Classifying orbits of the affine group over the integers

For each $n=1,2,\dots$, let $\mathsf{GL}(n,\mathbb{Z})\ltimes \mathbb{Z}^n$ be the affine group over the integers. For every point $x=(x_1,\dots,x_n) \in \mathbb{R}^n$ let $\mathrm{orb}(x)=\{\gamma(x)\in \mathbb{R}^n\mid\gamma\in \mathsf{GL}(n,\mathbb{Z})\ltimes \mathbb{Z}^n\}.$ Let $G_{x}$ be the subgroup of the additive group $\mathbb R$ generated by $x_1,\dots,x_n, 1$. If $\mathrm{rank}(G_x)\neq n$ then $\mathrm{orb}(x)=\{y\in\mathbb{R}^n\mid G_y=G_x\}$. Thus,$G_x$ is a complete classifier of $\mathrm{orb}(x)$. By contrast, if $\mathrm{rank}(G_x)=n$, knowledge of $G_x$ alone is not sufficient in general to uniquely recover $\mathrm{orb}(x)$: as a matter of fact, $G_x$ determines precisely $\mathrm{max}(1,\frac{\phi(d)}{2})$ different orbits, where $d$ is the denominator of the smallest positive nonzero rational in $G_x,$ and $\phi$ is Euler function. To get a complete classification, rational polyhedral geometry provides an integer $1\leq c_x\leq \mathrm{max}(1,d/2)$ such that $\mathrm{orb}(y)=\mathrm{orb}(x)$ iff $(G_{x},c_{x})=(G_{y},c_{{y}})$

Prospecting Period Measurements with LSST - Low Mass X-ray Binaries as a Test Case

The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) will provide for unbiased sampling of variability properties of objects with $r$ mag $<$ 24. This should allow for those objects whose variations reveal their orbital periods ($P_{orb}$), such as low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) and related objects, to be examined in much greater detail and with uniform systematic sampling. However, the baseline LSST observing strategy has temporal sampling that is not optimised for such work in the Galaxy. Here we assess four candidate observing strategies for measurement of $P_{orb}$ in the range 10 minutes to 50 days. We simulate multi-filter quiescent LMXB lightcurves including ellipsoidal modulation and stochastic flaring, and then sample these using LSST's operations simulator (OpSim) over the (mag, $P_{orb}$) parameter space, and over five sightlines sampling a range of possible reddening values. The percentage of simulated parameter space with correctly returned periods ranges from $\sim$23 %, for the current baseline strategy, to $\sim$70 % for the two simulated specialist strategies. Convolving these results with a $P_{orb}$ distribution, a modelled Galactic spatial distribution and reddening maps, we conservatively estimate that the most recent version of the LSST baseline strategy will allow $P_{orb}$ determination for $\sim$18 % of the Milky Way's LMXB population, whereas strategies that do not reduce observations of the Galactic Plane can improve this dramatically to $\sim$32 %. This increase would allow characterisation of the full binary population by breaking degeneracies between suggested $P_{orb}$ distributions in the literature. Our results can be used in the ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of various potential cadencing strategies.Comment: Replacement after addressing minor corrections from the referee - mainly improvements in clarificatio

Gamma-ray Timing of Redback PSR J2339-0533: Hints for Gravitational Quadrupole Moment Changes

We present the results of precision gamma-ray timing measurements of the binary millisecond pulsar PSR J2339$-$0533, an irradiating system of "redback" type, using data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope. We describe an optimized analysis method to determine a long-term phase-coherent timing solution spanning more than six years, including a measured eccentricity of the binary orbit and constraints on the proper motion of the system. A major result of this timing analysis is the discovery of an extreme variation of the nominal 4.6-hour orbital period $P_{\rm orb}$ over time, showing alternating epochs of decrease and increase. We inferred a cyclic modulation of $P_{\rm orb}$ with an approximate cycle duration of 4.2 years and a modulation amplitude of $\Delta P_{\rm orb}/ P_{\rm orb} = 2.3 \times 10^{-7}$. Considering different possible physical causes, the observed orbital-period modulation most likely results from a variable gravitational quadrupole moment of the companion star due to cyclic magnetic activity in its convective zone.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figure

Further study on 5q configuration states in the chiral SU(3) quark model

The structure of the $5q$ configuration states with strangeness ${\cal{S}}=+1$ is further studied in the chiral SU(3) quark model based on our previous work. We calculate the energies of fifteen low configurations of the $5q$ system, four lowest configurations of $J^{\pi}={1/2}^-$ with $4q$ partition $[4]_{orb}(0s^4)[31]^{\sigma f}$, four of $J^{\pi}={1/2}^+$ with $4q$ partition $[31]_{orb}(0s^30p)[4]^{\sigma f}$ and seven of $J^{\pi}={1/2}^+$ with $4q$ partition $[4]_{orb}(0s^30p)[31]^{\sigma f}$. Some modifications are made in this further study, i.e., the orbital wave function is extended as an expansion of 4 different size harmonic oscillator forms; three various forms (quadratic, linear and error function form) of the color confinement potential are considered; the states with $4q$ partition $[4]_{orb}(0s^30p)[31]^{\sigma f}$ are added, which are unnegligible in the $J^{\pi}={1/2}^+$ case and were not considered in our previous paper, further the mixing between configurations $[31]_{orb}(0s^30p)[4]^{\sigma f}$ and $[4]_{orb}(0s^30p)[31]^{\sigma f}$ is also investigated. The results show that the T=0 state is still always the lowest one for both $J^{\pi}={1/2}^-$ and $J^{\pi}={1/2}^+$ states, and $J^{\pi}={1/2}^-, T=0$ state is always lower than that of $J^{\pi}={1/2}^+$. All of these modifications can only offer several tens to hundred MeV effect, and the theoretical value of the lowest state is still about 245 MeV higher than the experimental mass of $\Theta^+$. It seems to be difficult to get the calculated mass close to the observed one with the reasonable parameters in the framework of the chiral SU(3) quark model when the model space is chosen as a $5q$ cluster.Comment: 16 page