curved surfaces
It is shown that the tessellation of a compact, negatively curved surface
induced by a typical long geodesic segment, when properly scaled, looks locally
like a Poisson line process. This implies that the global statistics of the
tessellation -- for instance, the fraction of triangles -- approach those of
the limiting Poisson line process.Comment: This version extends the results of the previous version to surfaces
with possibly variable negative curvatur
MAGIC detection of short-term variability of the high-peaked BL Lac object 1ES 0806+524
The high-frequency-peaked BL Lac (HBL) 1ES 0806+524 (z = 0.138) was
discovered in VHE rays in 2008. Until now, the broad-band spectrum of
1ES 0806+524 has been only poorly characterized, in particular at high
energies. We analysed multiwavelength observations from rays to radio
performed from 2011 January to March, which were triggered by the high activity
detected at optical frequencies. These observations constitute the most precise
determination of the broad-band emission of 1ES 0806+524 to date. The
stereoscopic MAGIC observations yielded a -ray signal above 250 GeV of
per cent of the Crab Nebula flux with a statistical
significance of 9.9 . The multiwavelength observations showed
significant variability in essentially all energy bands, including a VHE
-ray flare that lasted less than one night, which provided
unprecedented evidence for short-term variability in 1ES 0806+524. The spectrum
of this flare is well described by a power law with a photon index of between 150 GeV and 1 TeV and an integral flux of
per cent of the Crab Nebula flux above 250 GeV. The spectrum during the
non-flaring VHE activity is compatible with the only available VHE observation
performed in 2008 with VERITAS when the source was in a low optical state. The
broad-band spectral energy distribution can be described with a one-zone
Synchrotron Self Compton model with parameters typical for HBLs, indicating
that 1ES 0806+524 is not substantially different from the HBLs previously
detected.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, 3 tables, accepted 2015 April 20 for publication
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Main Journa
Semi-analytic modeling of the EBL and consequences for extragalactic gamma-ray spectra
Attenuation of high-energy gamma rays by pair-production with UV, optical and
IR extragalactic background light (EBL) photons provides a link between the
history of galaxy formation and high-energy astrophysics. We present results
from our latest semi-analytic models (SAMs), which employ the main ingredients
thought to be important to galaxy formation and evolution, as well as an
improved model for reprocessing of starlight by dust to mid- and far-IR
wavelengths. These SAMs are based upon a Lambda-CDM hierarchical structural
formation scenario, and are successful in reproducing a large variety of
observational constraints such as number counts, luminosity and mass functions,
and color bimodality. Our fiducial model is based upon a WMAP5 cosmology, and
treats dust emission using empirical templates. This model predicts a
background flux considerably lower than optical and near-IR measurements that
rely on subtraction of zodiacal and galactic foregrounds, and near the lower
bounds set by number counts of resolvable sources at a large number of
wavelengths. We also show the results of varying cosmological parameters and
dust attenuation model used in our SAM. For each EBL prediction, we show how
the optical depth due to electron-positron pair-production is affected by
redshift and gamma-ray energy, and the effect of gamma-ray absorption on the
spectra of a variety of extragalactic sources. We conclude with a discussion of
the implications of our work, comparisons to other models and key measurements
of the EBL and a discussion of how the burgeoning science of gamma-ray
astronomy will continue to help constrain cosmology. The low EBL flux predicted
by our fiducial model suggests an optimistic future for further studies of
distant gamma-ray sources.Comment: 23 pages, 11 figures, 3 tables, accepted by MNRAS; this preprint
matches accepted versio
Constraints to Energy Spectra of Blazars based on Recent EBL Limits from Galaxy Counts
We combine the recent estimate of the contribution of galaxies to the 3.6
micron intensity of the extragalactic background light (EBL) with optical and
near-infrared (IR) galaxy counts to set new limits on intrinsic spectra of some
of the most distant TeV blazars 1ES 0229+200, 1ES 1218+30.4, and 1ES 1101-232,
located at redshifts 0.1396, 0.182, and 0.186, respectively. The new lower
limit on the 3.6 micron EBL intensity is significantly higher than the previous
one set by the cumulative emission from resolved Spitzer galaxies. Correcting
for attenuation by the revised EBL, we show that the differential spectral
index of the intrinsic spectrum of the three blazars is 1.28 +- 0.20 or harder.
These results present blazar emission models with the challenge of producing
extremely hard intrinsic spectra in the sub-TeV to multi-TeV regime. These
results also question the reliability of recently derived upper limits on the
near-IR EBL intensity that are solely based on the assumption that intrinsic
blazar spectra should not be harder than 1.5.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures, submitted to the Astrophysical Journa
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