11,805 research outputs found
Evidence for Antipodal Hot Spots During X-ray Bursts From 4U 1636-536
The discovery of high-frequency brightness oscillations in thermonuclear
X-ray bursts from several neutron-star low-mass X-ray binaries has important
implications for the beat frequency model of kilohertz quasi-periodic
brightness oscillations, the propagation of nuclear burning, the structure of
the subsurface magnetic fields in neutron stars, and the equation of state of
high-density matter. These implications depend crucially on whether the
observed frequency is the stellar spin frequency or its first overtone. Here we
report an analysis of five bursts from 4U 1636-536 which exhibit strong
oscillations at approximately 580 Hz. We show that combining the data from the
first 0.75 seconds of each of the five bursts yields a signal at 290 Hz that is
significant at the level when the number of trials is taken
into account. This strongly indicates that 290 Hz is the spin frequency of this
neutron star and that 580 Hz is its first overtone, in agreement with other
arguments about this source but in contrast to suggestions in the literature
that 580 Hz is the true spin frequency. The method used here, which is an
algorithm for combining time series data from the five bursts so that the
phases of the 580 Hz oscillations are aligned, may be used in any source to
search for weak oscillations that have frequencies related in a definite way to
the frequency of a strong oscillation.Comment: 9 pages including one figure, uses aaspp4.sty, submitted to The
Astrophysical Journal Letters on September 1
Errors on the inverse problem solution for a noisy spherical gravitational wave antenna
A single spherical antenna is capable of measuring the direction and
polarization of a gravitational wave. It is possible to solve the inverse
problem using only linear algebra even in the presence of noise. The simplicity
of this solution enables one to explore the error on the solution using
standard techniques. In this paper we derive the error on the direction and
polarization measurements of a gravitational wave. We show that the solid angle
error and the uncertainty on the wave amplitude are direction independent. We
also discuss the possibility of determining the polarization amplitudes with
isotropic sensitivity for any given gravitational wave source.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, LaTeX2e, IOP style, submitted to CQ
Evolving wormhole geometries within nonlinear electrodynamics
In this work, we explore the possibility of evolving (2+1) and
(3+1)-dimensional wormhole spacetimes, conformally related to the respective
static geometries, within the context of nonlinear electrodynamics. For the
(3+1)-dimensional spacetime, it is found that the Einstein field equation
imposes a contracting wormhole solution and the obedience of the weak energy
condition. Nevertheless, in the presence of an electric field, the latter
presents a singularity at the throat, however, for a pure magnetic field the
solution is regular. For the (2+1)-dimensional case, it is also found that the
physical fields are singular at the throat. Thus, taking into account the
principle of finiteness, which states that a satisfactory theory should avoid
physical quantities becoming infinite, one may rule out evolving
(3+1)-dimensional wormhole solutions, in the presence of an electric field, and
the (2+1)-dimensional case coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics.Comment: 17 pages, 1 figure; to appear in Classical and Quantum Gravity. V2:
minor corrections, including a referenc
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