127,310 research outputs found
Benchmark ultra-cool dwarfs in widely separated binary systems
Ultra-cool dwarfs as wide companions to subgiants, giants, white dwarfs and
main sequence stars can be very good benchmark objects, for which we can infer
physical properties with minimal reference to theoretical models, through
association with the primary stars. We have searched for benchmark ultra-cool
dwarfs in widely separated binary systems using SDSS, UKIDSS, and 2MASS. We
then estimate spectral types using SDSS spectroscopy and multi-band colors,
place constraints on distance, and perform proper motions calculations for all
candidates which have sufficient epoch baseline coverage. Analysis of the
proper motion and distance constraints show that eight of our ultra-cool dwarfs
are members of widely separated binary systems. Another L3.5 dwarf, SDSS 0832,
is shown to be a companion to the bright K3 giant Eta Cancri. Such primaries
can provide age and metallicity constraints for any companion objects, yielding
excellent benchmark objects. This is the first wide ultra-cool dwarf + giant
binary system identified.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, conference, "New Technologies for Probing the
Diversity of Brown Dwarfs and Exoplanets", oral tal
Polyimide polymers provide improved ablative materials
Principle heat absorption of silica-reinforced plastic ablative materials occurs from the in-depth reaction of silica with carbon to form silicon monoxide and carbon monoxide. The higher the degree of completion of this reaction, the higher the capacity of the ablative material to absorb heat
Polyimide polymers provide higher char yield for graphitic structures
Technique for manufacture of graphite composites uses high-char-forming processable polyimide resin systems to produce the graphitic matrix. Only three cyclic steps are required to yield a 99.7 percent graphite product
Asteroid Cooling Rates Indicated by K-Feldspar Exsolution Textures in H4 Ordinary Chondrites
Undisturbed thermal metamorphism in ordinary chondrite (OC) asteroids, produced through the radioactive decay of 26Al, is expected to result in an onion-shell-like structure. In such a structure, the inner layers of the asteroid experience more extensive thermal metamorphism, as represented by higher petrologic type, than the exterior layers. Furthermore, cooling rates are expected to be slower for OCs of high petrologic type than those of low petrologic type. However, cooling rates determined using metallographic methods and pyroxene diffusion are inconsistent with onion-shell-style cooling and have resulted in new models. These models argue for the disruption of the asteroid after peak metamorphism followed by reaccretion into a rubble pile. Improved constraints on cooling rates would provide a better understanding of the timing and scale of disruptive events. Feldspar microtextures are another tool that can be used to determine asteroid cooling rates. In OC chondrules, plagioclase is present as either a primary phase, or a secondary phase forming from the crystallization of mesostasis glass through petrologic type 4, followed by chemical and textural equilibration. Potas-sium feldspar is observed in petrologic types 3.6-6, as either patches or lamellae exsolved from albite in a perthite texture, often near pores or fractures. Exsolution occurs most commonly, and most extensively, in petrologic type 4. Because the feldspar exsolution wavelength is related to the rate at which grains cooled from the solvus temperature, determined from the minerals bulk composition, the chondrite cooling rate can be measured from regions of exsolution. We have previously reported the perthite exsolution cooling rate of Avanhandava, an H4 chondrite, to be 1 C per 1-4 months over a temperature interval of 765-670 C. A peristerite exsolution texture was also present in the Na-rich lamellae for which we estimated a cooling rate of 1 C in 103-104 years from 570-540 C. Overall, the cooling rates determined from Avanhandava are consistent with pyroxene diffusion (fast cooling at high temperatures) and metallographic rates (slow cooling at low temperatures), hence with the rubble pile model of disruption and reaccretion. Here, we characterize feldspar microtextures in four additional H4 chondrites to test the consistency of feldspar cooling rates across a range of samples. We show that all H4s are similar and support rubble pile models
Robust Logic Gates and Realistic Quantum Computation
The composite rotation approach has been used to develop a range of robust
quantum logic gates, including single qubit gates and two qubit gates, which
are resistant to systematic errors in their implementation. Single qubit gates
based on the BB1 family of composite rotations have been experimentally
demonstrated in a variety of systems, but little study has been made of their
application in extended computations, and there has been no experimental study
of the corresponding robust two qubit gates to date. Here we describe an
application of robust gates to Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) studies of
approximate quantum counting. We find that the BB1 family of robust gates is
indeed useful, but that the related NB1, PB1, B4 and P4 families of tailored
logic gates are less useful than initially expected.Comment: 6 pages RevTex4 including 5 figures (3 low quality to save space).
Revised at request of referee and incorporting minor corrections and updates.
Now in press at Phys Rev
From Stars to Super-planets: the Low-Mass IMF in the Young Cluster IC348
We investigate the low-mass population of the young cluster IC348 down to the
deuterium-burning limit, a fiducial boundary between brown dwarf and planetary
mass objects, using a new and innovative method for the spectral classification
of late-type objects. Using photometric indices, constructed from HST/NICMOS
narrow-band imaging, that measure the strength of the 1.9 micron water band, we
determine the spectral type and reddening for every M-type star in the field,
thereby separating cluster members from the interloper population. Due to the
efficiency of our spectral classification technique, our study is complete from
approx 0.7 Msun to 0.015 Msun. The mass function derived for the cluster in
this interval, dN/dlogM \propto M^{0.5}, is similar to that obtained for the
Pleiades, but appears significantly more abundant in brown dwarfs than the mass
function for companions to nearby sun-like stars. This provides compelling
observational evidence for different formation and evolutionary histories for
substellar objects formed in isolation vs. as companions. Because our
determination of the IMF is complete to very low masses, we can place
interesting constraints on the role of physical processes such as fragmentation
in the star and planet formation process and the fraction of dark matter in the
Galactic halo that resides in substellar objects.Comment: 37 pages, 16 figs, 6 tables (Table 4 is a separate LaTeX file)
Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal (Oct 1, 2000 issue
An experimental feasibility study for the preparation of thermo-oxidatively stable Pyrrone laminates
Synthesis of Pyrrone laminates from sulfone dianhydrid
A method for calculating the heat required for windshield thermal ice prevention based on extensive flight tests in natural icing conditions
Renormalisation of supersymmetric gauge theory in the uneliminated component formalism
We show that the renormalisation of the N=1 supersymmetric gauge theory when
working in the component formalism, without eliminating auxiliary fields and
using a standard covariant gauge, requires a non-linear renormalisation of the
auxiliary fields.Comment: 9 pages, including 4 figures. Plain TeX. Uses Harvmac and epsf;
reference added and minor changes to Introductio
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