Stellar population gradients in Seyfert 2 galaxies. Northern sample

We use high signal-to-noise ratio long-slit spectra in the 3600-4700A range of the twenty brightest northern Seyfert 2 galaxies to study the variation of the stellar population properties as a function of distance from the nucleus. In order to characterize the stellar population and other continuum sources (e.g. featureless continuum FC) we have measured equivalent widths Ws of six absorption features, four continuum colours and their radial variations, and performed spectral population synthesis as a function of distance from the nucleus. About half the sample has CaIIK and G-band W values smaller at the nucleus than at 1 kpc from it, due to a younger population and/or FC. The stellar population synthesis shows that, while at the nucleus, 75% of the galaxies present contribution > 20% of ages younger or equal than 100Myr and/or of a FC, this proportion decreases to 45% at 3 kpc. In particular, 55% of the galaxies have contribution > 10% of the 3 Myr/FC component (a degenerate component in which one cannot separate what is due to a FC or to a 3 Myr stellar population) at the nucleus, but only 25% of them have this contribution at 3 kpc. As reference, the stellar population of 10 non-Seyfert galaxies, spanning the Hubble types of the Seyfert (from S0 to Sc) was also studied. A comparison between the stellar population of the Seyferts and that of the non-Seyferts shows systematic differences: the contribution of ages younger than 1 Gyr is in most cases larger in the Seyfert galaxies than in non-Seyferts, not only at the nucleus but up to 1 kpc from it.Comment: 23 pages, 18 figures, MNRAS in pres

An atlas of Calcium triplet spectra of active galaxies

We present a spectroscopic atlas of active galactic nuclei covering the region around the 8498, 8542, 8662 Calcium triplet (CaT) lines. The sample comprises 78 objects, divided into 43 Seyfert 2s, 26 Seyfert 1s, 3 Starburst and 6 normal galaxies. The spectra pertain to the inner ~300 pc in radius, and thus sample the central kinematics and stellar populations of active galaxies. The data are used to measure stellar velocity dispersions (sigma_star) both with cross-correlation and direct fitting methods. These measurements are found to be in good agreement with each-other and with those in previous studies for objects in common. The CaT equivalent width is also measured. We find average values and sample dispersions of W_CaT of 4.6+/-2.0, 7.0 and 7.7+/-1.0 angstrons for Seyfert 1s, Seyfert 2s and normal galaxies, respectively. We further present an atlas of [SIII]\lambda 9069 emission line profiles for a subset of 40 galaxies. These data are analyzed in a companion paper which addresses the connection between stellar and Narrow Line Region kinematics, the behaviour of the CaT equivalent width as a function of sigma_star, activity type and stellar population properties.Comment: 18 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

On the nature of the near-UV extended light in Seyfert galaxies

We study the nature of the extended near-UV emission in the inner kiloparsec of a sample of 15 Seyfert galaxies which have both near-UV (F330W) and narrow band [OIII] high resolution Hubble images. For the majority of the objects we find a very similar morphology in both bands. From the [OIII] images we construct synthetic images of the nebular continuum plus the emission line contribution expected through the F330W filter, which can be subtracted from the F330W images. We find that the emission of the ionised gas dominates the near-UV extended emission in half of the objects. A further broad band photometric study, in the bands F330W (U), F547M (V) and F160W (H), shows that the remaining emission is dominated by the underlying galactic bulge contribution. We also find a blue component whose nature is not clear in 4 out of 15 objects. This component may be attributed to scattered light from the AGN, to a young stellar population in unresolved star clusters, or to early-disrupted clusters. Star forming regions and/or bright off-nuclear star clusters are observed in 4/15 galaxies of the sample.Comment: 23 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; accepted for publication in MNRA

Evaluation of a shoreface nourishment in De Haan: analysis of 20 years of data

In the framework of the implementation of the Master Plan for Coastal Safety and Vlaamse Baaien project, an assessment of the added value of shoreface nourishment as coastal protection measure and as alternative to classic procedures for beach nourishment maintenance will be performed. This project, entitled “Shoreface nourishments as coastal protection measure”, is carried out at Flanders Hydraulics Research with as central activity the monitoring of a pilot shoreface nourishment that will take place in 2013 in Mariakerke.The only antecedent of a shoreface nourishment in Belgium is the nourishment performed in De Haan in 1990. This document brings together results from the monitoring carried out in the 90’s as well as new results obtained from later surveys in the study area. The results is a more than twenty years analysis of the morphological evolution of the coast at the Haan. The interpretation of the results is not straight forward due to the various nourishments performed since then in neighboring areas. However, it is possible to conclude that after a local cross-and long-shore redistribution of the sand nourished in the shoreface, this sand has not been transported and therefore has remain in the system acting as sand supply for the beach.A general reduction of the background erosion has also been detected during this analysis but the fact that during the study period no severe storms occurred makes it difficult to draw a definitive conclusion in this regard.Taking into account the difficulties encountered to draw conclusions on the evolution of the beach and shoreface in De Haan during this study and the goals of the new project it is recommended that during the monitoring of the pilot shoreface nourishment to be started in 2013 no other nourishments on the beach and/or neighboring shoreface and beaches are executed

Density Matrix and Renormalization for Classical Lattice Models

We review the variational principle in the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) method, which maximizes an approximate partition function within a restricted degrees of freedom; at zero temperature, DMRG mini- mizes the ground state energy. The variational principle is applied to two-dimensional (2D) classical lattice models, where the density matrix is expressed as a product of corner transfer matrices. (CTMs) DMRG related fields and future directions of DMRG are briefly discussed.Comment: 21 pages, Latex, 14 figures in postscript files, Proc. of the 1996 El Escorial Summer School on "Strongly Correlated Magnetic and Superconducting Systems

Black hole evaporation with separated fermions

In models with a low quantum gravity scale, a well-motivated reason to expect quark and lepton fields are localized but physically separated is to avoid proton decay. This could happen in a ``fat-brane'' or in an additional, orthogonal 1/TeV sized dimension in which the gauge and Higgs fields live throughout. Black holes with masses of order the quantum gravity scale are therefore expected to evaporate non-universally, preferentially radiating directly into quarks or leptons but not both. Should black holes be copiously produced at a future hadron collider, we find the ratio of final state jets to charged leptons to photons is 113:8:1, which differs from previous analyses that assumed all standard model fields live at the same point in the extra dimensional space.Comment: 5 pages, REVTe