Experimental demonstration of a W-band gyroklystron amplifier

The experimental demonstration of a four cavity W-band (93 GHz) gyroklystron amplifier is reported. The gyroklystron has produced 67 kW peak output power and 28% efficiency in the TE011 mode using a 55 kV, 4.3 A electron beam. The full width at half maximum instantaneous bandwidth is greater than 460 MHz, a significant increase over the bandwidth demonstrated in previous W-band gyroklystron amplifier experiments. The amplifier is unconditionally stable at this operating point. Experimental results are in good agreement with theoretical predictions

Geometrodynamical Distances to the Galaxy's Hydrogen Streams

We present a geometrodynamical method for determining distances to orbital streams of HI gas in the Galaxy. The method makes use of our offset from the Galactic centre and assumes that the gas comprising the stream nearly follows a planar orbit about the Galactic centre. We apply this technique to the Magellanic Stream and determine the distances to all points along it; a consistency check shows that the angular momentum is approximately constant. Applying this technique to the Large Magellanic Cloud itself gives an independent distance which agrees within its accuracy of around 10%. Relaxing the demand for exact conservation of energy and angular momentum at all points along the stream allows for an increase in orbital period between the lagging end and the front end led by the Magellanic Clouds. Similar methods are applicable to other long streams of high-velocity clouds, provided they also nearly follow planar orbits; these would allow otherwise unknown distances to be determined.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures; typos corrected after being accepted by MNRA

A kinematic study of Open Clusters: implications for their origin

The Galactic population of open clusters provides an insight into star formation in the Galaxy. The open cluster catalogue by Dias et al.(2002b) is a rich source of data, including kinematic information. This large sample made it possible to carry out a systematic analysis of 481 open cluster orbits, using parameters based on orbit eccentricity and separation from the Galactic plane. These two parameters may be indicative of origin, and we find them to be correlated. We also find them to be correlated with metallicity, another parameter suggested elsewhere to be a marker for origin in that high values of any of these two parameters generally indicates a low metallicity ([Fe/H] Solar$<-$0.2 dex). The resulting analysis points to four open clusters in the catalogue being of extra-Galactic origin by impact of high velocity cloud on the disk: Berkeley21, 32, 99, and Melotte66, with a possible further four due to this origin (NGC2158, 2420, 7789, IC1311). A further three may be due to Galactic globular cluster impact on the disk i.e of internal Galactic origin (NGC6791, 1817, and 7044).Comment: 14 pages, 816 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS 14-May-201

High Velocity Rain: The Terminal Velocity of Model of Galactic Infall

A model is proposed for determining the distances to falling interstellar clouds in the galactic halo by measuring the cloud velocity and column density and assuming a model for the vertical density distribution of the Galactic interstellar medium. It is shown that falling clouds with $N(H I) < \sim 10^{19} cm^{-2}$ may be decelerated to a terminal velocity which increases with increasing height above the Galactic plane. This terminal velocity model correctly predicts the distance to high velocity cloud Complex M and several other interstellar structures of previously determined distance. It is demonstrated how interstellar absorption spectra alone may be used to predict the distances of the clouds producing the absorption. If the distances to the clouds are already known, we demonstrate how the model may be used to determine the vertical density structure of the ISM. The derived density distribution is consistent with the expected density distribution of the warm ionized medium, characterized by Reynolds. There is also evidence that for $z >\sim 0.4 kpc$ one or more of the following occurs: (1) the neutral fraction of the cloud decreases to $\sim 31 \pm 14$, (2) the density drops off faster than characterized by Reynolds, or (3) there is a systematic decrease in drag coefficient with increasing z.Comment: ApJ, in pres

Hard X-ray properties of blazars

We have considered all blazars observed in the X-ray band and for which the slope of the X-ray spectrum is available. We have collected 421 spectra of 268 blazars, including 12 archival unpublished ASCA spectra of 7 blazars whose analysisis presented here. The X-ray spectra of blazars show trends as a function of their power, confirming that the blazar overall energy distribution can be parameterized on the basis of one parameter only, i.e. the bolometric luminosity. This is confirmed by the relatively new hard (2-10 keV) X-ray data. Our results confirm the idea that in low power objects the X-ray emission mechanism is the synchrotron process, dominating both the soft and the hard X-ray emissions. Low energy peaked BL Lac objects are intermediate, often showing harder spectra in the hard X-ray band, suggesting that the synchrotron process dominates in the soft band, with the inverse Compton process dominating at high energies. The most powerful objects have X-ray spectra that are flat both in the soft and in the hard band, consistent with a dominating inverse Compton component.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Distances and Metallicities of High- and Intermediate-Velocity Clouds

A table is presented that summarizes published absorption line measurements for the high- and intermediate velocity clouds (HVCs and IVCs). New values are derived for N(HI) in the direction of observed probes, in order to arrive at reliable abundances and abundance limits (the HI data are described in Paper II). Distances to stellar probes are revisited and calculated consistently, in order to derive distance brackets or limits for many of the clouds, taking care to properly interpret non-detections. The main conclusions are the following. 1) Absolute abundances have been measured using lines of SII, NI and OI, with the following resulting values: ~0.1 solar for one HVC (complex C), ~0.3 solar for the Magellanic Stream, ~0.5 solar for a southern IVC, and ~ solar for two northern IVCs (the IV Arch and LLIV Arch). Finally, approximate values in the range 0.5-2 solar are found for three more IVCs. 2) Depletion patterns in IVCs are like those in warm disk or halo gas. 3) Most distance limits are based on strong UV lines of CII, SiII and MgII, a few on CaII. Distance limits for major HVCs are >5 kpc, while distance brackets for several IVCs are in the range 0.5-2 kpc. 4) Mass limits for major IVCs are 0.5-8x10^5 M_sun, but for major HVCs they are >10^6 M_sun. 5) The CaII/HI ratio varies by up to a factor 2-5 within a single cloud, somewhat more between clouds. 6) The NaIHI ratio varies by a factor >10 within a cloud, and even more between clouds. Thus, CaII can be useful for determining both lower and upper distance limits, but NaI only yields upper limits.Comment: To appear in the "Astrophysical Journal Supplement"; 82 pages; figures 6, 9 and 10 are in color; degraded figures (astro-ph restriction) - ask for good version

High-resolution observations of interstellar Na I and Ca II towards the southern opening of the 'Local Interstellar Chimney': probing the disc—halo connection

We present high-resolution (R = 400 000) observations of interstellar Ca II and Na I absorption lines towards seven stars in the direction of the southern opening of the recently identified Local Interstellar Chimney. These lines of sight probe the lower Galactic halo (0.3 ≲∣z∣≲ 2.5 kpc), without the complication of sampling dense foreground interstellar material. In addition to components with velocities expected from Galactic rotation, these stars also exhibit components with negative local standard of rest velocities, which are contrary to the sense of Galactic rotation for the sightlines observed. After a discussion of possible origins for these peculiar velocities, we conclude that at least some of them result from gas falling towards the Galactic plane from distances of ∣z∣≳ 300 pc. The narrow linewidths are generally inconsistent with temperatures as high as the ∼6000 K generally assumed for the so-called Lockman layer. Rather, the picture that emerges is one of a scattered, generally infalling, population of high-∣z∣ diffuse clouds, seemingly not very different from those encountered in the local interstellar medium. Overall, we argue that our results are most consistent with a ‘Galactic fountain’ model

CIRCUIT ASPECTS OF THE NRL/INDUSTRIAL 94 GHz GYROKLYSTRON AMPLIFIER

Abstract A wide bandwidth, high average power W-band gyroklystron amplifier is currently under cooperative development by NRL, Litton Electron Devices, and Communication and Power Industries. The amplifier circuit is comprised of 4 stagger-tuned cavities operating in the fundamental TE 011 circular cavity mode. The input coupler is the first cavity of the circuit and must exhibit reasonable coupling strength between the TE 10 mode in rectangular waveguide and the desired TE 011 circular cavity mode over a better than 600 MHz bandwidth centered at 93.4 GHz, with high TE 01 mode purity. A single WR-8 rectangular waveguide drives a combined coaxial/cylindrical cavity system. The coaxial cavity resonating in the TE 411 mode is tightly coupled to the cylindrical cavity, excited to resonate in the TE 011 mode. The rf magnetic field couples the cavities through 4 azimuthally spaced apertures