A K-band spectral mini-survey of Galactic B[e] stars

We present a mini-survey of Galactic B[e] stars mainly undertaken with the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT). B[e] stars show morphological features with hydrogen emission lines and an infrared excess, attributed to warm circumstellar dust. In general, these features are assumed to arise from dense, non-spherical, disk-forming circumstellar material in which molecules and dust can condensate. Due to the lack of reliable luminosities, the class of Galactic B[e] stars contains stars at very different stellar evolutionary phases like Herbig AeBe, supergiants or planetary nebulae. We took near-infrared long-slit K-band spectra for a sample of Galactic B[e] stars with the LBT-Luci I. Prominent spectral features, such as the Brackett gamma line and CO band heads are identified in the spectra. The analysis shows that the stars can be characterized as evolved objects. Among others we find one LBV candidate (MWC314), one supergiant B[e] candidate with 13CO (MWC137) and in two cases (MWC623 and AS 381) indications for the existence of a late-type binary companion, complementary to previous studies. For MWC84, IR spectra were taken at different epochs with LBT-Luci I and the GNIRS spectrograph at the Gemini North telescope. The new data show the disappearance of the circumstellar CO emission around this star, previously detectable over decades. Also no signs of a recent prominent eruption leading to the formation of new CO disk emission are found during 2010 and 2013.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in MNRAS (in press

The Quintuplet Cluster III. Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and cluster age

The Quintuplet, one of three massive stellar clusters in the Galactic center, is located about 30pc in projection from Sagittarius A*. Based on near-infrared K-band spectra we determine temperatures and luminosities for all stars in our sample and construct the Herztsprung-Russell diagram. We find two distinct groups: early-type OB stars and late-type KM stars, well separated from each other. By comparison with Geneva stellar evolution models we derive initial masses exceeding 8 solar masses for the OB stars, that are located along an isochrone corresponding to a cluster age of about 4 million years. In addition, we derive number ratios (e. g. N_WR/N_O) and compare them with predictions of population synthesis models. We find that an instantaneous burst of star formation at about 3.3 to 3.6\,Myr ago is the most likely scenario to form the Quintuplet cluster. The late-type stars in the sample are red giant branch (RGB) stars or red supergiants (RSGs) according to their spectral signatures. It is discussed if they could physically belong to the Quintuplet cluster. Furthermore, we apply a mass-luminosity relation to construct the initial mass function (IMF) of the cluster. We find indications for a slightly top-heavy IMF.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in A&

High-pressure behavior of synthetic mordenite-Na: an in situ single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction study

The high-pressure behavior of a synthetic mordenite- Na (space group: Cmcm or Cmc21) was studied by in situ single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction with a diamond anvil cell up to 9.22(7) GPa. A phase transition, likely displacive in character, occurred between 1.68(7) and 2.70(8) GPa, from a C-centered to a primitive space group: possibly Pbnm, Pbnn or Pbn21. Fitting of the experimental data with III-BM equations of state allowed to describe the elastic behavior of the high-pressure polymorph with a primitive lattice. A very high volume compressibility [KV0 = 25(2) GPa, \u3b2V0 = 1/KV0 = 0.040(3) GPa\u20131; KV\u2032 = ( 02KV/ 02P)T = 2.0(3)], coupled with a remarkable elastic anisotropy (\u3b2b > > \u3b2c > \u3b2a), was found. Interestingly, the low-P and high-P polymorphs show the same anisotropic compressional scheme. A structure collapse was not observed up to 9.22(7) GPa, even though a strong decrease of the number of observed reflections at the highest pressures suggests an impending amorphization. The structure refinements performed at room-P, 0.98(2) and 1.68(7) GPa allowed to describe, at a first approximation, the mechanisms that govern the framework deformation in the low-P regime: the bulk compression is strongly accommodated by the increase of the ellipticity of the large 12-membered ring channels running along [001]

Residual stress induced stabilization of martensite phase and its effect on the magneto-structural transition in Mn rich Ni-Mn-In/Ga magnetic shape memory alloys

The irreversibility of the martensite transition in magnetic shape memory alloys (MSMAs) with respect to external magnetic field is one of the biggest challenges that limits their application as giant caloric materials. This transition is a magneto-structural transition that is accompanied with a steep drop in magnetization (i.e., 'delta M') around the martensite start temperature (Ms) due to the lower magnetization of the martensite phase. In this communication, we show that 'delta M' around Ms in Mn rich Ni-Mn based MSMAs gets suppressed by two orders of magnitude in crushed powders due to the stabilization of the martensite phase at temperatures well above the Ms and the austenite finish (Af) temperatures due to residual stresses. Analysis of the intensities and the FWHM of the x-ray powder diffraction patterns reveals stabilized martensite phase fractions as 97, 75 and 90% with corresponding residual microstrains as 5.4, 5.6 and 3% in crushed powders of the three different Mn rich Ni-Mn alloys, namely, Mn1.8Ni1.8In0.4, Mn1.75Ni1.25Ga and Mn1.9Ni1.1Ga, respectively. Even after annealing at 773 K, the residual stress stabilised martensite phase does not fully revert to the equilibrium cubic austenite phase as the magneto-structural transition is only partially restored with reduced value of 'delta M'. Our results have very significant bearing on application of such alloys as inverse magnetocaloric and barocaloric materials

The Wolf-Rayet stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud: A comprehensive analysis of the WN class

Aims: Following our comprehensive studies of the WR stars in the Milky Way, we now present spectroscopic analyses of almost all known WN stars in the LMC. Methods: For the quantitative analysis of the wind-dominated emission-line spectra, we employ the Potsdam Wolf-Rayet (PoWR) model atmosphere code. By fitting synthetic spectra to the observed spectral energy distribution and the available spectra (ultraviolet and optical), we obtain the physical properties of 107 stars. Results: We present the fundamental stellar and wind parameters for an almost complete sample of WN stars in the LMC. Among those stars that are putatively single, two different groups can be clearly distinguished. While 12% of our sample are more luminous than 10^6 Lsun and contain a significant amount of hydrogen, 88% of the WN stars, with little or no hydrogen, populate the luminosity range between log (L/Lsun) = 5.3...5.8. Conclusions: While the few extremely luminous stars (log (L/Lsun) > 6), if indeed single stars, descended directly from the main sequence at very high initial masses, the bulk of WN stars have gone through the red-supergiant phase. According to their luminosities in the range of log (L/Lsun) = 5.3...5.8, these stars originate from initial masses between 20 and 40 Msun. This mass range is similar to the one found in the Galaxy, i.e. the expected metallicity dependence of the evolution is not seen. Current stellar evolution tracks, even when accounting for rotationally induced mixing, still partly fail to reproduce the observed ranges of luminosities and initial masses. Moreover, stellar radii are generally larger and effective temperatures correspondingly lower than predicted from stellar evolution models, probably due to subphotospheric inflation.Comment: 17+46 pages; 10+54 figures; v2: typos corrected, space-saving layout for appendix C, published in A&

On the P-induced behavior of the zeolite phillipsite : an in situ single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction study

The elastic behavior and the structural evolution at high pressure of a natural phillipsite have been investigated by in situ single-crystal X-ray diffraction up to 9.44 GPa, using a diamond anvil cell and the nominally penetrating P-transmitting fluid methanol:ethanol:water (16:3:1) mix. Although no phase transition was observed within the P-range investigated, two different compressional regimes occur. Between 0.0001 and 2.0 GPa, the refined elastic parameters, calculated by a second-order Birch\u2013Murnaghan equation of state (BM-EoS) fit, are V0 = 1005(1) \uc53, K0 = 89(8) GPa for the unit-cell volume; a0 = 9.914(7) \uc5, Ka = 81(12) GPa for the a-axis; b0 = 14.201(9) \uc5, Kb = 50(5) GPa for the b-axis; and c0 = 8.707(2) \uc5, Kc = 107(8) GPa for the c-axis (Ka:Kb:Kc ~1.62:1:2.14). Between 2.0 and 9.4 GPa, a P-induced change in the configuration of H2O molecules, coupled with a change in the tilting mechanisms of the framework tetrahedra, gives rise to a second compressional regime, in which the phillipsite structure is softer if compared to the first compressional range. In the second compressional regime, the refined elastic parameters, calculated by a second-order BM-EoS fit, are V0 = 1098 (7) \uc53, K0 = 18.8(7) GPa for the unit-cell volume; a0 = 10.07(3) \uc5, Ka = 30(2) GPa for the a-axis; b0 = 14.8(1) \uc5, Kb = 11(1) GPa for the b-axis; and c0 = 8.94(2) \uc5, Kc = 21(1) GPa for the c-axis (Ka:Kb:Kc ~2.72:1:1.90). The evolution of the monoclinic \u3b2 angle with pressure shows two distinct trends in the two compressional regimes: with a negative slope between 0.0001 and 2.0 GPa, and a positive slope between 2.0 and 9.4 GPa. The mechanisms, at the atomic scale, that govern the two compressional regimes of the phillipsite structure are described

Pargasite at high pressure and temperature

The P-T phase stability field, the thermoelastic behavior and the P-induced deformation mechanisms at the atomic scale of pargasite crystals, from the "phlogopite peridotite unit" of the Finero mafic-ultramafic complex (Ivrea-Verbano Formation, Italy), have been investigated by a series of in situ experiments: (a) at high pressure (up to 20.1 GPa), by single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction with a diamond anvil cell, (b) at high temperature (up to 823 K), by powder synchrotron X-ray diffraction using a hot air blower device, and (c) at simultaneous HP-HT conditions, by single-crystal synchrotron X-ray diffraction with a resistive-heated diamond anvil cell (Pmax = 16.5 GPa, Tmax = 1200 K). No phase transition has been observed within the P-T range investigated. At ambient T, the refined compressional parameters, calculated by fitting a second-order Birch-Murnaghan Equation of State (BM-EoS), are: V0 = 915.2(8) \uc53 and KP0,T0 = 95(2) GPa (\u3b2P0,T0 = 0.0121(2) GPa-1) for the unit-cell volume; a0 = 9.909(4) \uc5 and K(a)P0,T0 = 76(2) GPa for the a-axis; b0 = 18.066(7) \uc5 and K(b)P0,T0 = 111(2) GPa for the b-axis; c0 = 5.299(5) \uc5 and K(c)P0,T0 = 122(12) GPa for the c-axis [K(c)P0,T0 ~ K(b)P0,T0 > K(a)P0,T0]. The high-pressure structure refinements (at ambient T) show a moderate contraction of the TO4 double chain and a decrease of its bending in response to the hydrostatic compression, along with a pronounced compressibility of the A- and M(4)-polyhedra [KP0,T0(A) = 38(2) GPa, KP0,T0(M4) = 79(5) GPa] if compared to the M(1)-, M(2)-, M(3)-octahedra [KP0,T0(M1,2,3) 64 120 GPa] and to the rigid tetrahedra [KP0,T0(T1,T2) ~ 300 GPa]. The thermal behavior, at ambient pressure up to 823 K, was modelled with Berman's formalism, which gives: V0 = 909.1(2) \uc53, \u3b10 = 2.7(2)*10-5 K-1 and \u3b11 = 1.4(6)*10-9 K-2 [with \u3b10(a) = 0.47(6)*10-5 K-1, \u3b10(b) = 1.07(4)*10-5 K-1, and \u3b10(c) = 0.97(7)*10-5 K-1]. The petrological implications for the experimental findings of this study are discussed

A Multiwavelength Study of Evolved Massive Stars in the Galactic Center

The central region of the Milky Way provides a unique laboratory for a systematic, spatially-resolved population study of evolved massive stars of various types in a relatively high metallicity environment. We have conducted a multi-wavelength data analysis of 180 such stars or candidates, most of which were drawn from a recent large-scale HST/NICMOS narrow-band Pa-a survey, plus additional 14 Wolf-Rayet stars identified in earlier ground-based spectroscopic observations of the same field. The multi-wavelength data include broad-band IR photometry measurements from HST/NICMOS, SIRIUS, 2MASS, Spitzer/IRAC, and Chandra X-ray observations. We correct for extinctions toward individual stars, improve the Pa-a line equivalent width measurements, quantify the substantial mid-IR dust emission associated with WC stars, and find X-ray counterparts. In the process, we identify 10 foreground sources, some of which may be nearby cataclysmic variables. The WN stars in the Arches and Central clusters show correlations between the Pa-a equivalent width and the adjacent continuum emission. However, the WN stars in the latter cluster are systematically dimmer than those in the Arches cluster, presumably due to the different ages of the two clusters. In the EW-magnitude plot, WNL stars, WC stars and OB supergiants roughly fall into three distinct regions. We estimate that the dust mass associated with individual WC stars in the Quintuplet cluster can reach 1e-5 M, or more than one order of magnitude larger than previous estimates. Thus WC stars could be a significant source of dust in the galaxies of the early universe. Nearly half of the evolved massive stars in the GC are located outside the three known massive stellar clusters. The ionization of several compact HII regions can be accounted for by their enclosed individual evolved massive stars, which thus likely formed in isolation or in small groups.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Некоторые результаты применения метода геометрического анализа дизъюнктов для поисков смещенного крыла пласта в Прокопьевском районе Кузбасса

In this paper we present the development of a compact, thermo-optically stable and vibration and mechanical shock resistant mounting technique by soldering of optical components. Based on this technique, new generations of laser pump sources for aerospace applications are designed. In these laser systems the used soldering technique replaces the glued connection between the optical component and its join partner. The main challenges are the alignment accuracy in the arc second range and the realization of the long term stability of every single part in the laser system (e.g. resonator mirrors)