1,690 research outputs found
Structural Phase Transition in the Superconducting Pyrochlore Oxide Cd2Re2O7
We report a structural phase transition found at Ts = 200 K in a pyrochlore
oxide Cd2Re2O7 which shows superconductivity at Tc = 1.0 K. X-ray
diffractionexperiments indicate that the phase transition is of the second
order, from a high-temperature phase with the ideal cubic pyrochlore structure
(space group Fd-3m) to a low-temperature phase with another cubic structure
(space group F-43m). It is accompanied by a dramatic change in the resistivity
and magnetic susceptibility and thus must induce a significant change in the
electronic structure of Cd2Re2O7.Comment: 4 pages, 4figures, proceeding for ISSP
The second phase transition in the pyrochlore oxide Cd2Re2O7
Evidence for another phase transition at 120 K in the metallic pyrochlore
oxide Cd2Re2O7, following the structural transition at 200 K and followed by
the superconducting transition at 1.0 K, is given through resistivity,
magnetoresistance, specific heat, and X-ray diffraction measurements. The
results indicate unique successive structural and electronic transitions
occurring in the pyrochlore compound, revealing an interesting interplay
between the crystal and electronic structures on the itinerant electron system
in the pyrochlore lattice
Rotational Evolution During Type I X-Ray Bursts
The rotation rates of six weakly-magnetic neutron stars accreting in low-mass
X-ray binaries have most likely been measured by Type I X-ray burst
observations with RXTE. The nearly coherent oscillations detected during the
few seconds of thermonuclear burning are most simply understood as rotational
modulation of brightness asymmetries on the neutron star surface. We show that,
as suggested by Strohmayer and colleagues, the frequency changes of 1-2 Hz
observed during bursts are consistent with angular momentum conservation as the
burning shell hydrostatically expands and contracts. We calculate how vertical
heat propagation through the radiative outer layers of the atmosphere and
convection affect the coherence of the oscillation. We show that the evolution
of the rotational profile depends strongly on whether the burning layers are
composed of pure helium or mixed hydrogen/helium. Our results help explain the
absence (presence) of oscillations from hydrogen-burning (helium-rich) bursts
that was found by Muno and collaborators.
We investigate angular momentum transport within the burning layers and the
recoupling of the burning layers with the star. We show that the
Kelvin-Helmholtz instability is quenched by the strong stratification, and that
mixing between the burning fuel and underlying ashes by the baroclinic
instability does not occur. However, the baroclinic instability may have time
to operate within the differentially rotating burning layer, potentially
bringing it into rigid rotation.Comment: To appear in The Astrophysical Journal; minor corrections made to
tables and figure
Crustal Heating and Quiescent Emission from Transiently Accreting Neutron Stars
Nuclear reactions occurring deep in the crust of a transiently accreting
neutron star efficiently maintain the core at a temperature >5e7 K. When
accretion halts, the envelope relaxes to a thermal equilibrium set by the flux
from the hot core, as if the neutron star were newly born. For the
time-averaged accretion rates typical of low-mass X-ray transients, standard
neutrino cooling is unimportant and the core thermally re-radiates the
deposited heat. The resulting luminosity has the same magnitude as that
observed from several transient neutron stars in quiescence. Confirmation of
this mechanism would strongly constrain rapid neutrino cooling mechanisms for
neutron stars. Thermal emission had previously been dismissed as a predominant
source of quiescent emission since blackbody spectral fits implied an emitting
area much smaller than a neutron star's surface. However, as with thermal
emission from radio pulsars, fits with realistic emergent spectra will imply a
substantially larger emitting area. Other emission mechanisms, such as
accretion or a pulsar shock, can also operate in quiescence and generate
intensity and spectral variations over short timescales. Indeed, quiescent
accretion may produce gravitationally redshifted metal photoionization edges in
the quiescent spectra (detectable with AXAF and XMM). We discuss past
observations of Aql~X-1 and note that the low luminosity X-ray sources in
globular clusters and the Be star/X-ray transients are excellent candidates for
future study.Comment: 5 pages, 2 ps figures, uses AASTEX macros. To appear in ApJ letters,
10 September 1998. Revised to conform with journal; minor numerical
correction
New beta-Pyrochlore Oxide Superconductor CsOs2O6
The discovery of a new beta-pyrochlore oxide superconductor CsOs2O6 with Tc =
3.3 K is reported. It is the third superconductor in the family of
beta-pyrochlore oxides, following KOs2O6 with Tc = 9.6 K and RbOs2O6 with Tc =
6.3 K. The Tc of this series decreases with increasing the ionic radius of
alkaline metal ions, imposing negative chemical pressure upon the Os pyrochlore
lattice.Comment: submitted to J. Phys. Soc Jp
Criticality and convergence in Newtonian collapse
We study through numerical simulation the spherical collapse of isothermal
gas in Newtonian gravity. We observe a critical behavior which occurs at the
threshold of gravitational instability leading to core formation. For a given
initial density profile, we find a critical temperature, which is of the same
order as the virial temperature of the initial configuration. For the exact
critical temperature, the collapse converges to a self-similar form, the first
member in Hunter's family of self-similar solutions. For a temperature close to
the critical value, the collapse first approaches this critical solution. Later
on, in the supercritical case, the collapse converges to another self-similar
solution, which is called the Larson-Penston solution. In the subcritical case,
the gas bounces and disperses to infinity. We find two scaling laws: one for
the collapsed mass in the supercritical case and the other for the maximum
density reached before dispersal in the subcritical case. The value of the
critical exponent is measured to be in the supercritical case,
which agrees well with the predicted value . These critical
properties are quite similar to those observed in the collapse of a radiation
fluid in general relativity. We study the response of the system to temperature
fluctuation and discuss astrophysical implications for the insterstellar medium
structure and for the star formation process. Newtonian critical behavior is
important not only because it provides a simple model for general relativity
but also because it is relevant for astrophysical systems such as molecular
clouds.Comment: 15 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in PRD, figures 1 and 3
at lower resolution than in journal version, typos correcte
A Two-Zone Model for Type I X-ray Bursts on Accreting Neutron Stars
We construct a two-zone model to describe H and He burning on the surface of
an accreting neutron star and use it to study the triggering of type I X-ray
bursts. Although highly simplified, the model reproduces all of the bursting
regimes seen in the more complete global linear stability analysis of Narayan &
Heyl (2003), including the regime of delayed mixed bursts. The results are also
consistent with observations of type I X-ray bursts. At accretion rates Mdot <
0.1 Mdot_Edd, thermonuclear He burning via the well-known thin-shell thermal
instability triggers bursts. As Mdot increases, however, the trigger mechanism
evolves from the fast thermal instability to a slowly growing overstability
involving both H and He burning. The competition between nuclear heating via
the beta-limited CNO cycle and the triple-alpha process on the one hand, and
radiative cooling via photon diffusion and emission on the other hand, drives
oscillations with a period approximately equal to the H-burning timescale. If
these oscillations grow, the gradually rising temperature at the base of the
helium layer eventually provokes a thin-shell thermal instability and hence a
delayed mixed burst. For Mdot > 0.25 Mdot_Edd, there is no instability or
overstability, and there are no bursts. Nearly all other theoretical models
predict that bursts should occur for all Mdot < Mdot_Edd, in conflict with both
our results and observations. We suggest that this discrepancy arises from the
assumed strength of the hot CNO cycle breakout reaction 15O(alpha,gamma)19Ne in
these other models. That observations agree much better with the results of
Narayan & Heyl and our two-zone model, both of which neglect breakout
reactions, may imply that the true 15O(alpha,gamma)19Ne cross section is much
smaller than assumed in previous investigations.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, accepted by Ap
Periodic Thermonuclear X-ray Bursts from GS 1826-24 and the Fuel Composition as a Function of Accretion Rate
We analyze 24 type I X-ray bursts from GS 1826-24 observed by the Rossi X-ray
Timing Explorer between 1997 November and 2002 July. The bursts observed
between 1997-98 were consistent with a stable recurrence time of 5.74 +/- 0.13
hr. The persistent intensity of GS 1826-24 increased by 36% between 1997-2000,
by which time the burst interval had decreased to 4.10 +/- 0.08 hr. In 2002
July the recurrence time was shorter again, at 3.56 +/- 0.03 hr. The bursts
within each epoch had remarkably identical lightcurves over the full approx.
150 s burst duration; both the initial decay timescale from the peak, and the
burst fluence, increased slightly with the rise in persistent flux. The
decrease in the burst recurrence time was proportional to Mdot^(-1.05+/-0.02)
(where Mdot is assumed to be linearly proportional to the X-ray flux), so that
the ratio alpha between the integrated persistent and burst fluxes was
inversely correlated with Mdot. The average value of alpha was 41.7 +/- 1.6.
Both the alpha value, and the long burst durations indicate that the hydrogen
is burning during the burst via the rapid-proton (rp) process. The variation in
alpha with Mdot implies that hydrogen is burning stably between bursts,
requiring solar metallicity (Z ~ 0.02) in the accreted layer. We show that
solar metallicity ignition models naturally reproduce the observed burst
energies, but do not match the observed variations in recurrence time and burst
fluence. Low metallicity models (Z ~ 0.001) reproduce the observed trends in
recurrence time and fluence, but are ruled out by the variation in alpha. We
discuss possible explanations, including extra heating between bursts, or that
the fraction of the neutron star covered by the accreted fuel increases with
Mdot.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, accepted by ApJ. Minor revisions following the
referee's repor
High-pressure study on the superconducting pyrochlore oxide Cd2Re2O7
Superconducting and structural phase transitions in a pyrochlore oxide
Cd2Re2O7 are studied under high pressure by x-ray diffraction and electrical
resistivity measurements. A rich P-T phase diagram is obtained, which contains
at least two phases with the ideal and slightly distorted pyrochlore
structures. It is found that the transition between them is suppressed with
increasing pressure and finally disappears at a critical pressure Pc = 3.5 GPa.
Remarkable enhancements in the residual resistivity as well as the coefficient
A of the AT 2 term in the resistivity are found around the critical pressure.
Superconductivity is detected only for the phase with the structural
distortion. It is suggested that the charge fluctuations of Re ions play a
crucial role in determining the electronic properties of Cd2Re2O7.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Jp
Convergence to a self-similar solution in general relativistic gravitational collapse
We study the spherical collapse of a perfect fluid with an equation of state
by full general relativistic numerical simulations. For 0, it has been known that there exists a general relativistic counterpart
of the Larson-Penston self-similar Newtonian solution. The numerical
simulations strongly suggest that, in the neighborhood of the center, generic
collapse converges to this solution in an approach to a singularity and that
self-similar solutions other than this solution, including a ``critical
solution'' in the black hole critical behavior, are relevant only when the
parameters which parametrize initial data are fine-tuned. This result is
supported by a mode analysis on the pertinent self-similar solutions. Since a
naked singularity forms in the general relativistic Larson-Penston solution for
0, this will be the most serious known counterexample against
cosmic censorship. It also provides strong evidence for the self-similarity
hypothesis in general relativistic gravitational collapse. The direct
consequence is that critical phenomena will be observed in the collapse of
isothermal gas in Newton gravity, and the critical exponent will be
given by , though the order parameter cannot be the black
hole mass.Comment: 22 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in Physical Review D,
reference added, typos correcte
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