383 research outputs found
Radiative transfer effects on Doppler measurements as sources of surface effects in sunspot seismology
We show that the use of Doppler shifts of Zeeman sensitive spectral lines to
observe wavesn in sunspots is subject to measurement specific phase shifts
arising from, (i) altered height range of spectral line formation and the
propagating character of p mode waves in penumbrae, and (ii) Zeeman broadening
and splitting. We also show that these phase shifts depend on wave frequencies,
strengths and line of sight inclination of magnetic field, and the polarization
state used for Doppler measurements. We discuss how these phase shifts could
contribute to local helioseismic measurements of 'surface effects' in sunspot
seismology.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal Letter
Domain Architectures as an Instrument to Refine Enterprise Architecture
Enterprise architecture is concerned with the fundamental organization of the operating environment of an enterprise. The enterprise architecture is used to plan and control the construction of the systems that populate the operating environment. As the scope covered can be considerable in large enterprises, introducing domain architectures to partition and detail the enterprise architecture is a plausible approach. We formulate prescriptive criteria that consistent domain architectures must meet. By integrating the creation of domain architectures into an extended strategic alignment model we develop a theory that accounts for both the creation, scope-setting and detailing. Based on the creation viewpoint we derive a multi-level classification taxonomy. The primary differentiator is that between domains that are created from business usage viewpoints and those that are created from solution construction viewpoints. Four cases of domain architectures from actual practice are described that illustrate the variety encountered. Domain classifications in all cases conform to the theoretical model. The criteria, the developed theory and the cases have both academic relevance as well as significance for practitioners
Formation of Li I lines in photospheric granulation
The possibility of significant systematic errors due to the use of 1D
homogeneous atmospheres in lithium-abundance determinations of cool stars
motivates a study of non-local-thermodynamic-equilibrium (NLTE) effects on Li I
line formation in a 3D solar-granulation simulation snapshot. The NLTE effect
on the equivalent width of the 671 nm resonance line is small in 1D models or
in integrated light from the granulation model. The line-strength variations
over the granulation pattern are however markedly different in NLTE compared to
LTE -- observations of this may provide diagnostics to NLTE effects. The
effects of horizontal photon exchange found in the granulation model are
moderate and due entirely to bound-bound processes, ultraviolet overionization
is unimportant.Comment: 9 pages Latex (AASTeX using aaspp4.sty) with 3 figures (PS). The
former EPS figures have been replaced with safer PS due to technical problems
encountered by some users. No change in content. Accepted for publication in
Astrophysical Journal Letter
The Zeeman-sensitive emission lines of Mg I at 12 micron in Procyon
Emission-lines of magnesium at 12 microns have been observed in the spectrum
of Procyon. We reproduce the observed, disk-averaged line flux from Procyon (as
well as the observed intensity profiles from the Sun) by calculating the line
formation, relaxing the assumption of Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium. We find
that the lines in Procyon are formed in the photosphere in the same manner as
the solar lines. We discuss our modeling of these Rydberg lines and evaluate,
among other things, the importance of the ionizing flux and updated model-atom
parameters. The lines are of large diagnostic value for measurements of stellar
magnetic-fields through their Zeeman splitting. We have not, however, detected
splitting of the MgI lines in Procyon. Using simple arguments, we believe we
would have detected a magnetic field, had it been of a strength larger than
approximately 800 Gauss covering more than a quarter of the surface. We discuss
the prospects for future use of the Zeeman-sensitive, mid-infrared, MgI
emission lines as a diagnostic tool for stellar magnetic fields.Comment: To be published in Ap
Stacked low-growth-rate InAs quantum dots studied at the atomic level by cross-sectional scanning tunneling microscopy
Non-thermal Mg I emission at 12 um from Procyon
We report on stellar Mg I emission at 12 um from alpha CMi (Procyon), a star
slightly hotter than the Sun. Solar Mg I emission is well-known and its
formation was successfully explained in detail by Carlsson et al. (1992). Here,
for the first time, we compare synthetic spectra of the emission lines at 12 um
with observations of a star other than the Sun. The use of these lines as
stellar diagnostics has been anticipated for 10 years or more. We find that the
model reproduces the observed emission in Procyon quite well. We expect that
high-resolution spectrographs on 8-10 m telescopes will finally be able to
exploit these new diagnostics.Comment: ApJ Letters, accepte
Calculation of Spectral Darkening and Visibility Functions for Solar Oscillations
Calculations of spectral darkening and visibility functions for the
brightness oscillations of the Sun resulting from global solar oscillations are
presented. This has been done for a broad range of the visible and infrared
continuum spectrum. The procedure for the calculations of these functions
includes the numerical computation of depth-dependent derivatives of the
opacity caused by p modes in the photosphere. A radiative-transport code was
used for this purpose to get the disturbances of the opacities from temperature
and density fluctuations. The visibility and darkening functions are obtained
for adiabatic oscillations under the assumption that the temperature
disturbances are proportional to the undisturbed temperature of the
photosphere. The latter assumption is the only way to explore any opacity
effects since the eigenfunctions of p-mode oscillations have not been obtained
so far. This investigation reveals that opacity effects have to be taken into
account because they dominate the violet and infrared part of the spectrum.
Because of this dominance, the visibility functions are negative for those
parts of the spectrum. Furthermore, the darkening functions show a
wavelength-dependent change of sign for some wavelengths owing to these opacity
effects. However, the visibility and darkening functions under the assumptions
used contradict the observations of global p-mode oscillations, but it is
beyond doubt that the opacity effects influence the brightness fluctuations of
the Sun resulting from global oscillations
Comparison of the thin flux tube approximation with 3D MHD simulations
The structure and dynamics of small vertical photospheric magnetic flux
concentrations has been often treated in the framework of an approximation
based upon a low-order truncation of the Taylor expansions of all quantities in
the horizontal direction, together with the assumption of instantaneous total
pressure balance at the boundary to the non-magnetic external medium. Formally,
such an approximation is justified if the diameter of the structure (a flux
tube or a flux sheet) is small compared to all other relevant length scales
(scale height, radius of curvature, wavelength, etc.). The advent of realistic
3D radiative MHD simulations opens the possibility of checking the consistency
of the approximation with the properties of the flux concentrations that form
in the course of a simulation.
We carry out a comparative analysis between the thin flux tube/sheet models
and flux concentrations formed in a 3D radiation-MHD simulation. We compare the
distribution of the vertical and horizontal components of the magnetic field in
a 3D MHD simulation with the field distribution in the case of the thin flux
tube/sheet approximation. We also consider the total (gas plus magnetic)
pressure in the MHD simulation box. Flux concentrations with
super-equipartition fields are reasonably well reproduced by the second-order
thin flux tube/sheet approximation. The differences between approximation and
simulation are due to the asymmetry and the dynamics of the simulated
structures
Direct composition profiling in III-V nanostructures by cross-sectional STM
Using cross-sectional STM we have studied the local composition in III–V nanostructures such as GaAs/InGaAs quantum wells, InGaNAs/InP quantum wells and quantum dots, and InAs/GaAs self-assembled quantum dots. We are able to determine the local composition by either simply counting the constituent atoms, measuring the local lattice constant or measuring the relaxation of the cleaved surface due to the elastic field of the buried strained nanostructures
A Godunov Method for Multidimensional Radiation Magnetohydrodynamics based on a variable Eddington tensor
We describe a numerical algorithm to integrate the equations of radiation
magnetohydrodynamics in multidimensions using Godunov methods. This algorithm
solves the radiation moment equations in the mixed frame, without invoking any
diffusion-like approximations. The moment equations are closed using a variable
Eddington tensor whose components are calculated from a formal solution of the
transfer equation at a large number of angles using the method of short
characteristics. We use a comprehensive test suite to verify the algorithm,
including convergence tests of radiation-modified linear acoustic and
magnetosonic waves, the structure of radiation modified shocks, and
two-dimensional tests of photon bubble instability and the ablation of dense
clouds by an intense radiation field. These tests cover a very wide range of
regimes, including both optically thick and thin flows, and ratios of the
radiation to gas pressure of at least 10^{-4} to 10^{4}. Across most of the
parameter space, we find the method is accurate. However, the tests also reveal
there are regimes where the method needs improvement, for example when both the
radiation pressure and absorption opacity are very large. We suggest
modifications to the algorithm that will improve accuracy in this case. We
discuss the advantages of this method over those based on flux-limited
diffusion. In particular, we find the method is not only substantially more
accurate, but often no more expensive than the diffusion approximation for our
intended applications.Comment: 42 pages, 22 figures, 2 tables, accepted by ApJ
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