1,989 research outputs found
The Chameleonic Contribution to the SZ Radial Profile of the Coma Cluster
We constrain the chameleonic Sunyaev--Zel'dovich (CSZ) effect in the Coma
cluster from measurements of the Coma radial profile presented in the WMAP
7-year results. The CSZ effect arises from the interaction of a scalar (or
pseudoscalar) particle with the cosmic microwave background in the magnetic
field of galaxy clusters. We combine this radial profile data with SZ
measurements towards the centre of the Coma cluster in different frequency
bands, to find Delta T_{SZ,RJ}(0)=-400+/-40 microKelvin and Delta T_{CSZ}^{204
GHz}(0)=-20+/-15 microKelvin (68% CL) for the thermal SZ and CSZ effects in the
cluster respectively. The central value leads to an estimate of the photon to
scalar (or pseudoscalar) coupling strength of g = (5.2 - 23.8) x 10^{-10}
GeV^{-1}, while the 95% confidence bound is estimated to be g < (8.7 - 39.4) x
10^{-10} GeV^{-1}.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure
Fermionic Zero Modes of Supergravity Cosmic Strings
Recent developments in string theory suggest that cosmic strings could be
formed at the end of brane inflation. Supergravity provides a realistic model
to study the properties of strings arising in brane inflation. Whilst the
properties of cosmic strings in flat space-time have been extensively studied
there are significant complications in the presence of gravity. We study the
effects of gravitation on cosmic strings arising in supergravity. Fermion zero
modes are a common feature of cosmic strings, and generically occur in
supersymmetric models. The corresponding massless currents can give rise to
stable string loops (vortons). The vorton density in our universe is strongly
constrained, allowing many theories with cosmic strings to be ruled out. We
investigate the existence of fermion zero modes on cosmic strings in
supergravity theories. A general index theorem for the number of zero modes is
derived. We show that by including the gravitino, some (but not all) zero modes
disappear. This weakens the constraints on cosmic string models. In particular,
winding number one cosmic D-strings in models of brane inflation are not
subject to vorton constraints. We also discuss the effects of supersymmetry
breaking on cosmic D-strings.Comment: 33 page
Bogomol'nyi Bounds for Gravitational Cosmic Strings
We present a new method for finding lower bounds on the energy of topological
cosmic string solutions in gravitational field theories. This new method
produces bounds that are valid over the entire space of solutions, unlike the
traditional approach, where the bounds obtained are only valid for
cylindrically symmetric solutions. This method is shown to be a generalisation
of the well-known Bogomol'nyi procedure for non-gravitational theories and as
such, it can be used to find gravitational Bogomol'nyi bounds for models
wherever the traditional Bogomol'nyi procedure can be applied in the
non-gravitational limit. Furthermore, this method yields Bogomol'nyi equations
that do not rule out the existence of asymmetric bound-saturating solutions.Comment: 17 pages - final version (accepted for publication in JHEP
Cusps on cosmic superstrings with junctions
The existence of cusps on non-periodic strings ending on D-branes is
demonstrated and the conditions, for which such cusps are generic, are derived.
The dynamics of F-, D-string and FD-string junctions are investigated. It is
shown that pairs of FD-string junctions, such as would form after
intercommutations of F- and D-strings, generically contain cusps. This new
feature of cosmic superstrings opens up the possibility of extra channels of
energy loss from a string network. The phenomenology of cusps on such cosmic
superstring networks is compared to that of cusps formed on networks of their
field theory analogues, the standard cosmic strings.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figure
Examples of Embedded Defects (in Particle Physics and Condensed Matter)
We present a series of examples designed to clarify the formalism of the
companion paper `Embedded Vortices'. After summarising this formalism in a
prescriptive sense, we run through several examples: firstly, deriving the
embedded defect spectrum for Weinberg-Salam theory, then discussing several
examples designed to illustrate facets of the formalism. We then calculate the
embedded defect spectrum for three physical Grand Unified Theories and conclude
with a discussion of vortices formed in the superfluid He-A phase
transition.Comment: final corrections. latex fil
Chromosome-level genome assembly for the Aldabra giant tortoise enables insights into the genetic health of a threatened population
The Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) is one of only two giant tortoise species left in the world. The species is endemic to Aldabra Atoll in Seychelles and is considered vulnerable due to its limited distribution and threats posed by climate change. Genomic resources for A. gigantea are lacking, hampering conservation efforts focused on both wild and ex-situ populations. A high-quality genome would also open avenues to investigate the genetic basis of the exceptionally long lifespan. Here, we produced the first chromosome-level de novo genome assembly of A. gigantea using PacBio High-Fidelity sequencing and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture (Hi-C). We produced a 2.37 Gbp assembly with a scaffold N50 of 148.6 Mbp and a resolution into 26 chromosomes. RNAseq-assisted gene model prediction identified 23,953 protein-coding genes and 1.1 Gbp of repetitive sequences. Synteny analyses among turtle genomes revealed high levels of chromosomal collinearity even among distantly related taxa. We also performed a low-coverage re-sequencing of 30 individuals from wild populations and two zoo individuals. Our genome-wide population structure analyses detected genetic population structure in the wild and identified the most likely origin of the zoo-housed individuals. The high-quality chromosome-level reference genome for A. gigantea is one of the most complete turtle genomes available. It is a powerful tool to assess the population structure in the wild population and reveal the geographic origins of ex-situ individuals relevant for genetic diversity management and rewilding efforts
Boundary Inflation and the WMAP Data
Inflation in a five-dimensional brane world model with two boundary branes is
studied. We make use of the moduli space approximation whereby the low energy
theory reduces to a four-dimensional biscalar-tensor gravity plus a minimally
coupled scalar field. After a detailed analysis of the inflationary solutions,
we derive the evolution equations of the linear perturbations separating the
adiabatic mode from two entropy modes. We then examine the primordial scalar
and tensor power spectra and show that their tilt depends on the scalar-tensor
coupling constant. Finally, the induced CMB anisotropies are computed and we
present a Monte Carlo Markov Chains exploration of the parameter space using
the first year WMAP data. We find a marginalized probability bound for the
associated Eddington parameter at the end of inflation 1 - gamma < 0.002, at
95% confidence level. This suggests that future CMB data could provide crucial
information helping to distinguish scalar-tensor and standard inflationary
scenarios.Comment: 24 pages, 19 figures, uses RevTex. Qualitative discussions added,
matches published versio
Cosmological Consequences of Slow-Moving Bubbles in First-Order Phase Transitions
In cosmological first-order phase transitions, the progress of true-vacuum
bubbles is expected to be significantly retarded by the interaction between the
bubble wall and the hot plasma. We examine the evolution and collision of
slow-moving true-vacuum bubbles. Our lattice simulations indicate that phase
oscillations, predicted and observed in systems with a local symmetry and with
a global symmetry where the bubbles move at speeds less than the speed of
light, do not occur inside collisions of slow-moving local-symmetry bubbles. We
observe almost instantaneous phase equilibration which would lead to a decrease
in the expected initial defect density, or possibly prevent defects from
forming at all. We illustrate our findings with an example of defect formation
suppressed in slow-moving bubbles. Slow-moving bubble walls also prevent the
formation of `extra defects', and in the presence of plasma conductivity may
lead to an increase in the magnitude of any primordial magnetic field formed.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, replaced with typos corrected and reference
added. To appear in Phys. Rev.
Scattering off an SO(10) cosmic string
The scattering of fermions from the abelian string arising during the phase
transition induced by the Higgs in the
126 representation is studied. Elastic cross-sections and baryon number
violating cross-sections due to the coupling to gauge fields in the core of the
string are computed by both a first quantised method and a perturbative second
quantised method. The elastic cross-sections are found to be Aharonov-Bohm
type. However, there is a marked asymmetry between the scattering
cross-sections for left and right handed fields. The catalysis cross-sections
are small, depending on the grand unified scale. If cosmic strings were
observed our results could help tie down the underlying gauge group.Comment: 20 page
Evidence-Based Professional Development of Science Teachers in Two Countries
The focus of this collaborative research project of King?s College London, and the Weizmann Institute, Israel. project is on investigating the ways in which teachers can demonstrate accomplished teaching in a specific domain of science and on the teacher learning that is generated through continuing professional development programs (CPD) that lead towards such practice. The interest lies in what processes and inputs are required to help secondary school science teachers develop expertise in a specific aspect of science teaching. `It focuses on the design of the CPD programmes and examines the importance of an evidence-based approach through portfolioconstruction in which professional dialogue pathes the way for teacher learning. The set of papers highlight the need to set professional challenge while tailoring CPD to teachers? needs to create the environment in which teachers can advance and transform their practice. The cross-culture perspective added to the richness of the development and enabled the researchers to examine which aspects were fundamental to the design by considering similarities and differences between the domains
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