32,166 research outputs found
Photoionization models of the Eskimo nebula: evidence for a binary central star?
The ionizing star of the planetary nebula NGC 2392 is too cool to explain the
high excitation of the nebular shell, and an additional ionizing source is
necessary. We use photoionization modeling to estimate the temperature and
luminosity of the putative companion. Our results show it is likely to be a
very hot (Teff ~ 250kK), dense white dwarf. If the stars form a close binary,
they may merge within a Hubble time, possibly producing a Type Ia supernova.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, presented at the IAU Symposium 282 "From
Interacting Binaries to Exoplanets: Essential Modeling Tools", Tatransk\'a
Lomnica, Slovakia, 201
Acceleration of the universe, vacuum metamorphosis, and the large-time asymptotic form of the heat kernel
We investigate the possibility that the late acceleration observed in the
rate of expansion of the universe is due to vacuum quantum effects arising in
curved spacetime. The theoretical basis of the vacuum cold dark matter (VCDM),
or vacuum metamorphosis, cosmological model of Parker and Raval is revisited
and improved. We show, by means of a manifestly nonperturbative approach, how
the infrared behavior of the propagator (related to the large-time asymptotic
form of the heat kernel) of a free scalar field in curved spacetime causes the
vacuum expectation value of its energy-momentum tensor to exhibit a resonance
effect when the scalar curvature R of the spacetime reaches a particular value
related to the mass of the field. we show that the back reaction caused by this
resonance drives the universe through a transition to an accelerating expansion
phase, very much in the same way as originally proposed by Parker and Raval.
Our analysis includes higher derivatives that were neglected in the earlier
analysis, and takes into account the possible runaway solutions that can follow
from these higher-derivative terms. We find that the runaway solutions do not
occur if the universe was described by the usual classical FRW solution prior
to the growth of vacuum energy-density and negative pressure (i.e., vacuum
metamorphosis) that causes the transition to an accelerating expansion of the
universe in this theory.Comment: 33 pages, 3 figures. Submitted to Physical Review D15 (Dec 23, 2003).
v2: 1 reference added. No other change
Phase diagram and dependence of the critical temperature T_c on the pressure for Tl_{0.5}Pb_{0.5}Sr_2Ca_{1-x}Y_xCu_2)_7
Using a mean-field BCS-like approach on the bidimensional extended Hubbard
Hamiltonian we calculate the superconducting transition temperature Tc as a
function of the hole content nh, for the d-wave and extended-s wave gap
symmetries. To describe the pressure effect on Tc we assume it induces a change
in the magnitude V of the attractive superconductor potential. This assumption
yields an explanation for the intrinsic term, and together with the well known
change in nh, we set the critical temperature as Tc=Tc(nh(P),V(P)). With this
we obtain a general expansion of Tc in terms of the pressure P and the hole
content nh. We apply this expansion to the
Tl_{0.5}Pb_{0.5}Sr_2Ca_{1-x}Y_xCu_2)_7 system
Short and user-friendly: The development and validation of the Mini-DBQ
The Driver Behavior Questionnaire (DBQ) is used to measure aberrant driver behavior by asking drivers how often they engage in various aberrant driver behaviors. Since the development of the original DBQ several modified versions have been developed. The difference between the various versions is that new items are added or existing items modified or excluded. However, despite the differences, all versions are relatively long and therefore time-consuming and tiring to answer, which might limit the usability of the instrument. The main purpose of the present study was to develop a mini DBQ version by reducing the 27-item original DBQ to the shortest possible DBQ version. A second aim was to explore the feasibility of a second-order structure within the data, which means that violations, errors and lapses factors load on a higher-order aberrant driver behavior factor. The presence of a second-order structure further indicates the validity of the DBQ and its theoretical structure. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test the fit (i.e., how well the models explain the data) of the original DBQ versus the fit of the shortest possible DBQ as well as the presence of a second-order structure for the DBQ. The results indicated a nine-item Mini-DBQ In addition, a second-order structure was established in the data. These findings indicate that the Mini-DBQ is a valid and useful short measure of aberrant driver behavior
Ejection of cool plasma into the hot corona
We investigate the processes that lead to the formation, ejection and fall of
a confined plasma ejection that was observed in a numerical experiment of the
solar corona. By quantifying physical parameters such as mass, velocity, and
orientation of the plasma ejection relative to the magnetic field, we provide a
description of the nature of this particular phenomenon. The time-dependent
three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (3D MHD) equations are solved in a box
extending from the chromosphere to the lower corona. The plasma is heated by
currents that are induced through field line braiding as a consequence of
photospheric motions. Spectra of optically thin emission lines in the extreme
ultraviolet range are synthesized, and magnetic field lines are traced over
time. Following strong heating just above the chromosphere, the pressure
rapidly increases, leading to a hydrodynamic explosion above the upper
chromosphere in the low transition region. The explosion drives the plasma,
which needs to follow the magnetic field lines. The ejection is then moving
more or less ballistically along the loop-like field lines and eventually drops
down onto the surface of the Sun. The speed of the ejection is in the range of
the sound speed, well below the Alfven velocity. The plasma ejection is
basically a hydrodynamic phenomenon, whereas the rise of the heating rate is of
magnetic nature. The granular motions in the photosphere lead (by chance) to a
strong braiding of the magnetic field lines at the location of the explosion
that in turn is causing strong currents which are dissipated. Future studies
need to determine if this process is a ubiquitous phenomenon on the Sun on
small scales. Data from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamics
Observatory (AIA/SDO) might provide the relevant information.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figure
Analytic Density of States in the Abrikosov-Gorkov Theory
Since the early 1960s, Abrikosov-Gorkov theory has been used to describe
superconductors with paramagnetic impurities. Interestingly, the density of
states resulting from the theoretical framework has to date only been known
approximately, as a numeric solution of a complex polynomial. Here we introduce
an exact analytic solution for the density of states of a superconductor with
paramagnetic impurities. The solution is valid in the whole regime of
Abrikosov-Gorkov theory; both where there is an energy gap and gapless. While
of fundamental interest, we argue that this solution also has computational
benefits in the evaluation of integrals for tunneling conductances and allows
for an analytic description of materials with densities of states that are
modeled from the basic Abrikosov-Gorkov density of states.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur
Photoionization modeling of the Galactic planetary nebulae Abell 39 and NGC 7027
We estimate distances to the spherical planetary nebula Abell 39 and the
bipolar planetary nebula NGC 7027 by interpolating from a wide grid of
photoionization models using the 3-D code, MOCASSIN. We find preliminary
distances of 1.5 kpc and 0.9 kpc respectively, with uncertainties of about 30%.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, presented at the IAU Symposium 283 "Planetary
Nebulae: an Eye to the Future", Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain, 201
Testing the universality of star formation - II. Comparing separation distributions of nearby star-forming regions and the field
We have measured the multiplicity fractions and separation distributions of
seven young star-forming regions using a uniform sample of young binaries. Both
the multiplicity fractions and separation distributions are similar in the
different regions. A tentative decline in the multiplicity fraction with
increasing stellar density is apparent, even for binary systems with
separations too close (19-100au) to have been dynamically processed. The
separation distributions in the different regions are statistically
indistinguishable over most separation ranges, and the regions with higher
densities do not exhibit a lower proportion of wide (300-620au) relative to
close (62-300au) binaries as might be expected from the preferential
destruction of wider pairs. Only the closest (19-100au) separation range, which
would be unaffected by dynamical processing, shows a possible difference in
separation distributions between different regions. The combined set of young
binaries, however, shows a distinct difference when compared to field binaries,
with a significant excess of close (19-100au) systems among the younger
binaries. Based on both the similarities and differences between individual
regions, and between all seven young regions and the field, especially over
separation ranges too close to be modified by dynamical processing, we conclude
that multiple star formation is not universal and, by extension, the star
formation process is not universal.Comment: accepted for publication in MNRA
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