28,161 research outputs found
Thermal expansion of the magnetically ordering intermetallics RTMg (R = Eu, Gd and T = Ag, Au)
We report measurements of the thermal expansion for two Eu- and two
Gd-based intermetallics which exhibit ferro- or antiferromagnetic phase
transitions. These materials show sharp positive (EuAgMg and GdAuMg) and
negative (EuAuMg and GdAgMg) peaks in the temperature dependence of the thermal
expansion coefficient which become smeared and/or displaced in an
external magnetic field. Together with specific heat data we determine the
initial pressure dependences of the transition temperatures at ambient pressure
using the Ehrenfest or Clausius-Clapeyron relation. We find large pressure
dependences indicating strong spin-phonon coupling, in particular for GdAgMg
and EuAuMg where a quantum phase transition might be reached at moderate
pressures of a few GPa.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure
Probing the evolving massive star population in Orion with kinematic and radioactive tracers
We assemble a census of the most massive stars in Orion, then use stellar
isochrones to estimate their masses and ages, and use these results to
establish the stellar content of Orion's individual OB associations. From this,
our new population synthesis code is utilized to derive the history of the
emission of UV radiation and kinetic energy of the material ejected by the
massive stars, and also follow the ejection of the long-lived radioactive
isotopes 26Al and 60Fe. In order to estimate the precision of our method, we
compare and contrast three distinct representations of the massive stars. We
compare the expected outputs with observations of 26Al gamma-ray signal and the
extent of the Eridanus cavity. We find an integrated kinetic energy emitted by
the massive stars of 1.8(+1.5-0.4)times 10^52 erg. This number is consistent
with the energy thought to be required to create the Eridanus superbubble. We
also find good agreement between our model and the observed 26Al signal,
estimating a mass of 5.8(+2.7-2.5) times 10^-4 Msol of 26Al in the Orion
region. Our population synthesis approach is demonstrated for the Orion region
to reproduce three different kinds of observable outputs from massive stars in
a consistent manner: Kinetic energy as manifested in ISM excavation, ionization
as manifested in free-free emission, and nucleosynthesis ejecta as manifested
in radioactivity gamma-rays. The good match between our model and the
observables does not argue for considerable modifications of mass loss. If
clumping effects turn out to be strong, other processes would need to be
identified to compensate for their impact on massive-star outputs. Our
population synthesis analysis jointly treats kinematic output and the return of
radioactive isotopes, which proves a powerful extension of the methodology that
constrains feedback from massive stars.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A, 10 page
Chaotic Quantum Decay in Driven Biased Optical Lattices
Quantum decay in an ac driven biased periodic potential modeling cold atoms
in optical lattices is studied for a symmetry broken driving. For the case of
fully chaotic classical dynamics the classical exponential decay is quantum
mechanically suppressed for a driving frequency \omega in resonance with the
Bloch frequency \omega_B, q\omega=r\omega_B with integers q and r.
Asymptotically an algebraic decay ~t^{-\gamma} is observed. For r=1 the
exponent \gamma agrees with as predicted by non-Hermitian random matrix
theory for q decay channels. The time dependence of the survival probability
can be well described by random matrix theory. The frequency dependence of the
survival probability shows pronounced resonance peaks with sub-Fourier
character.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure
Domain-Wall Energies and Magnetization of the Two-Dimensional Random-Bond Ising Model
We study ground-state properties of the two-dimensional random-bond Ising
model with couplings having a concentration of antiferromagnetic
and of ferromagnetic bonds. We apply an exact matching algorithm which
enables us the study of systems with linear dimension up to 700. We study
the behavior of the domain-wall energies and of the magnetization. We find that
the paramagnet-ferromagnet transition occurs at compared to
the concentration at the Nishimory point, which means that the
phase diagram of the model exhibits a reentrance. Furthermore, we find no
indications for an (intermediate) spin-glass ordering at finite temperature.Comment: 7 pages, 12 figures, revTe
Entanglement and its dynamics in open, dissipative systems
Quantum mechanical entanglement can exist in noisy open quantum systems at
high temperature. A simple mechanism, where system particles are randomly reset
to some standard initial state, can counteract the deteriorating effect of
decoherence, resulting in an entangled steady state far from thermodynamical
equilibrium. We present models for both gas-type systems and for strongly
coupled systems. We point out in which way the entanglement resulting from such
a reset mechanism is different from the entanglement that one can find in
thermal states. We develop master equations to describe the system and its
interaction with an environment, study toy models with two particles (qubits),
where the master equation can often be solved analytically, and finally examine
larger systems with possibly fluctuating particle numbers. We find that in
gas-type systems, the reset mechanism can produce an entangled steady state for
an arbitrary temperature of the environment, while this is not true in strongly
coupled systems. But even then, the temperature range where one can find
entangled steady states is typically much higher with the reset mechanism.Comment: 30 pages, 15 figure
Photospheric Emission in the Joint GBM and Konus Prompt Spectra of GRB 120323A
GRB 120323A is a very intense short Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) detected
simultaneously during its prompt gamma-ray emission phase with the Gamma-ray
Burst Monitor (GBM) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the Konus
experiment on board the Wind satellite. GBM and Konus operate in the keV--MeV
regime, however, the GBM range is broader both toward the low and the high
parts of the gamma-ray spectrum. Analysis of such bright events provide a
unique opportunity to check the consistency of the data analysis as well as
cross-calibrate the two instruments. We performed time-integrated and coarse
time-resolved spectral analysis of GRB 120323A prompt emission. We conclude
that the analyses of GBM and Konus data are only consistent when using a
double-hump spectral shape for both data sets; in contrast, the single-hump of
the empirical Band function, traditionally used to fit GRB prompt emission
spectra, leads to significant discrepancies between GBM and Konus analysis
results. Our two-hump model is a combination of a thermal-like and a
non-thermal component. We interpret the first component as a natural
manifestation of the jet photospheric emission.Comment: 7 pages of article (3 figures and 1 table) + 3 pages of Appendix (3
figures). Submitted to ApJ on 2017 March 2
Evidence for GeV emission from the Galactic Center Fountain
The region near the Galactic center may have experienced recurrent episodes
of injection of energy in excess of 10 ergs due to repeated
starbursts involving more than 10 supernovae. This hypothesis can be
tested by measurements of -ray lines produced by the decay of
radioactive isotopes and positron annihilation, or by searches for pulsars
produced during starbursts. Recent OSSE observations of 511 keV emission
extending above the Galactic center led to the suggestion of a starburst driven
fountain from the Galactic center. We present EGRET observations that might
support this picture.Comment: 5 pages, 1 embedded Postscript figure. To appear in the Proceedings
of the Fourth Compton Symposiu
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