171 research outputs found
Direct Dark Matter Detection with Velocity Distribution in the Eddington approach
Exotic dark matter together with the vacuum energy (associated with the
cosmological constant) seem to dominate the Universe. Thus its direct detection
is central to particle physics and cosmology. Supersymmetry provides a natural
dark matter candidate, the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP). One
essential ingredient in obtaining the direct detection rates is the density and
the velocity distribution of the LSP in our vicinity. In the present paper we
study simultaneously density profiles and velocity distributions in the context
of the Eddington approach. In such an approach, unlike the commonly assumed
Maxwell-Boltzmann (M-B) distribution, the upper bound of the velocity arises
naturally from the potential.Comment: 21 LaTex pages, 27 figure
Turbulent Mixing in the Surface Layers of Accreting Neutron Stars
During accretion a neutron star (NS) is spun up as angular momentum is
transported through its surface layers. We study the resulting differentially
rotating profile, focusing on the impact this has for type I X-ray bursts. The
predominant viscosity is likely provided by the Tayler-Spruit dynamo. The
radial and azimuthal magnetic field components have strengths of ~10^5 G and
~10^10 G, respectively. This leads to nearly uniform rotation at the depths of
interest for X-ray bursts. A remaining small shear transmits the accreted
angular momentum inward to the NS interior. Though this shear gives little
viscous heating, it can trigger turbulent mixing. Detailed simulations will be
required to fully understand the consequences of mixing, but our models
illustrate some general features. Mixing has the greatest impact when the
buoyancy at the compositional discontinuity between accreted matter and ashes
is overcome. This occurs at high accretion rates, at low spin frequencies, or
may depend on the ashes from the previous burst. We then find two new regimes
of burning. The first is ignition in a layer containing a mixture of heavier
elements from the ashes. If ignition occurs at the base of the mixed layer,
recurrence times as short as ~5-30 minutes are possible. This may explain the
short recurrence time of some bursts, but incomplete burning is still needed to
explain these bursts' energetics. When mixing is sufficiently strong, a second
regime is found where accreted helium mixes deep enough to burn stably,
quenching X-ray bursts. We speculate that the observed change in X-ray burst
properties near one-tenth the Eddington accretion rate is from this mechanism.
The carbon-rich material produced by stable helium burning would be important
for triggering and fueling superbursts. (abridged)Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal, 16 pages, 15
figure
Visualization and spectral synthesis of rotationally distorted stars
Simple spherical, non-rotating stellar models are inadequate when describing
real stars in the limit of very fast rotation: Both the observable spectrum and
the geometrical shape of the star deviate strongly from simple models. We
attempt to approach the problem of modeling geometrically distorted, rapidly
rotating stars from a new angle: By constructing distorted geometrical models
and integrating standard stellar models with varying temperature, gravity, and
abundances, over the entire surface, we attempt a semi-empirical approach to
modeling. Here we present our methodology, and present simple examples of
applications.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures. Contribution to GREAT-ESF Workshop on "Stellar
Atmospheres in the Gaia Era", Brussels 23-24 June 201
Superconvergent Perturbation Method in Quantum Mechanics
An analogue of Kolmogorov's superconvergent perturbation theory in classical
mechanics is constructed for self adjoint operators. It is different from the
usual Rayleigh--Schr\"odinger perturbation theory and yields expansions for
eigenvalues and eigenvectors in terms of functions of the perturbation
parameter.Comment: 11 pages, LaTe
Multi-Dimensional Simulations of the Accretion-Induced Collapse of White Dwarfs to Neutron Stars
We present 2.5D radiation-hydrodynamics simulations of the accretion-induced
collapse (AIC) of white dwarfs, starting from 2D rotational equilibrium
configurations of a 1.46-Msun and a 1.92-Msun model. Electron capture leads to
the collapse to nuclear densities of these cores within a few tens of
milliseconds. The shock generated at bounce moves slowly, but steadily,
outwards. Within 50-100ms, the stalled shock breaks out of the white dwarf
along the poles. The blast is followed by a neutrino-driven wind that develops
within the white dwarf, in a cone of ~40deg opening angle about the poles, with
a mass loss rate of 5-8 x 10^{-3} Msun/yr. The ejecta have an entropy on the
order of 20-50 k_B/baryon, and an electron fraction distribution that is
bimodal. By the end of the simulations, at >600ms after bounce, the explosion
energy has reached 3-4 x 10^{49}erg and the total ejecta mass has reached a few
times 0.001Msun. We estimate the asymptotic explosion energies to be lower than
10^{50}erg, significantly lower than those inferred for standard core collapse.
The AIC of white dwarfs thus represents one instance where a neutrino mechanism
leads undoubtedly to a successful, albeit weak, explosion.
We document in detail the numerous effects of the fast rotation of the
progenitors: The neutron stars are aspherical; the ``nu_mu'' and anti-nu_e
neutrino luminosities are reduced compared to the nu_e neutrino luminosity; the
deleptonized region has a butterfly shape; the neutrino flux and electron
fraction depend strongly upon latitude (a la von Zeipel); and a quasi-Keplerian
0.1-0.5-Msun accretion disk is formed.Comment: 25 pages, 19 figures, accpeted to ApJ, high resolution of the paper
and movies available at http://hermes.as.arizona.edu/~luc/aic/aic.htm
On the Selection of Photometric Planetary Transits
We present a new method for differentiating between planetary transits and
eclipsing binaries based on the presence of the ellipsoidal light variations.
These variations can be used to detect stellar secondaries with masses ~0.2
M_sun orbiting sun-like stars at a photometric accuracy level which has already
been achieved in transit surveys. By removing candidates exhibiting this effect
it is possible to greatly reduce the number of objects requiring spectroscopic
follow up with large telescopes. Unlike the usual candidate selection method,
which are primarily based on the estimated radius of the orbiting object, this
technique is not biased against bona-fide planets and brown dwarfs with large
radii, because the amplitude of the effect depends on the transiting object's
mass and orbital distance. In many binary systems, where a candidate planetary
transit is actually due to the partial eclipse of two normal stars, the
presence of flux variations due to the gravity darkening effect will show the
true nature of these systems. We show that many of the recent OGLE-III
photometric transit candidates exhibit the presence of significant variations
in their light curves and are likely to be due to stellar secondaries. We find
that the light curves of white dwarf transits will generally not mimic those of
small planets because of significant gravitationally induced flux variations.
We discuss the relative merits of methods used to detect transit candidates
which are due to stellar blends rather than planets. We outline how photometric
observations taken in two bands can be used to detect the presence of stellar
blends.Comment: ApJ, 11 pages, 2 figures, 1 table, replaced with accepted versio
An Extremely Lithium-Rich Bright Red Giant in the Globular Cluster M3
We have serendipitously discovered an extremely lithium-rich star on the red
giant branch of the globular cluster M3 (NGC 5272). An echelle spectrum
obtained with the Keck I HIRES reveals a Li I 6707 Angstrom resonance doublet
of 520 milli-Angstrom equivalent width, and our analysis places the star among
the most Li-rich giants known: log[epsilon(Li)] ~= +3.0. We determine the
elemental abundances of this star, IV-101, and three other cluster members of
similar luminosity and color, and conclude that IV-101 has abundance ratios
typical of giants in M3 and M13 that have undergone significant mixing. We
discuss mechanisms by which a low-mass star may be so enriched in Li, focusing
on the mixing of material processed by the hydrogen-burning shell just below
the convective envelope. While such enrichment could conceivably only happen
rarely, it may in fact regularly occur during giant-branch evolution but be
rarely detected because of rapid subsequent Li depletion.Comment: 7-page LaTeX file, including 2 encapsulated ps figures + 1 table;
accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letter
Physical processes leading to surface inhomogeneities: the case of rotation
In this lecture I discuss the bulk surface heterogeneity of rotating stars,
namely gravity darkening. I especially detail the derivation of the omega-model
of Espinosa Lara & Rieutord (2011), which gives the gravity darkening in
early-type stars. I also discuss the problem of deriving gravity darkening in
stars owning a convective envelope and in those that are members of a binary
system.Comment: 23 pages, 11 figure, Lecture given to the school on the cartography
of the Sun and the stars (May 2014 in Besan\c{c}on), to appear in LNP, Neiner
and Rozelot edts V2: typos correcte
The Rigidly Rotating Magnetosphere of Sigma Ori E
We attempt to characterize the observed variability of the magnetic
helium-strong star sigma Ori E in terms of a recently developed rigidly
rotating magnetosphere model. This model predicts the accumulation of
circumstellar plasma in two co-rotating clouds, situated in magnetohydrostatic
equilibrium at the intersection between magnetic and rotational equators. We
find that the model can reproduce well the periodic modulations observed in the
star's light curve, H alpha emission-line profile, and longitudinal field
strength, confirming that it furnishes an essentially correct, quantitative
description of the star's magnetically controlled circumstellar environment.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, accepted by Ap
- âŠ