2,452 research outputs found
Calculating Cross Sections of Composite Interstellar Grains
Interstellar grains may be composite collections of particles of distinct
materials, including voids, agglomerated together. We determine the various
optical cross sections of such composite grains, given the optical properties
of each constituent, using an approximate model of the composite grain. We
assume it consists of many concentric spherical layers of the various
materials, each with a specified volume fraction. In such a case the usual Mie
theory can be generalized and the extinction, scattering, and other cross
sections determined exactly.
We find that the ordering of the materials in the layering makes some
difference to the derived cross sections, but averaging over the various
permutations of the order of the materials provides rapid convergence as the
number of shells (each of which is filled by all of the materials
proportionately to their volume fractions) is increased. Three shells, each
with one layer of a particular constituent material, give a very satisfactory
estimate of the average cross section produced by larger numbers of shells.
We give the formulae for the Rayleigh limit (small size parameter) for
multi-layered spheres and use it to propose an ``Effective Medium Theory''
(EMT), in which an average optical constant is taken to represent the ensemble
of materials.
Multi-layered models are used to compare the accuracies of several EMTs
already in the literature.Comment: 29 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal (part 1, scheduled in Vol. 526, #1, Nov. 20
CP and related phenomena in the context of Stellar Evolution
We review the interaction in intermediate and high mass stars between their
evolution and magnetic and chemical properties. We describe the theory of
Ap-star `fossil' fields, before touching on the expected secular diffusive
processes which give rise to evolution of the field. We then present recent
results from a spectropolarimetric survey of Herbig Ae/Be stars, showing that
magnetic fields of the kind seen on the main-sequence already exist during the
pre-main sequence phase, in agreement with fossil field theory, and that the
origin of the slow rotation of Ap/Bp stars also lies early in the pre-main
sequence evolution; we also present results confirming a lack of stars with
fields below a few hundred gauss. We then seek which macroscopic motions
compete with atomic diffusion in determining the surface abundances of AmFm
stars. While turbulent transport and mass loss, in competition with atomic
diffusion, are both able to explain observed surface abundances, the interior
abundance distribution is different enough to potentially lead to a test using
asterosismology. Finally we review progress on the turbulence-driving and
mixing processes in stellar radiative zones.Comment: Proceedings of IAU GA in Rio, JD4 on Ap stars; 10 pages, 7 figure
New Interstellar Dust Models Consistent with Extinction, Emission, and Abundance Constraints
We present new interstellar dust models which have been derived by
simultaneously fitting the far-ultraviolet to near-infrared extinction, the
diffuse infrared (IR) emission and, unlike previous models, the elemental
abundance constraints on the dust for different interstellar medium abundances,
including solar, F and G star, and B star abundances. The fitting problem is a
typical ill-posed inversion problem, in which the grain size distribution is
the unknown, which we solve by using the method of regularization. The dust
model contains various components: PAHs, bare silicate, graphite, and amorphous
carbon particles, as well as composite particles containing silicate, organic
refractory material, water ice, and voids. The optical properties of these
components were calculated using physical optical constants. As a special case,
we reproduce the Li & Draine (2001) results, however their model requires an
excessive amount of silicon, magnesium, and iron to be locked up in dust: about
50 ppm (atoms per million of H atoms), significantly more than the upper limit
imposed by solar abundances of these elements, about 34, 35, and 28 ppm,
respectively. A major conclusion of this paper is that there is no unique
interstellar dust model that simultaneously fits the observed extinction,
diffuse IR emission, and abundances constraints.Comment: 70 pages, 23 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal Supplemen
Extinction Curves, Distances, and Clumpiness of Diffuse Interstellar Dust Clouds
We present CCD photometry in UBVRI of several thousand Galactic field stars
in four large (>1 degree^2) regions centered on diffuse interstellar dust
clouds, commonly referred to as ``cirrus'' clouds (with optical depth A_V less
than unity). Our goal in studying these stars is to investigate the properties
of the cirrus clouds. A comparison of the observed stellar surface density
between on-cloud and off-cloud regions as a function of apparent magnitude in
each of the five bands effectively yields a measure of the extinction through
each cloud. For two of the cirrus clouds, this method is used to derive UBVRI
star counts-based extinction curves, and U-band counts are used to place
constraints on the cloud distance. The color distribution of stars and their
location in (U-B, B-V) and (B-V, V-I) color-color space are analyzed in order
to determine the amount of selective extinction (reddening) caused by the
cirrus. The color excesses, A_lambda-A_V, derived from stellar color histogram
offsets for the four clouds, are better fit by a reddening law that rises
steeply towards short wavelengths [R_V==A_V/E(B-V)<=2] than by the standard law
(R_V=3.1). This may be indicative of a higher-than-average abundance of small
dust grains relative to larger grains in diffuse cirrus clouds. The shape of
the counts-based effective extinction curve and a comparison of different
estimates of the dust optical depth (extinction optical depth derived from
background star counts/colors; emission optical depth derived from far infrared
measurements), are used to measure the degree of clumpiness in clouds. The set
of techniques explored in this paper can be readily adapted to the Sloan
Digital Sky Survey data set in order to carry out a systematic, large-scale
study of cirrus clouds.Comment: 22 pages, 13 figures (postscript, gif, jpg). Accepted for publication
in the Astronomical Journal, scheduled for the May 1999 issue. Full
resolution postscript versions of all figures are available at
http://www.ucolick.org/~arpad
The BinaMIcS project: understanding the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars through close binary systems
It is now well established that a fraction of the massive (M>8 Msun) star
population hosts strong, organised magnetic fields, most likely of fossil
origin. The details of the generation and evolution of these fields are still
poorly understood. The BinaMIcS project takes an important step towards the
understanding of the interplay between binarity and magnetism during the
stellar formation and evolution, and in particular the genesis of fossil
fields, by studying the magnetic properties of close binary systems. The
components of such systems are most likely formed together, at the same time
and in the same environment, and can therefore help us to disentangle the role
of initial conditions on the magnetic properties of the massive stars from
other competing effects such as age or rotation. We present here the main
scientific objectives of the BinaMIcS project, as well as preliminary results
from the first year of observations from the associated ESPaDOnS and Narval
spectropolarimetric surveys.Comment: To appear in New Windows on Massive Stars, proceedings of the IAU
Symposium 30
The magnetic characteristics of Galactic OB stars from the MiMeS survey of magnetism in massive stars
The Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) project represents the largest
systematic survey of stellar magnetism ever undertaken. Based on a sample of
over 550 Galactic B and O-type stars, the MiMeS project has derived the basic
characteristics of magnetism in hot, massive stars. Herein we report
preliminary results.Comment: Proceedings of IAUS 302: Magnetic fields throughout stellar evolutio
Discovery Of A Magnetic Field In The Rapidly Rotating O-Type Secondary Of The Colliding-Wind Binary HD 47129 (Plaskett\u27s Star)
We report the detection of a strong, organized magnetic field in the secondary component of the massive O8III/I+O7.5V/III double-lined spectroscopic binary system HD 47129 (Plaskett\u27s star) in the context of the Magnetism in Massive Stars survey. Eight independent Stokes V observations were acquired using the Echelle SpectroPolarimetric Device for the Observations of Stars (ESPaDOnS) spectropolarimeter at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope and the Narval spectropolarimeter at the Telescope Bernard Lyot. Using least-squares deconvolution we obtain definite detections of signal in Stokes V in three observations. No significant signal is detected in the diagnostic null (N) spectra. The Zeeman signatures are broad and track the radial velocity of the secondary component; we therefore conclude that the rapidly rotating secondary component is the magnetized star. Correcting the polarized spectra for the line and continuum of the (sharp-lined) primary, we measured the longitudinal magnetic field from each observation. The longitudinal field of the secondary is variable and exhibits extreme values of -810 +/- 150 and +680 +/- 190 G, implying a minimum surface dipole polar strength of 2850 +/- 500 G. In contrast, we derive an upper limit (3 sigma) to the primary\u27s surface magnetic field of 230 G. The combination of a strong magnetic field and rapid rotation leads us to conclude that the secondary hosts a centrifugal magnetosphere fed through a magnetically confined wind. We revisit the properties of the optical line profiles and X-ray emission - previously interpreted as a consequence of colliding stellar winds - in this context. We conclude that HD 47129 represents a heretofore unique stellar system - a close, massive binary with a rapidly rotating, magnetized component - that will be a rich target for further study
How chemistry controls electron localization in 3d1 perovskites: A Wannier-function study
In the series of 3d1 t2g perovskites, SrVO3--CaVO3--LaTiO3--YTiO3 the
transition-metal d electron becomes increasingly localized and undergoes a Mott
transition between CaVO3 and LaTiO3. By defining a low-energy Hubbard
Hamiltonian in the basis of Wannier functions for the t2g LDA band and solving
it in the single-site DMFT approximation, it was recently shown[1] that
simultaneously with the Mott transition there occurs a strong suppression of
orbital fluctuations due to splitting of the t2g levels. The present paper
reviews and expands this work, in particular in the direction of exposing the
underlying chemical mechanisms by means of ab initio LDA Wannier functions
generated with the NMTO method. The Wannier functions for the t2g band exhibit
covalency between the transition-metal t2g, the large cation-d, and the
oxygen-p states; this covalency, which increases along the series, turns out to
be responsible not only for the splittings of the t2g levels, but also for
non-cubic perturbations of the hopping integrals, both of which are decisive
for the Mott transition. We find good agreement with the optical and
photoemission spectra, with the crystal-field splittings and orbital
polarizations recently measured for the titanates, and with the metallization
volume for LaTiO3. The metallization volume for YTiO3 is predicted. Using
super-exchange theory, we reproduce the observed magnetic orders in LaTiO3 and
YTiO3, but the results are sensitive to detail, in particular for YTiO3 which,
without the Jahn-Teller distortion, would be AFM C- or A-type, rather than FM.
Finally, we show that it possible to unfold the orthorhombic t2g LDA
bandstructure to a pseudocubic zone. In this zone, the lowest band is separated
from the two others by a direct gap and has a width, W_I, which is
significantly smaller than that, W, of the entire t2g band. The progressive
GdFeO3-type distortion favours electron localization by decreasing W, by
increasing the splitting of the t2g levels and by decreasing W_I. Our
conclusions concerning the roles of GdFeO3-type and JT distortions agree with
those of Mochizuki and Imada [2].Comment: Published version, final. For high resolution figures see
http://www.fkf.mpg.de/andersen/docs/pub/abstract2004+/pavarini_02.pd
The MiMeS Project: Overview and Current Status
The Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) Project is a consensus collaboration
among many of the foremost international researchers of the physics of hot,
massive stars, with the basic aim of understanding the origin, evolution and
impact of magnetic fields in these objects. At the time of writing, MiMeS Large
Programs have acquired over 950 high-resolution polarised spectra of about 150
individual stars with spectral types from B5-O4, discovering new magnetic
fields in a dozen hot, massive stars. The quality of this spectral and magnetic
mat\'eriel is very high, and the Collaboration is keen to connect with
colleagues capable of exploiting the data in new or unforeseen ways. In this
paper we review the structure of the MiMeS observing programs and report the
status of observations, data modeling and development of related theory.Comment: Proceedings of IAUS272: Active OB star
Molecular Hydrogen and Global Star Formation Relations in Galaxies
(ABRIDGED) We use hydrodynamical simulations of disk galaxies to study
relations between star formation and properties of the molecular interstellar
medium (ISM). We implement a model for the ISM that includes low-temperature
(T<10^4K) cooling, directly ties the star formation rate to the molecular gas
density, and accounts for the destruction of H2 by an interstellar radiation
field from young stars. We demonstrate that the ISM and star formation model
simultaneously produces a spatially-resolved molecular-gas surface density
Schmidt-Kennicutt relation of the form Sigma_SFR \propto Sigma_Hmol^n_mol with
n_mol~1.4 independent of galaxy mass, and a total gas surface density -- star
formation rate relation Sigma_SFR \propto Sigma_gas^n_tot with a power-law
index that steepens from n_tot~2 for large galaxies to n_tot>~4 for small dwarf
galaxies. We show that deviations from the disk-averaged Sigma_SFR \propto
Sigma_gas^1.4 correlation determined by Kennicutt (1998) owe primarily to
spatial trends in the molecular fraction f_H2 and may explain observed
deviations from the global Schmidt-Kennicutt relation.Comment: Version accepted by ApJ, high-res version available at
http://kicp.uchicago.edu/~brant/astro-ph/molecular_ism/rk2007.pd
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