13,051 research outputs found
The Asymmetric Thick Disk: A Star Count and Kinematic Analysis. II The Kinematics
We report a kinematic signature associated with the observed asymmetry in the
distribution of thick disk/inner halo stars interior to the Solar circle
described in Paper I. In that paper we found a statistically significant excess
(20% to 25 %) of stars in quadrant I (l ~ 20 deg to 55 deg) both above and
below the plane (b ~ +/- 25 deg to +/- 45 deg) compared to the complementary
region in quadrant IV. We have measured Doppler velocities for 741 stars,
selected according to the same magnitude and color criteria, in the direction
of the asymmetry and in the corresponding fields in quadrant IV. We have also
determined spectral types and metallicities measured from the same spectra. We
not only find an asymmetric distribution in the V_LSR velocities for the stars
in the two regions, but the angular rate of rotation, w, for the stars in
quadrant I reveals a slower effective rotation rate compared to the
corresponding quadrant IV stars. We use our [Fe/H] measurements to separate the
stars into the three primary population groups, halo, thick disk, and disk, and
conclude that it is primarily the thick disk stars that show the slower
rotation in quadrant I. A solution for the radial, tangential and vertical
components of the V_LSR velocities, reveals a significant lag of ~ 80 to 90
km/s in the direction of Galactic rotation for the thick disk stars in quadrant
I, while in quadrant IV, the same population has only a ~ 20 km/s lag. The
results reported here support a rotational lag among the thick disk stars due
to a gravitational interaction with the bar as the most likely explanation for
the asymmetry in both the star counts and the kinematics. The affected thick
disk stars, however, may be associated with the recently discovered Canis Major
debris stream or a similar merger event (abridged).Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astronomical Journa
Rsr1 Palmitoylation and GTPase Activity Status Differentially Coordinate Nuclear, Septin, and Vacuole Dynamics in Candida albicans
Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Luminescence quenching of the triplet excimer state by air traces in gaseous argon
While developing a liquid argon detector for dark matter searches we
investigate the influence of air contamination on the VUV scintillation yield
in gaseous argon at atmospheric pressure. We determine with a radioactive
alpha-source the photon yield for various partial air pressures and different
reflectors and wavelength shifters. We find for the fast scintillation
component a time constant tau1= 11.3 +- 2.8 ns, independent of gas purity.
However, the decay time of the slow component depends on gas purity and is a
good indicator for the total VUV light yield. This dependence is attributed to
impurities destroying the long-lived argon excimer states. The population ratio
between the slowly and the fast decaying excimer states is determined for
alpha-particles to be 5.5 +-0.6 in argon gas at 1100 mbar and room temperature.
The measured mean life of the slow component is tau2 = 3.140 +- 0.067 microsec
at a partial air pressure of 2 x 10-6 mbar.Comment: 7 pages submitted to NIM
Contact-induced apical asymmetry drives the thigmotropic responses of Candida albicans hyphae
Acknowledgements We thank Marco Thiel for assistance with data interpretation, Peter Sudbery for the provision of strains and Jeremy Craven for useful discussions. This work was supported by a BBSRC-DTG to D. D. T., NIH award DK083592 to F. J. B. and P. A. J., and a Royal Society URF UF080611 and MRC NIRG 90671 to A. C. B.Non peer reviewedPublisher PD
A pulsed atomic soliton laser
It is shown that simultaneously changing the scattering length of an
elongated, harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate from positive to
negative and inverting the axial portion of the trap, so that it becomes
expulsive, results in a train of self-coherent solitonic pulses. Each pulse is
itself a non-dispersive attractive Bose-Einstein condensate that rapidly
self-cools. The axial trap functions as a waveguide. The solitons can be made
robustly stable with the right choice of trap geometry, number of atoms, and
interaction strength. Theoretical and numerical evidence suggests that such a
pulsed atomic soliton laser can be made in present experiments.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure
High resolution sub-millimetre mapping of starburst galaxies: Comparison with CO emission
Researchers present first results from a program of submillimeter continuum mapping of starburst galaxies, and comparison of their dust and CO emission. This project was prompted by surprising results from the first target, the nearby starburst M82, which shows in the dust continuum a morphology quite unlike that of its CO emission, in contrast to what might be expected if both CO and dust are accurately tracing the molecular hydrogen. Possible explanations for this striking difference are discussed. In the light of these results, the program has been extended to include sub-mm mapping of the nearby, vigorously star forming spirals, M83 and Maffei 2. The latter were also observed extensively in CO, in order to study excitation conditions in its central regions. The James Clerk Maxwell Telescope was used in these studies
Renormalization Group Method and Reductive Perturbation Method
It is shown that the renormalization group method does not necessarily
eliminate all secular terms in perturbation series to partial differential
equations and a functional subspace of renormalizable secular solutions
corresponds to a choice of scales of independent variables in the reductive
perturbation method.Comment: 5 pages, late
Vibrational instability, two-level systems and Boson peak in glasses
We show that the same physical mechanism is fundamental for two seemingly
different phenomena such as the formation of two-level systems in glasses and
the Boson peak in the reduced density of low-frequency vibrational states
g(w)/w^2. This mechanism is the vibrational instability of weakly interacting
harmonic modes. Below some frequency w_c << w_0 (where w_0 is of the order of
Debye frequency) the instability, controlled by the anharmonicity, creates a
new stable universal spectrum of harmonic vibrations with a Boson peak feature
as well as double-well potentials with a wide distribution of barrier heights.
Both are determined by the strength of the interaction I ~ w_c between the
oscillators. Our theory predicts in a natural way a small value for the
important dimensionless parameter C ~ 10^{-4} for two-level systems in glasses.
We show that C ~ I^{-3} and decreases with increasing of the interaction
strength I. We show that the number of active two-level systems is very small,
less than one per ten million of oscillators, in a good agreement with
experiment. Within the unified approach developed in the present paper the
density of the tunneling states and the density of vibrational states at the
Boson peak frequency are interrelated.Comment: 28 pages, 3 figure
Interaction Effects of 3-Mercaptohexan-1-ol (3MH), Linalool and Ethyl Hexanoate on the Aromatic Profile of South African Dry Chenin Blanc Wine by Descriptive Analysis (DA)
Interaction studies are some of the most interesting sensory experiments that highlight the effect of composition on wine perception. The use of single compounds, viz. an ester (ethyl hexanoate), a terpene (linalool) and a thiol (3-mercaptohexanol, 3MH), which have previously been shown to be representative of Chenin Blanc wines, resulted in typical descriptors for these compounds, such as âapple, âfloralâ and âguavaâ respectively. Interaction effects were observed between the compounds, and these were reflected in both the nature and the level of attributes generated. Additionally, interaction effects between the compounds (singles and combinations) and the wine matrix indicated that the latter plays an important role in theperception of wine aromas. The use of a dearomatised neutral wine base added an extra dimension to this study, which usually is done in a simpler matrix, such as a model wine
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