Laboratory and telescope use of the NICMOS2 128 x 128 HgCdTe array

The second generation of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) instruments will include a near-infrared instrument. This choice has driven the development of near-infrared arrays to larger sizes and lower read noises. Rockwell International has delivered an array for use in the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) instrument; this array has been dubbed NICMOS2. NICMOS2 is a 128x128 array of HgCdTe diodes In-bonded to a switched MOSFET readout. The readout was specifically designed for astronomical use with the HST requirement of low read noise a prime goal. These arrays use detector material which is similar to that used by Rockwell in previous arrays (e.g., HgCdTe produced on a sapphire substrate), but the NICMOS2 devices differ substantially from other 128x128 arrays produced by Rockwell in having a read noise of only 30 electrons when read out using appropriate correlated sampling. NICMOS2 has now been characterized in the laboratory, and it has been used on groundbased telescopes

The Incidence of Debris Disks at 24 {\mu}m and 670 Myr

We use Spitzer Space Telescope 24 {\mu}m data to search for debris disks among 122 AFGKM stars from the \sim 670 Myr clusters Hyades, Coma Ber, and Praesepe, utilizing a number of advances in data reduction and determining the intrinsic colors of main sequence stars. For our sample, the 1{\sigma} dispersion about the main sequence V-K, K-[24] locus is approximately 3.1%. We identify seven debris disks at 10% or more (\geq 3{\sigma} confidence level) above the expected K-[24] for purely photospheric emission. The incidence of excesses of 10% or greater in our sample at this age is 5.7 +3.1/-1.7%. Combining with results from the literature, the rate is 7.8 +4.2/-2.1% for early- type (B9 - F4) stars and 2.7 +3.3/-1.7% for solar-like (F5 - K9) stars. Our primary sample has strict criteria for inclusion to allow comparison with other work; when we relax these criteria, three additional debris disks are detected. They are all around stars of solar-like type and hence reinforce our conclusion that disks around such stars are still relatively common at 670 Myr and are similar to the rate around early-type stars. The apparently small difference in decay rates between early-type and solar-like stars is inconsistent with the first order theoretical predictions that the later type stellar disks would decay an order of magnitude more quickly than the earlier type ones.Comment: 26 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

A Large Mass of H_2 in the Brightest Cluster Galaxy in Zwicky 3146

We present the Spitzer/IRS mid-infrared spectrum of the infrared-luminous (L_(IR) = 4 × 10^(11) L_☉) brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) in the X-ray-luminous cluster Zwicky 3146 (Z3146; z = 0.29). The spectrum shows strong aromatic emission features, indicating that the dominant source of the infrared luminosity is star formation. The most striking feature of the spectrum, however, is the exceptionally strong molecular hydrogen (H_2) emission lines, which seem to be shock-excited. The line luminosities and inferred warm H_2 gas mass (~10^(10) M_☉) are 6 times larger than those of NGC 6240, the most H_2-luminous galaxy at z ≲ 0.05. Together with the large amount of cold H_2 detected previously (~10^(11) M_☉), this indicates that the Z3146 BCG contains disproportionately large amounts of both warm and cold H_2 gas for its infrared luminosity, which may be related to the intracluster gas cooling process in the cluster core

Molecular hydrogen in the young starburst in NGC 253

Shocked molecular hydrogen has been observed around the nucleus of the nearby galaxy, NGC 253. This galaxy has a relatively modest luminosity (approx. 3 x 10 to the 10th power solar luminosities) and appears to have no distortions or companions that would indicate a possible interaction. The energy of the galaxy appears to be derived primarily from a starburst. Thus, our observations have caused us to examine the starburst process in some detail to identify how the molecular hydrogen is excited. It is proposed that the molecular hydrogen emission is produced by collisions of dense molecular clouds accelerated by supernovae explosions. Within the nucleus, this process occurs early in the life of the starbust. This suggest a sequence of nuclear starburst development; examples along this sequence from young to old would include NGC 253, M82, NGC 1097, and M31

Infrared Emission by Dust Around lambda Bootis Stars: Debris Disks or Thermally Emitting Nebulae?

We present a model that describes stellar infrared excesses due to heating of the interstellar (IS) dust by a hot star passing through a diffuse IS cloud. This model is applied to six lambda Bootis stars with infrared excesses. Plausible values for the IS medium (ISM) density and relative velocity between the cloud and the star yield fits to the excess emission. This result is consistent with the diffusion/accretion hypothesis that lambda Bootis stars (A- to F-type stars with large underabundances of Fe-peak elements) owe their characteristics to interactions with the ISM. This proposal invokes radiation pressure from the star to repel the IS dust and excavate a paraboloidal dust cavity in the IS cloud, while the metal-poor gas is accreted onto the stellar photosphere. However, the measurements of the infrared excesses can also be fit by planetary debris disk models. A more detailed consideration of the conditions to produce lambda Bootis characteristics indicates that the majority of infrared-excess stars within the Local Bubble probably have debris disks. Nevertheless, more distant stars may often have excesses due to heating of interstellar material such as in our model.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, 4 tables, accepted by ApJ, emulateap

High sensitivity operation of discrete solid state detectors at 4 K

Techniques are described to allow operation of discrete, solid state detectors at 4 K with optimized JFET amplifiers. Three detector types cover the 0.6 to 4 mm spectral range with NEP approximately equal to 10 to the 16th power Hz (-1/2) for two of the types and potential improvement to this performance for the third. Lower NEP's are anticipated at longer infrared wavelengths

The Event Horizon of M87

The 6 billion solar mass supermassive black hole at the center of the giant elliptical galaxy M87 powers a relativistic jet. Observations at millimeter wavelengths with the Event Horizon Telescope have localized the emission from the base of this jet to angular scales comparable to the putative black hole horizon. The jet might be powered directly by an accretion disk or by electromagnetic extraction of the rotational energy of the black hole. However, even the latter mechanism requires a confining thick accretion disk to maintain the required magnetic flux near the black hole. Therefore, regardless of the jet mechanism, the observed jet power in M87 implies a certain minimum mass accretion rate. If the central compact object in M87 were not a black hole but had a surface, this accretion would result in considerable thermal near-infrared and optical emission from the surface. Current flux limits on the nucleus of M87 strongly constrain any such surface emission. This rules out the presence of a surface and thereby provides indirect evidence for an event horizon.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Ap

Speed of synchronization in complex networks of neural oscillators Analytic results based on Random Matrix Theory

We analyze the dynamics of networks of spiking neural oscillators. First, we present an exact linear stability theory of the synchronous state for networks of arbitrary connectivity. For general neuron rise functions, stability is determined by multiple operators, for which standard analysis is not suitable. We describe a general non-standard solution to the multi-operator problem. Subsequently, we derive a class of rise functions for which all stability operators become degenerate and standard eigenvalue analysis becomes a suitable tool. Interestingly, this class is found to consist of networks of leaky integrate and fire neurons. For random networks of inhibitory integrate-and-fire neurons, we then develop an analytical approach, based on the theory of random matrices, to precisely determine the eigenvalue distribution. This yields the asymptotic relaxation time for perturbations to the synchronous state which provides the characteristic time scale on which neurons can coordinate their activity in such networks. For networks with finite in-degree, i.e. finite number of presynaptic inputs per neuron, we find a speed limit to coordinating spiking activity: Even with arbitrarily strong interaction strengths neurons cannot synchronize faster than at a certain maximal speed determined by the typical in-degree.Comment: 17 pages, 12 figures, submitted to Chao

A Herschel Study of 24 micron-Selected AGNs and Their Host Galaxies

We present a sample of 290 24-micron-selected active galactic nuclei (AGNs) mostly at z ~ 0.3 -- 2.5, within 5.2 square degrees distributed as 25' X 25' fields around each of 30 galaxy clusters in the Local Cluster Substructure Survey (LoCuSS). The sample is nearly complete to 1 mJy at 24 microns, and has a rich multi-wavelength set of ancillary data; 162 are detected by Herschel. We use spectral templates for AGNs, stellar populations, and infrared emission by star forming galaxies to decompose the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of these AGNs and their host galaxies, and estimate their star formation rates (SFRs), AGN luminosities, and host galaxy stellar masses. The set of templates is relatively simple: a standard Type-1 quasar template; another for the photospheric output of the stellar population; and a far infrared star-forming template. For the Type-2 AGN SEDs, we substitute templates including internal obscuration, and some Type-1 objects require a warm component (T > 50 K). The individually Herschel- detected Type-1 AGNs and a subset of 17 Type-2 ones typically have luminosities > 10^{45} ergs/s, and supermassive black holes of ~ 3 X 10^8 Msun emitting at ~ 10% of the Eddington rate. We find them in about twice the numbers of AGN identified in SDSS data in the same fields, i.e., they represent typical high luminosity AGN, not an infrared-selected minority. These AGNs and their host galaxies are studied further in an accompanying paper