4,872 research outputs found
1WHSP: an IR-based sample of 1,000 VHE -ray blazar candidates
Blazars are the dominant type of extragalactic sources at microwave and at
-ray energies. In the most energetic part of the electromagnetic
spectrum (E>100GeV) a large fraction of high Galactic latitude sources are
blazars of the High Synchrotron Peaked (HSP) type, that is BL Lac objects with
synchrotron power peaking in the UV or in the X-ray band. HSP blazars are
remarkably rare, with only a few hundreds of them expected to be above the
sensitivity limits of currently available surveys. To find these very uncommon
objects, we have devised a method that combines ALLWISE survey data with
multi-frequency selection criteria. The sample was defined starting from a
primary list of infrared colour-colour selected sources from the ALLWISE all
sky survey database, and applying further restrictions on IR-radio and IR-X-ray
flux ratios. Using a polynomial fit to the multi-frequency data (radio to
X-ray) we estimated synchrotron peak frequencies and fluxes of each object. We
assembled a sample including 992 sources, which is currently the largest
existing list of confirmed and candidates HSP blazars. All objects are expected
to radiate up to the highest -ray photon energies. In fact, 299 of
these are confirmed emitters of GeV -ray photons (based on Fermi-LAT
catalogues), and 36 have already been detected in the TeV band. The majority of
sources in the sample are within reach of the upcoming Cherenkov Telescope
Array (CTA), and many may be detectable even by the current generation of
Cherenkov telescopes during flaring episodes. The sample includes 425
previously known blazars, 151 new identifications, and 416 HSP candidates
(mostly faint sources) for which no optical spectra is available yet. The full
1WHSP catalogue is on-line at http://www.asdc.asi.it/1whsp/ providing a direct
link to the SED building tool where multifrequency data can be easily
visualised
A search for inverse magnetic catalysis in thermal quark-meson models
We explore the parameter space of the two-flavor thermal quark-meson model
and its Polyakov loop-extended version under the influence of a constant
external magnetic field . We investigate the behavior of the pseudo critical
temperature for chiral symmetry breaking taking into account the likely
dependence of two parameters on the magnetic field: the Yukawa quark-meson
coupling and the parameter of the Polyakov loop potential. Under the
constraints that magnetic catalysis is realized at zero temperature and the
chiral transition at is a crossover, we find that the quark-meson model
leads to thermal magnetic catalysis for the whole allowed parameter space, in
contrast to the present picture stemming from lattice QCD.Comment: 8 pages, 5figure
On thermal nucleation of quark matter in compact stars
The possibility of a hadron-quark phase transition in extreme astrophysical
phenomena such as the collapse of a supernova is not discarded by the modern
knowledge of the high-energy nuclear and quark-matter equations of state. Both
the density and the temperature attainable in such extreme processes are
possibly high enough to trigger a chiral phase transition. However, the time
scales involved are an important issue. Even if the physical conditions for the
phase transition are favorable (for a system in equilibrium), there may not be
enough time for the dynamical process of phase conversion to be completed. We
analyze the relevant time scales for the phase conversion via thermal
nucleation of bubbles of quark matter and compare them to the typical
astrophysical time scale, in order to verify the feasibility of the scenario of
hadron-quark phase conversion during, for example, the core-collapse of a
supernova.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, talk given at the International Conference
SQM2009, Buzios, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sep.27-Oct.2, 200
Large-eddy-simulation of buoyancy-induced mixing for water treatment applications
Large-Eddy Simulation is applied to investigate the turbulent mixing produced by aeration system in wastewater treatment. The solver uses an Eulerian-Lagrangian point-particle model to couple liquid and gas phases. Transport of a passive tracer is simulated to visualize the homogeneity of mixing. The accuracy of the solver predicting the mixing of the tracer time has been validated versus experimental data in a bubble reactor with different diffuser configurations. The mixing induced by bubble screens is simulated and compared - at different flow rates - with that produced by discrete plumes. The results show significant differences in the mixing times and energetic efficiency for different aerator setups
The sdA problem - II. Photometric and Spectroscopic Follow-up
Subdwarf A star (sdA) is a spectral classification given to objects showing
H-rich spectra and sub-main sequence surface gravities, but effective
temperature lower than the zero-age horizontal branch. Their evolutionary
origin is an enigma. In this work, we discuss the results of follow-up
observations of selected sdAs. We obtained time resolved spectroscopy for 24
objects, and time-series photometry for another 19 objects. For two targets, we
report both spectroscopy and photometry observations. We confirm seven objects
to be new extremely-low mass white dwarfs (ELMs), one of which is a known
eclipsing star. We also find the eighth member of the pulsating ELM class.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. 19 pages, 30 figures, 6 table
Phase conversion in a weakly first-order quark-hadron transition
We investigate the process of phase conversion in a thermally-driven {\it
weakly} first-order quark-hadron transition. This scenario is physically
appealing even if the nature of this transition in equilibrium proves to be a
smooth crossover for vanishing baryonic chemical potential. We construct an
effective potential by combining the equation of state obtained within Lattice
QCD for the partonic sector with that of a gas of resonances in the hadronic
phase, and present numerical results on bubble profiles, nucleation rates and
time evolution, including the effects from reheating on the dynamics for
different expansion scenarios. Our findings confirm the standard picture of a
cosmological first-order transition, in which the process of phase conversion
is entirely dominated by nucleation, also in the case of a weakly first-order
transition. On the other hand, we show that, even for expansion rates much
lower than those expected in high-energy heavy ion collisions, nucleation is
very unlikely, indicating that the main mechanism of phase conversion is
spinodal decomposition. Our results are compared to those obtained for a
strongly first-order transition, as the one provided by the MIT bag model.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures; v2: 1 reference added, minor modifications,
matches published versio
Nitrogen fluorescence in air for observing extensive air showers
Extensive air showers initiate the fluorescence emissions from nitrogen
molecules in air. The UV-light is emitted isotropically and can be used for
observing the longitudinal development of extensive air showers in the
atmosphere over tenth of kilometers. This measurement technique is
well-established since it is exploited for many decades by several cosmic ray
experiments. However, a fundamental aspect of the air shower analyses is the
description of the fluorescence emission in dependence on varying atmospheric
conditions. Different fluorescence yields affect directly the energy scaling of
air shower reconstruction. In order to explore the various details of the
nitrogen fluorescence emission in air, a few experimental groups have been
performing dedicated measurements over the last decade. Most of the
measurements are now finished. These experimental groups have been discussing
their techniques and results in a series of Air Fluorescence Workshops
commenced in 2002. At the 8 Air Fluorescence Workshop 2011, it was
suggested to develop a common way of describing the nitrogen fluorescence for
application to air shower observations. Here, first analyses for a common
treatment of the major dependences of the emission procedure are presented.
Aspects like the contributions at different wavelengths, the dependence on
pressure as it is decreasing with increasing altitude in the atmosphere, the
temperature dependence, in particular that of the collisional cross sections
between molecules involved, and the collisional de-excitation by water vapor
are discussed.Comment: 12 pages, 17 figures, 2 tables, International Symposium on Future
Directions in UHECR Physics, 13-16 February 2012, CERN, Geneva (Switzerland);
the updated version corrects for a typo in Eq. (1
Nucleation of quark matter in protoneutron star matter
The phase transition from hadronic to quark matter may take place already
during the early post-bounce stage of core collapse supernovae when matter is
still hot and lepton rich. If the phase transition is of first order and
exhibits a barrier, the formation of the new phase occurs via the nucleation of
droplets. We investigate the thermal nucleation of a quark phase in supernova
matter and calculate its rate for a wide range of physical parameters. We show
that the formation of the first droplet of a quark phase might be very fast and
therefore the phase transition to quark matter could play an important role in
the mechanism and dynamics of supernova explosions.Comment: v3: fits version published in Physical Review
NMR evidence for very slow carrier density fluctuations in the organic metal (TMTSF)ClO
We have investigated the origin of the large increase in spin-echo decay
rates for the Se nuclear spins at temperatures near to in the
organic superconductor (TMTSF)ClO. The measured angular dependence of
demonstrates that the source of the spin-echo decays lies with
carrier density fluctuations rather than fluctuations in TMTSF molecular
orientation. The very long time scales are directly associated with the
dynamics of the anion ordering occurring at , and the inhomogeneously
broadened spectra at lower temperatures result from finite domain sizes. Our
results are similar to observations of line-broadening effects associated with
charge-ordering transitions in quasi-two dimensional organic conductors.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
From QCD lattice calculations to the equation of state of quark matter
We describe two-flavor QCD lattice data for the pressure at finite
temperature and zero chemical potential within a quasiparticle model. Relying
only on thermodynamic selfconsistency, the model is extended to nonzero
chemical potential. The results agree with lattice calculations in the region
of small chemical potential.Comment: 5 eps figure
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