453 research outputs found
Filamentary Accretion Flows in the Embedded Serpens South Protocluster
One puzzle in understanding how stars form in clusters is the source of mass
-- is all of the mass in place before the first stars are born, or is there an
extended period when the cluster accretes material which can continuously fuel
the star formation process? We use a multi-line spectral survey of the southern
filament associated with the Serpens South embedded cluster-forming region in
order to determine if mass is accreting from the filament onto the cluster, and
whether the accretion rate is significant. Our analysis suggests that material
is flowing along the filament's long axis at a rate of ~30Msol/Myr (inferred
from the N2H+ velocity gradient along the filament), and radially contracting
onto the filament at ~130Msol/Myr (inferred from HNC self-absorption). These
accretion rates are sufficient to supply mass to the central cluster at a
similar rate to the current star formation rate in the cluster. Filamentary
accretion flows may therefore be very important in the ongoing evolution of
this cluster.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables; accepted for publication in Ap
The zero-dimensional O(N) vector model as a benchmark for perturbation theory, the large-N expansion and the functional renormalization group
We consider the zero-dimensional O(N) vector model as a simple example to
calculate n-point correlation functions using perturbation theory, the large-N
expansion, and the functional renormalization group (FRG). Comparing our
findings with exact results, we show that perturbation theory breaks down for
moderate interactions for all N, as one should expect. While the
interaction-induced shift of the free energy and the self-energy are well
described by the large-N expansion even for small N, this is not the case for
higher-order correlation functions. However, using the FRG in its one-particle
irreducible formalism, we see that very few running couplings suffice to get
accurate results for arbitrary N in the strong coupling regime, outperforming
the large-N expansion for small N. We further remark on how the derivative
expansion, a well-known approximation strategy for the FRG, reduces to an exact
method for the zero-dimensional O(N) vector model.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figure
Wheat growth responses to soil mechanical impedance are dependent on phosphorus supply
Increased mechanical impedance induced by soil drying or compaction causes reduction in plant growth and crop yield. However, how mechanical impedance interacts with nutrient stress has been largely unknown. Here, we investigated the effect of mechanical impedance on the growth of wheat seedlings under contrasting phosphorus (P) supply in a sand culture system which allows the mechanical impedance to be independent of water and nutrient availability. Two wheat genotypes containing the Rht-B1a (tall) or Rht-B1c (gibberellin-insensitive dwarf) alleles in the Cadenza background were used and their shoot and root traits were determined. Mechanical impedance caused a significant reduction in plant growth under sufficient P supply, including reduced shoot and root biomass, leaf area and total root length. By contrast, under low P supply, mechanical impedance did not affect biomass, tiller number, leaf length, and nodal root number in both wheat genotypes, indicating that the magnitude of the growth restriction imposed by mechanical impedance was dependent on P supply. The interaction effect between mechanical impedance and P level was significant on most plant traits except for axial and lateral root length, suggesting an evident physical and nutritional interaction. Our findings provide valuable insights into the integrated effects of plants in response to both soil physical and nutritional stresses. Understanding the response patterns is critical for optimizing soil tillage and nutrient management in the field
A CO (J=3-2) Outflow Survey of the Elias 29 Region
We present a 5'x5' integrated intensity map of 12CO (J=3-2) emission from the
rho-Ophiuchi cloud core that traces low-luminosity outflow emission from two
protostars: Elias 29 and, most likely, LFAM 26. The morphology of the outflow
from Elias 29 is bipolar and has a curved axis that traces the S-shaped
symmetry seen in H_2 emission. The outflow from LFAM 26 is a new detection and
oriented in the east/west direction near the plane of the sky with most of the
blue-shifted emission being absorbed by intervening clouds. The outflow axis of
this object also appears to intersect a knot of H_2 emission previously
attributed to Elias 29. LFAM 26 is a low luminosity source (L_bol = 0.06 L_sun)
which, in combination with the observed outflow, makes it a candidate Very Low
Luminosity Object (VeLLO). We derive lower limits to the gas column densities
and energetics for both outflows. The mechanical luminosities for Elias 29 and
LFAM 26 are 6.4 and 10.3 x 10^{-3} L_sun, respectively.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, accepted to the ApJ
Arecibo HI Absorption Measurements of Pulsars and the Electron Density at Intermediate Longitudes in the First Galactic Quadrant
We have used the Arecibo telescope to measure the HI absorption spectra of
eight pulsars. We show how kinematic distance measurements depend upon the
values of the galactic constants R_o and Theta_o, and we select our preferred
current values from the literature. We then derive kinematic distances for the
low-latitude pulsars in our sample and electron densities along their lines of
sight. We combine these measurements with all others in the inner galactic
plane visible from Arecibo to study the electron density in this region. The
electron density in the interarm range 48 degrees < l < 70 degrees is [0.017
(-0.007,+0.012) (68% c.l.)] cm^(-3). This is 0.75 (-0.22,+0.49) (68% c.l.) of
the value calculated by the Cordes & Lazio (2002) galactic electron density
model. The model agrees more closely with electron density measurements toward
Arecibo pulsars lying closer to the galactic center, at 30 degrees<l<48
degrees. Our analysis leads to the best current estimate of the distance of the
relativistic binary pulsar B1913+16: d=(9.0 +/- 3) kpc.
We use the high-latitude pulsars to search for small-scale structure in the
interstellar hydrogen observed in absorption over multiple epochs. PSR B0301+19
exhibited significant changes in its absorption spectrum over 22 yr, indicating
HI structure on a ~500 AU scale.Comment: Accepted by Astrophysical Journal September 200
Integrated heterodyne array receivers for submillimeter astronomy
The advent of large format (~100 pixel) spectroscopic imaging cameras at submillimeter wavelengths would fundamentally change the way in which astronomy is performed in this important wavelength regime. While the possibility of such instruments has been discussed for more than two decades, only recently have advances in mixer technology, device fabrication, micromachining, digital signal processing, and telescope design made the construction of such an instrument possible and economical. In our paper, we will present the design concept for a 10Ă—10 heterodyne camera
Correlation effects on electronic transport through dots and wires
We investigate how two-particle interactions affect the electronic transport
through meso- and nanoscopic systems of two different types: quantum dots with
local Coulomb correlations and quasi one-dimensional quantum wires of
interacting electrons. A recently developed functional renormalization group
scheme is used that allows to investigate systems of complex geometry.
Considering simple setups we show that the method includes the essential
aspects of Luttinger liquid physics (one-dimensional wires) as well as of the
physics of local correlations, with the Kondo effect being an important
example. For more complex systems of coupled dots and Y-junctions of
interacting wires we find surprising new correlation effects.Comment: to appear in "Advances in Solid State Physics" Volume 46, Ed. R. Haug
(Springer, 2006
Functional renormalization group approach to zero-dimensional interacting systems
We apply the functional renormalization group method to the calculation of
dynamical properties of zero-dimensional interacting quantum systems. As case
studies we discuss the anharmonic oscillator and the single impurity Anderson
model. We truncate the hierarchy of flow equations such that the results are at
least correct up to second order perturbation theory in the coupling. For the
anharmonic oscillator energies and spectra obtained within two different
functional renormalization group schemes are compared to numerically exact
results, perturbation theory, and the mean field approximation. Even at large
coupling the results obtained using the functional renormalization group agree
quite well with the numerical exact solution. The better of the two schemes is
used to calculate spectra of the single impurity Anderson model, which then are
compared to the results of perturbation theory and the numerical
renormalization group. For small to intermediate couplings the functional
renormalization group gives results which are close to the ones obtained using
the very accurate numerical renormalization group method. In particulare the
low-energy scale (Kondo temperature) extracted from the functional
renormalization group results shows the expected behavior.Comment: 22 pages, 8 figures include
Integrated heterodyne array receivers for submillimeter astronomy
The advent of large format (~100 pixel) spectroscopic imaging cameras at submillimeter wavelengths would fundamentally change the way in which astronomy is performed in this important wavelength regime. While the possibility of such instruments has been discussed for more than two decades, only recently have advances in mixer technology, device fabrication, micromachining, digital signal processing, and telescope design made the construction of such an instrument possible and economical. In our paper, we will present the design concept for a 10Ă—10 heterodyne camera
First results from DesertSTAR: a 7-pixel 345-GHz heterodyne array receiver for the Heinrich Hertz Telescope
We present the first astronomical results from DesertSTAR, a 7 pixel heterodyne array receiver designed for operation in the astrophysically rich 345 GHz atmospheric window. DesertSTAR was constructed for the 10m Heinrich Hertz Telescope located at 3150m elevation on Mt. Graham, Arizona. This receiver promises to increase mapping speed at the HHT by a factor of ~15 over the facility's existing single beam, dual polarization receiver. DesertSTAR uses tunerless, single-ended waveguide SIS mixers to achieve uncorrected receiver noise temperatures of ~60K. The instantaneous bandwidth is 2 GHz, with a 5 GHz Intermediate Frequency, offering 1600 km/s of velocity coverage. Cryogenic isolators are employed between the mixers and low noise amplifiers to assure a flat IF passband. The system uses a Joule-Thompson closed-cycle refrigerator with 180W capacity at 70K and 1.8W capacity at 4K. A novel reflective phase grating is used for Local Oscillator multiplexing, while a simple Mylar beamsplitter is used as an LO diplexer. Optics include only polyethelene mixer lenses and a single, cold, flat mirror, maximizing simplicity for high efficiency and easy optical alignment. The computer controlled bias system provides low noise bias for the SIS junctions, magnets and LNAs through a modular and hardware independent GUI interface, and allows remote operation and monitoring. We present measurements of receiver noise, beam quality, efficiency and stability in addition to astronomical observations obtained during engineering runs at the HHT
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