2,396 research outputs found
A Novel Approach in Constraining Electron Spectra in Blazar Jets: The Case of Markarian 421
We report results from the observations of the well studied TeV blazar Mrk
421 with the Swift and the Suzaku satellites in December 2008. During the
observation, Mrk 421 was found in a relatively low activity state, with the
corresponding 2-10 keV flux of erg/s/cm^2. For the purpose
of robust constraining the UV-to-X-ray emission continuum we selected only the
data corresponding to truly simultaneous time intervals between Swift and
Suzaku, allowing us to obtain a good-quality, broad-band spectrum despite a
modest length (0.6 ksec) exposure. We analyzed the spectrum with the parametric
forward-fitting SYNCHROTRON model implemented in XSPEC assuming two different
representations of the underlying electron energy distribution, both well
motivated by the current particle acceleration models: a power-law distribution
above the minimum energy with an exponential cutoff at the
maximum energy , and a modified ultra-relativistic Maxwellian
with an equilibrium energy . We found that the latter implies
unlikely physical conditions within the blazar zone of Mrk 421. On the other
hand, the exponentially moderated power-law electron distribution gives two
possible sets of the model parameters: (i) flat spectrum with low minimum electron energy , and
(ii) steep spectrum with high minimum electron energy
. We discuss different interpretations of
both possibilities in the context of a diffusive acceleration of electrons at
relativistic, sub- or superluminal shocks. We also comment on how exactly the
gamma-ray data can be used to discriminate between the proposed different
scenarios.Comment: 18 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Global Simulation of the Jovian Magnetosphere: Transitional Structure From the Io Plasma Disk to the Plasma Sheet
Jupiter has a strong magnetic field, and a huge magnetosphere is formed through the solar wind-Jupiter interaction. The generated magnetosphere–ionosphere system is reproduced based on the 9-component Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) and the current conservation in the ionosphere. Assuming Io plasma emission rate 1.4 t/sec, this paper reproduces self-consistently global magnetic configuration, generations of the field-aligned current (FAC) and aurora, formation of the Io plasma disk at 8–20 RJ, plasma corotation, instability in the plasma disk, transition from the Io plasma disk to the plasma sheet at 20–150 RJ, and the plasmoid ejection. The rotating Io plasma in the disk forms instabilities that promotes radial diffusion. H+ is supplied from the ionosphere along high-latitude magnetic field lines and mixed with heavy ions around 15–20 RJ. Beyond 20 RJ, mixed plasma diffuses further outward by the centrifugal force that can exceed magnetic tension. In the ionosphere, the main oval occurs at 13.7°–15.5° colatitude. The Io disk is inner side of magnetic field lines traced from the low-latitude edge of the main oval. Along magnetic field lines, the main oval is mapped from the outer edge of the Io disk to the entire plasma sheet accompanying rotation delay. Due to the corotation limit, convection is accompanied by plasmoid ejection. Back reaction of plasmoid ejection affects even transport process in the Io disk. The downward FAC occurs in the polar cap showing variability. The region of externally driven Dungey convection seems quite narrow
Reproduction of Ground Magnetic Variations During the SC and the Substorm From the Global Simulation and Biot‐Savart's Law
In this paper, currents causing the sudden commencement (SC), the AU/AL indices, and the positive bay during the substorm are identified from the global simulation and Biot-Savart's law. Candidate currents assumed as causes of these ground magnetic variations are the ionospheric Hall current, the ionospheric Pedersen current, the field-aligned current (FAC), and other magnetospheric currents than the FAC. In general, FAC effect and Pedersen current effect cancel out each other under the restriction of Fukushima's theorem. During the SC, for instance, the midlatitude preliminary positive impulse appears in the prenoon and midlatitude preliminary reverse impulse (PRI) appears in the postnoon, due to the remaining effect of the Hall current. However, violations of the Fukushima's theorem are also common such as in the cases of the equatorial PRI, the auroral electrojet, and the positive bay. The equatorial PRI caused by the Pedersen current appears both in the prenoon and postnoon regions. In the auroral region, the Hall current effect prevails over other currents so much and determines the AU/AL indices only from it regardless other currents. The midlatitude positive bay on the nightside is generated by the effect of the FAC. From these diverse reproduction of ground magnetic variations, a further verification is given for the global simulation in reproductions of the magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling process
Extreme Blazars Studied with Fermi-LAT and Suzaku: 1ES 0347-121 and Blazar Candidate HESS J1943+213
We report on our study of high-energy properties of two peculiar TeV
emitters: the "extreme blazar" 1ES 0347-121 and the "extreme blazar candidate"
HESS J1943+213 located near the Galactic Plane. Both objects are characterized
by quiescent synchrotron emission with flat spectra extending up to the hard
X-ray range, and both were reported to be missing GeV counterparts in the
Fermi-LAT 2-year Source Catalog. We analyze a 4.5 year accumulation of the
Fermi-LAT data, resulting in the detection of 1ES 0347-121 in the GeV band, as
well as in improved upper limits for HESS J1943+213. We also present the
analysis results of newly acquired Suzaku data for HESS J1943+213. The X-ray
spectrum is well represented by a single power law extending up to 25 keV with
photon index 2.00+/-0.02 and a moderate absorption in excess of the Galactic
value, in agreement with previous X-ray observations. No short-term X-ray
variability was found over the 80 ks duration of the Suzaku exposure. Under the
blazar hypothesis, we modeled the spectral energy distributions of 1ES 0347-121
and HESS J1943+213, and derived constraints on the intergalactic magnetic field
strength and source energetics. We conclude that although the classification of
HESS J1943+213 has not yet been determined, the blazar hypothesis remains the
most plausible option, since in particular the broad-band spectra of the two
analyzed sources along with the source model parameters closely resemble each
other, and the newly available WISE and UKIDSS data for HESS J1943+213 are
consistent with the presence of an elliptical host at the distance of
approximately ~600 Mpc.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables. Accepted by Ap
Electronic structure and magnetism of the diluted magnetic semiconductor Fe-doped ZnO nano-particles
We have studied the electronic structure of ZnFeO
nano-particles, which have been reported to show ferromagnetism at room
temperature, by x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), resonant photoemission
spectroscopy (RPES), x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and x-ray magnetic
circular dichroism (XMCD). From the experimental and cluster-model calculation
results, we find that Fe atoms are predominantly in the Fe ionic state
with mixture of a small amount of Fe and that Fe ions are
dominant in the surface region of the nano-particles. It is shown that the room
temperature ferromagnetism in the ZnFeO nano-particles is
primarily originated from the antiferromagnetic coupling between unequal
amounts of Fe ions occupying two sets of nonequivalent positions in the
region of the XMCD probing depth of 2-3 nm.Comment: Single column, 12 pages, 8 figures, 1 tabl
Precise measurement of positronium hyperfine splitting using the Zeeman effect
Positronium is an ideal system for the research of the quantum
electrodynamics (QED) in bound state. The hyperfine splitting (HFS) of
positronium, , gives a good test of the bound state
calculations and probes new physics beyond the Standard Model. A new method of
QED calculations has revealed the discrepancy by 15\,ppm (3.9) of
between the QED prediction and the experimental
average. There would be possibility of new physics or common systematic
uncertainties in the previous all experiments. We describe a new experiment to
reduce possible systematic uncertainties and will provide an independent check
of the discrepancy. We are now taking data and the current result of
has been obtained so far. A measurement with a precision of (ppm) is
expected within a year.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables, proceeding of LEAP2011, accepted by
Hyperfine Interaction
Equation-of-state measurements for polystyrene at multi-TPa pressures in laser direct-drive experiments
Copyright 2005 American Institute of Physics. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the American Institute of Physics. The following article appeared in Physics of Plasmas, 12(12), 124503, 2005 and may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.214931
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