7,410 research outputs found
Unstable coronal loops : numerical simulations with predicted observational signatures
We present numerical studies of the nonlinear, resistive magnetohydrodynamic
(MHD) evolution of coronal loops. For these simulations we assume that the
loops carry no net current, as might be expected if the loop had evolved due to
vortex flows. Furthermore the initial equilibrium is taken to be a cylindrical
flux tube with line-tied ends. For a given amount of twist in the magnetic
field it is well known that once such a loop exceeds a critical length it
becomes unstableto ideal MHD instabilities. The early evolution of these
instabilities generates large current concentrations. Firstly we show that
these current concentrations are consistent with the formation of a current
sheet. Magnetic reconnection can only occur in the vicinity of these current
concentrations and we therefore couple the resistivity to the local current
density. This has the advantage of avoiding resistive diffusion in regions
where it should be negligible. We demonstrate the importance of this procedure
by comparison with simulations based on a uniform resistivity. From our
numerical experiments we are able to estimate some observational signatures for
unstable coronal loops. These signatures include: the timescale of the loop
brightening; the temperature increase; the energy released and the predicted
observable flow speeds. Finally we discuss to what extent these observational
signatures are consistent with the properties of transient brightening loops.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figure
X-ray bright active galactic nuclei in massive galaxy clusters III: New insights into the triggering mechanisms of cluster AGN
We present the results of a new analysis of the X-ray selected Active
Galactic Nuclei (AGN) population in the vicinity of 135 of the most massive
galaxy clusters in the redshift range of 0.2 < z < 0.9 observed with Chandra.
With a sample of more than 11,000 X-ray point sources, we are able to measure,
for the first time, evidence for evolution in the cluster AGN population beyond
the expected evolution of field AGN. Our analysis shows that overall number
density of cluster AGN scales with the cluster mass as .
There is no evidence for the overall number density of cluster member X-ray AGN
depending on the cluster redshift in a manner different than field AGN, nor
there is any evidence that the spatial distribution of cluster AGN (given in
units of the cluster overdensity radius r_500) strongly depends on the cluster
mass or redshift. The scaling relation we measure is
consistent with theoretical predictions of the galaxy merger rate in clusters,
which is expected to scale with the cluster velocity dispersion, , as or . This consistency suggests that AGN in
clusters may be predominantly triggered by galaxy mergers, a result that is
further corroborated by visual inspection of Hubble images for 23
spectroscopically confirmed cluster member AGN in our sample. A merger-driven
scenario for the triggering of X-ray AGN is not strongly favored by studies of
field galaxies, however, suggesting that different mechanisms may be primarily
responsible for the triggering of cluster and field X-ray AGN.Comment: 21 Pages, 8 figures, 5 tables. Submitted to MNRAS. Comments are
welcome, and please request Steven Ehlert for higher resolution figure
Redox reactions with empirical potentials: Atomistic battery discharge simulations
Batteries are pivotal components in overcoming some of today's greatest
technological challenges. Yet to date there is no self-consistent atomistic
description of a complete battery. We take first steps toward modeling of a
battery as a whole microscopically. Our focus lies on phenomena occurring at
the electrode-electrolyte interface which are not easily studied with other
methods. We use the redox split-charge equilibration (redoxSQE) method that
assigns a discrete ionization state to each atom. Along with exchanging partial
charges across bonds, atoms can swap integer charges. With redoxSQE we study
the discharge behavior of a nano-battery, and demonstrate that this reproduces
the generic properties of a macroscopic battery qualitatively. Examples are the
dependence of the battery's capacity on temperature and discharge rate, as well
as performance degradation upon recharge.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figure
Consistent Application of Maximum Entropy to Quantum-Monte-Carlo Data
Bayesian statistics in the frame of the maximum entropy concept has widely
been used for inferential problems, particularly, to infer dynamic properties
of strongly correlated fermion systems from Quantum-Monte-Carlo (QMC) imaginary
time data. In current applications, however, a consistent treatment of the
error-covariance of the QMC data is missing. Here we present a closed Bayesian
approach to account consistently for the QMC-data.Comment: 13 pages, RevTeX, 2 uuencoded PostScript figure
Photoemission spectra of many-polaron systems
The cross over from low to high carrier densities in a many-polaron system is
studied in the framework of the one-dimensional spinless Holstein model, using
unbiased numerical methods. Combining a novel quantum Monte Carlo approach and
exact diagonalization, accurate results for the single-particle spectrum and
the electronic kinetic energy on fairly large systems are obtained. A detailed
investigation of the quality of the Monte Carlo data is presented. In the
physically most important adiabatic intermediate electron-phonon coupling
regime, for which no analytical results are available, we observe a
dissociation of polarons with increasing band filling, leading to normal
metallic behavior, while for parameters favoring small polarons, no such
density-driven changes occur. The present work points towards the inadequacy of
single-polaron theories for a number of polaronic materials such as the
manganites.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures; final version, accepted for publication in
Phys. Rev.
Cosmology and astrophysics from relaxed galaxy clusters - IV: Robustly calibrating hydrostatic masses with weak lensing
This is the fourth in a series of papers studying the astrophysics and
cosmology of massive, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters. Here, we use
measurements of weak gravitational lensing from the Weighing the Giants project
to calibrate Chandra X-ray measurements of total mass that rely on the
assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium. This comparison of X-ray and lensing
masses provides a measurement of the combined bias of X-ray hydrostatic masses
due to both astrophysical and instrumental sources. Assuming a fixed cosmology,
and within a characteristic radius (r_2500) determined from the X-ray data, we
measure a lensing to X-ray mass ratio of 0.96 +/- 9% (stat) +/- 9% (sys). We
find no significant trends of this ratio with mass, redshift or the
morphological indicators used to select the sample. In accordance with
predictions from hydro simulations for the most massive, relaxed clusters, our
results disfavor strong, tens-of-percent departures from hydrostatic
equilibrium at these radii. In addition, we find a mean concentration of the
sample measured from lensing data of c_200 = . Anticipated
short-term improvements in lensing systematics, and a modest expansion of the
relaxed lensing sample, can easily increase the measurement precision by
30--50%, leading to similar improvements in cosmological constraints that
employ X-ray hydrostatic mass estimates, such as on Omega_m from the cluster
gas mass fraction.Comment: 13 pages. Submitted to MNRAS. Comments welcom
X-ray Bright Active Galactic Nuclei in Massive Galaxy Clusters II: The Fraction of Galaxies Hosting Active Nuclei
We present a measurement of the fraction of cluster galaxies hosting X-ray
bright Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) as a function of clustercentric distance
scaled in units of . Our analysis employs high quality Chandra X-ray
and Subaru optical imaging for 42 massive X-ray selected galaxy cluster fields
spanning the redshift range of . In total, our study involves
176 AGN with bright () optical counterparts above a keV flux
limit of . When excluding
central dominant galaxies from the calculation, we measure a cluster-galaxy AGN
fraction in the central regions of the clusters that is times lower
that the field value. This fraction increases with clustercentric distance
before becoming consistent with the field at . Our data
exhibit similar radial trends to those observed for star formation and
optically selected AGN in cluster member galaxies, both of which are also
suppressed near cluster centers to a comparable extent. These results strongly
support the idea that X-ray AGN activity and strong star formation are linked
through their common dependence on available reservoirs of cold gas.Comment: 9 Pages, 4 Figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS, please contact
Steven Ehlert ([email protected]) with any querie
Are all noisy quantum states obtained from pure ones?
We ask what type of mixed quantum states can arise when a number of separated
parties start by sharing a pure quantum state and then this pure state becomes
contaminated by noise. We show that not all mixed states arise in this way.
This is even the case if the separated parties actively try to degrade their
initial pure state by arbitrary local actions and classical communication.Comment: 3 pages, no figure
Quasiparticle Dispersion of the 2D Hubbard Model: From an Insulator to a Metal
On the basis of Quantum-Monte-Carlo results the evolution of the spectral
weight of the two-dimensional Hubbard model is studied from
insulating to metallic behavior. As observed in recent photoemission
experiments for cuprates, the electronic excitations display essentially
doping-independent features: a quasiparticle-like dispersive narrow band of
width of the order of the exchange interaction and a broad valence- and
conduction-band background. The continuous evolution is traced back to one and
the same many-body origin: the doping-dependent antiferromagnetic spin-spin
correlation.Comment: 11 pages, REVtex, 4 figures (in uuencoded postscript format
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