Cooler and bigger than thought? Planetary host stellar parameters from the InfraRed Flux Method

Effective temperatures and radii for 92 planet-hosting stars as determined from the InfraRed Flux Method (IRFM) are presented and compared with those given by other authors using different approaches. The IRFM temperatures we have derived are systematically lower than those determined from the spectroscopic condition of excitation equilibrium, the mean difference being as large as 110 K. They are, however, consistent with previous IRFM studies and with the colors derived from Kurucz and MARCS model atmospheres. Comparison with direct measurements of stellar diameters for 7 dwarf stars, which approximately cover the range of temperatures of the planet-hosting stars, suggest that the IRFM radii and temperatures are reliable in an absolute scale. A better understanding of the fundamental properties of the stars with planets will be achieved once this discrepancy between the IRFM and the spectroscopic temperature scales is resolved.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap

Infrared 3D Observations of Nearby Active Galaxies

We present multi-wavelength imaging observations of three nearby and famous active galaxies obtained with NICMOS, ISOCAM and the MPE near-IR integral field spectrometer. The data reveal a variety of features and properties that are missed in optical studies and in traditional IR monodimensional spectroscopy.Comment: 6 pages, to appear in "Imaging the Universe in Three Dimensions: Astrophysics with Advanced Multi-Wavelength Imaging Devices", eds. W. van Breugel and J. Bland-Hawthorn, needs pasp3D.st

Homoclinic snaking of localized states in doubly diffusive convection

Numerical continuation is used to investigate stationary spatially localized states in two-dimensional thermosolutal convection in a plane horizontal layer with no-slip boundary conditions at top and bottom. Convectons in the form of 1-pulse and 2-pulse states of both odd and even parity exhibit homoclinic snaking in a common Rayleigh number regime. In contrast to similar states in binary fluid convection, odd parity convectons do not pump concentration horizontally. Stable but time-dependent localized structures are present for Rayleigh numbers below the snaking region for stationary convectons. The computations are carried out for (inverse) Lewis number \tau = 1/15 and Prandtl numbers Pr = 1 and Pr >> 1

New models for two real scalar fields and their kinklike solutions

In this work we study the presence of kinks in models described by two real scalar fields in bi-dimensional space-time. We generate new two-field models, constructed from distinct but important one-field models, and we solve them with techniques that we introduce in the current work. We illustrate the results with several examples of current interest to high energy physics.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures; To appear in Adv. High Energy Phy

Spatio-temporal dynamics induced by competing instabilities in two asymmetrically coupled nonlinear evolution equations

Pattern formation often occurs in spatially extended physical, biological and chemical systems due to an instability of the homogeneous steady state. The type of the instability usually prescribes the resulting spatio-temporal patterns and their characteristic length scales. However, patterns resulting from the simultaneous occurrence of instabilities cannot be expected to be simple superposition of the patterns associated with the considered instabilities. To address this issue we design two simple models composed by two asymmetrically coupled equations of non-conserved (Swift-Hohenberg equations) or conserved (Cahn-Hilliard equations) order parameters with different characteristic wave lengths. The patterns arising in these systems range from coexisting static patterns of different wavelengths to traveling waves. A linear stability analysis allows to derive a two parameter phase diagram for the studied models, in particular revealing for the Swift-Hohenberg equations a co-dimension two bifurcation point of Turing and wave instability and a region of coexistence of stationary and traveling patterns. The nonlinear dynamics of the coupled evolution equations is investigated by performing accurate numerical simulations. These reveal more complex patterns, ranging from traveling waves with embedded Turing patterns domains to spatio-temporal chaos, and a wide hysteretic region, where waves or Turing patterns coexist. For the coupled Cahn-Hilliard equations the presence of an weak coupling is sufficient to arrest the coarsening process and to lead to the emergence of purely periodic patterns. The final states are characterized by domains with a characteristic length, which diverges logarithmically with the coupling amplitude.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures, submitted to Chao