508 research outputs found
Solar sail capture trajectories at Mercury
Mercury is an ideal environment for future planetary exploration by solar sail since it has proved difficult to reach with conventional propulsion and hence remains largely unexplored. In addition, its proximity to the Sun provides a solar sail acceleration of order ten times the sail characteristic acceleration at 1 AU. Conventional capture techniques are shown to be unsuitable for solar sails and a new method is presented. It is shown that capture is bound by upper and lower limits on the orbital elements of the approach orbit and that failure to be within limits results in a catastrophic collision with the planet. These limits are presented for a range of capture inclinations and sail characteristic accelerations. It is found that sail hyperbolic excess velocity is a critical parameter during capture at Mercury, with only a narrow allowed band in order to avoid collision with the planet. The new capture methodis demonstrated for a Mercury sample return mission
Strange particle production at RHIC in a single-freeze-out model
Strange particle ratios and pT-spectra are calculated in a thermal model with
single freeze-out, previously used successfully to describe non-strange
particle production at RHIC. The model and the recently released data for phi,
Lambda, anti-Lambda, and K*(892) are in very satisfactory agreement, showing
that the thermal approach can be used to describe the strangeness production at
RHIC.Comment: We have added the comparison of the model predictions to the newly
released Lambda and K*(892) pT-spectra from STA
Analysis of particle production in ultra-relativistic heavy ion collisions within a two-source statistical model
The experimental data on hadron yields and ratios in central lead-lead and
gold-gold collisions at 158 AGeV/ (SPS) and AGeV (RHIC),
respectively, are analysed within a two-source statistical model of an ideal
hadron gas. A comparison with the standard thermal model is given. The two
sources, which can reach the chemical and thermal equilibrium separately and
may have different temperatures, particle and strangeness densities, and other
thermodynamic characteristics, represent the expanding system of colliding
heavy ions, where the hot central fireball is embedded in a larger but cooler
fireball. The volume of the central source increases with rising bombarding
energy. Results of the two-source model fit to RHIC experimental data at
midrapidity coincide with the results of the one-source thermal model fit,
indicating the formation of an extended fireball, which is three times larger
than the corresponding core at SPS.Comment: 6 pages, REVTEX
Thermal analysis of hadron multiplicities from relativistic quantum molecular dynamics
Some questions arising in the application of the thermal model to hadron
production in heavy ion collisions are studied. We do so by applying the
thermal model of hadron production to particle yields calculated by the
microscopic transport model RQMD(v2.3). We study the bias of incomplete
information about the final hadronic state on the extraction of thermal
parameters.It is found that the subset of particles measured typically in the
experiments looks more thermal than the complete set of stable particles. The
hadrons which show the largest deviations from thermal behaviour in RQMD(v2.3)
are the multistrange baryons and antibaryons. We also looked at the influence
of rapidity cuts on the extraction of thermal parameters and found that they
lead to different thermal parameters and larger disagreement between the RQMD
yields and the thermal model.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, uses REVTEX, only misprint and stylistic
corrections, to appear in Physical Review
Violation of energy-per-hadron scaling in a resonance matter
Yields of hadrons, their average masses and energies per hadron at the stage
of chemical freeze-out in (ultra)relativistic heavy-ion collisions are analyzed
within the statistical model. The violation of the scaling / = 1 GeV
observed in Au+Au collisions at = 130 AGeV is linked to the
formation of resonance-rich matter with a considerable fraction of baryons and
antibaryons. The rise of the energy-per-hadron ratio in baryon-dominated matter
is discussed. A violation of the scaling condition is predicted for a very
central zone of heavy-ion collisions at energies around 40 AGeV.Comment: 5 pages incl. 3 figures and 2 tables, to be published in Phys. Rev.
Microscopic study of freeze-out in relativistic heavy ion collisions at SPS energies
The freeze-out conditions in the light (S+S) and heavy (Pb+Pb) colliding
systems of heavy nuclei at 160 AGeV/ are analyzed within the microscopic
Quark Gluon String Model (QGSM). We found that even for the most heavy systems
particle emission takes place from the whole space-time domain available for
the system evolution, but not from the thin ''freeze-out hypersurface", adopted
in fluid dynamical models. Pions are continuously emitted from the whole volume
of the reaction and reflect the main trends of the system evolution. Nucleons
in Pb+Pb collisions initially come from the surface region. For both systems
there is a separation of the elastic and inelastic freeze-out. The mesons with
large transverse momenta, , are predominantly produced at the early stages
of the reaction. The low -component is populated by mesons coming mainly
from the decay of resonances. This explains naturally the decreasing source
sizes with increasing , observed in HBT interferometry. Comparison with
S+S and Au+Au systems at 11.6 AGeV/ is also presented.Comment: REVTEX, 26 pages incl. 9 figures and 2 tables, to be published in the
Physical Review
Charged particle production in the Pb+Pb system at 158 GeV/c per nucleon
Charged particle multiplicities from high multiplicity central interactions
of 158 GeV/nucleon Pb ions with Pb target nuclei have been measured in the
central and far forward projectile spectator regions using emulsion chambers.
Multiplicities are significantly lower than predicted by Monte Carlo
simulations. We examine the shape of the pseudorapidity distribution and its
dependence on centrality in detail.Comment: 17 pages text plus 12 figures in postscript 12/23/99 -- Add TeX
version of sourc
Realistic Equations of State for the Primeval Universe
Early universe equations of state including realistic interactions between
constituents are built up. Under certain reasonable assumptions, these
equations are able to generate an inflationary regime prior to the
nucleosynthesis period. The resulting accelerated expansion is intense enough
to solve the flatness and horizon problems. In the cases of curvature parameter
\kappa equal to 0 or +1, the model is able to avoid the initial singularity and
offers a natural explanation for why the universe is in expansion.Comment: 32 pages, 5 figures. Citations added in this version. Accepted EPJ
Measurement of the p-pbar -> Wgamma + X cross section at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV and WWgamma anomalous coupling limits
The WWgamma triple gauge boson coupling parameters are studied using p-pbar
-> l nu gamma + X (l = e,mu) events at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV. The data were
collected with the DO detector from an integrated luminosity of 162 pb^{-1}
delivered by the Fermilab Tevatron Collider. The cross section times branching
fraction for p-pbar -> W(gamma) + X -> l nu gamma + X with E_T^{gamma} > 8 GeV
and Delta R_{l gamma} > 0.7 is 14.8 +/- 1.6 (stat) +/- 1.0 (syst) +/- 1.0 (lum)
pb. The one-dimensional 95% confidence level limits on anomalous couplings are
-0.88 < Delta kappa_{gamma} < 0.96 and -0.20 < lambda_{gamma} < 0.20.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. D Rapid Communication
Measurement of the ttbar Production Cross Section in ppbar Collisions at sqrt{s} = 1.96 TeV using Kinematic Characteristics of Lepton + Jets Events
We present a measurement of the top quark pair ttbar production cross section
in ppbar collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 1.96 TeV using 230 pb**{-1}
of data collected by the DO detector at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider. We
select events with one charged lepton (electron or muon), large missing
transverse energy, and at least four jets, and extract the ttbar content of the
sample based on the kinematic characteristics of the events. For a top quark
mass of 175 GeV, we measure sigma(ttbar) = 6.7 {+1.4-1.3} (stat) {+1.6- 1.1}
(syst) +/-0.4 (lumi) pb, in good agreement with the standard model prediction.Comment: submitted to Phys.Rev.Let
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