314 research outputs found
The mass of the sdB primary of the binary HS 2333+3927
Short period sdB binaries with cool companions are crucial to understand
pre-CV evolution, because they will evolve into cataclysmic variables, when the
sdB will have left the extended horizontal branch. Recently we discovered the
sixth such system, HS 2333+3927, consisting of an sdB star and an M dwarf
(period: 0.172 d) with a very strong reflection effect, but no eclipses. The
reflection is stronger than in any of the other similar systems which renders a
quantitative spectral analysis very difficult because the Balmer line profiles
may be disturbed by the reflected light. A spectroscopic analysis results in
Teff = 36500 K, log g = 5.70, and log (n_He/n_H) = -2.15. Mass-radius relations
were derived from the results of the analysis of light and radial-velocity
curves. Comparison with the mass-radius relation derived from the surface
gravity of the sdB star favours a rather low mass of 0.38 Msun for the primary.
The mass of the companion is 0.29 M_sun. HS 2333+3927 is the only known sdB+dM
system with a period above the CV period gap.Comment: 6 pages, 3 Fig., to appear in 14th European Workshop on White Dwarfs,
ASP Conference Series, eds. D. Koester, S. Moehle
Identification of the slow E3 transition 136mCs -> 136Cs with conversion electrons
We performed at ISOLDE the spectroscopy of the decay of the 8- isomer in
136Cs by and conversion-electron detection. For the first time the excitation
energy of the isomer and the multipolarity of its decay have been measured. The
half-life of the isomeric state was remeasured to T1/2 = 17.5(2) s. This isomer
decays via a very slow 518 keV E3 transition to the ground state. In addition
to this, a much weaker decay branch via a 413 keV M4 and a subsequent 105 keV
E2 transition has been found. Thus we have found a new level at 105 keV with
spin 4+ between the isomeric and the ground state. The results are discussed in
comparison to shell model calculations.Comment: Phys. Rev. C accepted for publicatio
The ESO supernovae type Ia progenitor survey (SPY) : The radial velocities of 644 DA white dwarfs
Accepted for publication in A&A. 59 pages.Close double degenerate binaries are one of the favoured progenitor channels for type Ia supernovae, but it is unclear how many suitable systems there are in the Galaxy. We report results of a large radial velocity survey for double degenerate (DD) binaries using the UVES spectrograph at the ESO VLT (ESO SN Ia Progenitor surveY - SPY). Exposures taken at different epochs are checked for radial velocity shifts indicating close binary systems. We observed 689 targets classified as DA (displaying hydrogen-rich atmospheres), of which 46 turned out to possess a cool companion. We measured radial velocities (RV) of the remaining 643 DA white dwarfs. We managed to secure observations at two or more epochs for 625 targets, supplemented by eleven objects meeting our selection criteria from literature. The data reduction and analysis methods applied to the survey data are described in detail. The sample contains 39 double degenerate binaries, only four of which were previously known. 20 are double-lined systems, in which features from both components are visible, the other 19 are single-lined binaries. We provide absolute RVs transformed to the heliocentric system suitable for kinematic studies. Our sample is large enough to sub-divide by mass: 16 out of 44 low mass targets (0.45 Msun are double. Although the detected fraction amongst the low mass objects (36.4 +/- 7.3%) is significantly higher than for the higher-mass, carbon/oxygen-core dominated part of the sample (3.9 +/- 0.8%), it is lower than the detection efficiency based upon companion star masses >= 0.05 Msun. This suggests either companion stars of mass <0.05 Msun, or that some of the low mass white dwarfs are single.Peer reviewe
Spectroscopic factors for bound s-wave states derived from neutron scattering lengths
A simple and model-independent method is described to derive neutron
single-particle spectroscopic factors of bound s-wave states in nuclei from neutron scattering lengths. Spectroscopic factors
for the nuclei ^{13}C, ^{14}C, ^{16}N, ^{17}O, ^{19}O, ^{23}Ne, ^{37}Ar, and
^{41}Ar are compared to results derived from transfer experiments using the
well-known DWBA analysis and to shell model calculations. The scattering length
of ^{14}C is calculated from the ^{15}C_{g.s.} spectroscopic factor.Comment: 9 pages (uses revtex), no figures, accepted for publication in PRC,
uuencoded tex-files and postscript-files available at
ftp://is1.kph.tuwien.ac.at/pub/ohu/Thermal.u
Experimental evidence for the formation of stripe phases in Si/SiGe
We observe pronounced transport anisotropies in magneto-transport experiments
performed in the two-dimensional electron system of a Si/SiGe heterostructure.
They occur when an in-plane field is used to tune two Landau levels with
opposite spin to energetic coincidence. The observed anisotropies disappear
drastically for temperatures above 1 K. We propose that our experimental
findings may be caused by the formation of a unidirectional stripe phase
oriented perpendicular to the in-plane field.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Bare vs effective pairing forces. A microscopic finite-range interaction for HFB calculations in coordinate space
We propose a microscopic effective interaction to treat pairing correlations
in the channel. It is introduced by recasting the gap equation
written in terms of the bare force into a fully equivalent pairing problem.
Within this approach, the proposed interaction reproduces the pairing
properties provided by the realistic force very accurately. Written in
the canonical basis of the actual Bogolyubov transformation, the force takes
the form of an off-shell in-medium two-body matrix in the superfluid phase
multiplied by a BCS occupation number . This interaction is finite
ranged, non local, total-momentum dependent and density dependent. The factor
emerging from the recast of the gap equation provides a natural
cut-off and makes zero-range approximations of the effective vertex meaningful.
Performing such an approximation, the roles of the range and of the density
dependence of the interaction can be disentangled. The isoscalar and isovector
density-dependences derived ab-initio provide the pairing force with a strong
predictive power when extrapolated toward the drip-lines. Although finite
ranged and non local, the proposed interaction makes HFB calculations of finite
nuclei in coordinate space tractable. Through the two-basis method, its
computational cost is of the same order as for a zero-range force.Comment: 43 pages, 13 figures. Published versio
Warm Molecular Gas Traced with CO J=7->6 in the Galaxy's Central 2 Parsecs: Dynamical Heating of the Circumnuclear Disk
We present an 11 arcsec resolution map of the central two parsecs of the
Galaxy in the CO J =7->6 rotational transition. The CO emission shows rotation
about Sgr A*, but also evidence for non-circular turbulent motion and a clumpy
morphology. We combine our dataset with available CO measurements to model the
physical conditions in the disk. We find that the molecular gas in the region
is both warm and dense, with T~200-300 K, n_H2~50,000-70,000 cm^-3. The mass of
warm molecular gas we measure in the central two parsecs is at least 2000
M_solar, about 20 times the UV-excited atomic gas mass, ruling out an UV
heating scenario for the molecular material. We compare the available spectral
tracers with theoretical models and conclude that molecular gas is heated with
magneto-hydrodynamic shocks with v~10-20 kms and B~0.3-0.5 mG. Using the
conditions derived with the CO analysis, we include the other important
coolants--neutral oxygen and molecular hydrogen--to estimate the total cooling
budget of the molecular material. We derive a mass to luminosity ratio of 2-3
M_solar/ L_solar, which is consistent with the total power dissipated via
turbulent decay in 0.1 pc cells with v_rms~15 kms. These size and velocity
scales are comparable to the observed clumping scale and the velocity
dispersion. At this rate, the material near Sgr A* its dissipating its orbital
energy on an orbital timescale, and cannot last for more than a few orbits. Our
conclusions support a scenario in which the features near Sgr A* such as the
CND and northern arm are generated by infalling clouds with low specific
angular momentum.Comment: 31 pages, including 5 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Search for double degenerate progenitors of supernovae type Ia with SPY
We report on a large survey for double degenerate (DD) binaries as potential
progenitors of type Ia supernovae with the UVES spectrograph at the ESO VLT
(ESO SN Ia Progenitor surveY - SPY).Comment: in: "White Dwarfs", Proc. XIII Workshop on White Dwarfs, eds. D. de
Martino, R. Kalytis, R. Silvotti, J.E. Solheim, Kluwer, in press, 4 pages, 1
figur
Hot DB White Dwarfs from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
We present ugriz photometry and optical spectroscopy for 28 DB and DO white
dwarfs with temperatures between 28,000K and 45,000K. About 10 of these are
particularly well-observed; the remainder are candidates. These are the hottest
DB stars yet found, and they populate the "DB gap" between the hotter DO stars
and the familiar DB stars cooler than 30,000K. Nevertheless, after carefully
matching the survey volumes, we find that the ratio of DA stars to DB/DO stars
is a factor of 2.5 larger at 30,000 K than at 20,000 K, suggesting that the "DB
gap" is indeed deficient and that some kind of atmospheric transformation takes
place in roughly 10% of DA stars as they cool from 30,000 K to 20,000 K.Comment: Accepted by the Astronomical Journal. 34 pages, 10 figures, LaTe
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