Diffuse interstellar bands in fullerene planetary nebulae: the fullerenes - diffuse interstellar bands connection

We present high-resolution (R~15000) VLT/UVES optical spectra of two planetary nebulae (PNe; Tc 1 and M 1-20) where C60 (and C70) fullerenes have already been found. These spectra are of high-quality (S/N > 300) for PN Tc 1, which permits us to search for the expected electronic transitions of neutral C60 and diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs). Surprisingly, we report the non-detection of the most intense optical bands of C60 in Tc 1, although this could be explained by the low C60 column density estimated from the C60 infrared bands if the C60 emission peaks far away from the central star. The strongest and most common DIBs in both fullerene PNe are normal for their reddening. Interestingly, the very broad 4428 A DIB and the weaker 6309 A DIB are found to be unusually intense in Tc 1. We also report the detection of a new broad (FWHM~5 A) unidentified band at ~6525 A. We propose that the 4428 A DIB (probably also the 6309 A DIB and the new 6525 A band) may be related to the presence of larger fullerenes (e.g., C80, C240, C320, and C540) and buckyonions (multishell fullerenes such as C60@C240 and C60@C240@C540) in the circumstellar envelope of Tc 1.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics Letters (6 pages, 4 figures, and 1 Table

Green's functions technique for calculating the emission spectrum in a quantum dot-cavity system

We introduce the Green's functions technique as an alternative theory to the quantum regression theorem formalism for calculating the two-time correlation functions in open quantum systems. In particular, we investigate the potential of this theoretical approach by its application to compute the emission spectrum of a dissipative system composed by a single quantum dot inside of a semiconductor cavity. We also describe a simple algorithm based on the Green's functions technique for calculating the emission spectrum of the quantum dot as well as of the cavity which can easily be implemented in any numerical linear algebra package. We find that the Green's functions technique demonstrates a better accuracy and efficiency in the calculation of the emission spectrum and it allows to overcome the inherent theoretical difficulties associated to the direct application of the quantum regression theorem approach

Magneto-optical imaging of magnetic deflagration in Mn12-Acetate

For the first time, the morphology and dynamics of spin avalanches in Mn12-Acetate crystals using magneto-optical imaging has been explored. We observe an inhomogeneous relaxation of the magnetization, the spins reversing first at one edge of the crystal and a few milliseconds later at the other end. Our data fit well with the theory of magnetic deflagration, demonstrating that very slow deflagration rates can be obtained, which makes new types of experiments possible.Comment: 5 two-column pages, 3 figures, EPL styl

Size effects and electron microscopy of thin metal films

All films were deposited by resistive heated evaporation in an oil diffusion pumped vacuum system (ultimate approx. equal to 0.0000001 torr). The growth from nuclei to a continuous film is highly dependent on the deposition parameters, evaporation rate as well as substrate material and substrate temperature. The growth stages of a film and the dependence of grain size on various deposition and annealing parameters are shown. Resistivity measurements were taken on thin films to observe size effects

Nonleptonic B→D(∗)DsJ(∗)B \to D^{(*)}D_{sJ}^{(*)} decays and the nature of the orbitally excited charmed-strange mesons

The Belle Collaboration has recently reported a study of the decays $B \to D_{s1}(2536)^{+}\bar{D}^{(\ast)}$ and has given also estimates of relevant ratios between branching fractions of decays $B \to D^{(\ast)}D_{sJ}^{(\ast)}$ providing important information to check the structure of the $D_{s0}^{\ast}(2317)$, $D_{s1}(2460)$ and $D_{s1}(2536)$ mesons. The disagreement between experimental data and Heavy Quark Symmetry has been used as an indication that $D_{s0}^{\ast}(2317)$ and $D_{s1}(2460)$ mesons could have a more complex structure than the canonical $c\bar{s}$ one. We analyze these ratios within the framework of a constituent quark model, which allows us to incorporate the effects given by finite $c$-quark mass corrections. Our findings are that while the $D_{s1}(2460)$ meson could have a sizable non-$q\bar{q}$ component, the $D_{s0}^{\ast}(2317)$ and $D_{s1}(2536)$ mesons seem to be well described by a pure $q\bar{q}$ structure.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figur