16,770 research outputs found
A variational approach to necklaces formation in polyelectrolytes
By means of a variational approach we study the conditions under which a
polyelectrolyte in a bad solvent will undergo a transition from a rod-like
structure to a ``necklace'' structure in which the chain collapses into a
series of globules joined by stretched chain segments.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures (unfortunately big). Requires revtex, eps
Sparse inversion of Stokes profiles. I. Two-dimensional Milne-Eddington inversions
Inversion codes are numerical tools used for the inference of physical
properties from the observations. Despite their success, the quality of current
spectropolarimetric observations and those expected in the near future presents
a challenge to current inversion codes. The pixel-by-pixel strategy of
inverting spectropolarimetric data that we currently utilize needs to be
surpassed and improved. The inverted physical parameters have to take into
account the spatial correlation that is present in the data and that contains
valuable physical information. We utilize the concept of sparsity or
compressibility to develop an new generation of inversion codes for the Stokes
parameters. The inversion code uses numerical optimization techniques based on
the idea of proximal algorithms to impose sparsity. In so doing, we allow for
the first time to exploit the presence of spatial correlation on the maps of
physical parameters. Sparsity also regularizes the solution by reducing the
number of unknowns. We compare the results of the new inversion code with
pixel-by-pixel inversions, demonstrating the increase in robustness of the
solution. We also show how the method can easily compensate for the effect of
the telescope point spread function, producing solutions with an enhanced
contrast.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in A&
STiC -- A multi-atom non-LTE PRD inversion code for full-Stokes solar observations
The inference of the underlying state of the plasma in the solar chromosphere
remains extremely challenging because of the nonlocal character of the observed
radiation and plasma conditions in this layer. Inversion methods allow us to
derive a model atmosphere that can reproduce the observed spectra by
undertaking several physical assumptions.
The most advanced approaches involve a depth-stratified model atmosphere
described by temperature, line-of-sight velocity, turbulent velocity, the three
components of the magnetic field vector, and gas and electron pressure. The
parameters of the radiative transfer equation are computed from a solid ground
of physical principles. To apply these techniques to spectral lines that sample
the chromosphere, NLTE effects must be included in the calculations.
We developed a new inversion code STiC to study spectral lines that sample
the upper chromosphere. The code is based the RH synthetis code, which we
modified to make the inversions faster and more stable. For the first time,
STiC facilitates the processing of lines from multiple atoms in non-LTE, also
including partial redistribution effects. Furthermore, we include a
regularization strategy that allows for model atmospheres with a complex
stratification, without introducing artifacts in the reconstructed physical
parameters, which are usually manifested in the form of oscillatory behavior.
This approach takes steps toward a node-less inversion, in which the value of
the physical parameters at each grid point can be considered a free parameter.
In this paper we discuss the implementation of the aforementioned techniques,
the description of the model atmosphere, and the optimizations that we applied
to the code. We carry out some numerical experiments to show the performance of
the code and the regularization techniques that we implemented. We made STiC
publicly available to the community.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic
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