2,143 research outputs found
Temperature effects on the 15-85-micron spectra of olivines and pyroxenes
Far-infrared spectra of laboratory silicates are normally obtained at room
temperature even though the grains responsible for astronomical silicate
emission bands seen at wavelengths >20 micron are likely to be at temperatures
below ~150 K. In order to investigate the effect of temperature on silicate
spectra, we have obtained absorption spectra of powdered forsterite and
olivine, along with two orthoenstatites and diopside clinopyroxene, at 3.5+-0.5
K and at room temperature (295+-2K). To determine the changes in the spectra
the resolution must be increased from 1 to 0.25 cm^-1 at both temperatures
since a reduction in temperature reduces the phonon density, thereby reducing
the width of the infrared peaks. Several bands observed at 295 K split at 3.5
K. At 3.5 K the widths of isolated single bands in olivine, enstatites and
diopside are ~ 90% of their 295 K-widths. However, in forsterite the
3.5-K-widths of the 31-, 49- and 69-micron bands are, respectively, 90%, 45%
and 31% of their 295 K widths. Due to an increase in phonon energy as the
lattice contracts, 3.5-K-singlet peaks occur at shorter wavelengths than do the
corresponding 295-K peaks; the magnitude of the wavelength shift increases from
\~ 0-0.2 micron at 25 micron to ~0.9 micron at 80 micron. Changes in the
relative absorbances of spectral peaks are also observed. The temperature
dependence of lambda_pk and bandwidth shows promise as a means to deduce
characteristic temperatures of mineralogically distinct grain populations. In
addition, the observed changes in band strength with temperature will affect
estimates of grain masses and relative mineral abundances inferred using
room-temperature laboratory data.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures including figures 3a and 3b. includes latex and
eps files. Accepted by MNRAS on 15th March 200
Optical properties of silicon carbide for astrophysical applications I. New laboratory infrared reflectance spectra and optical constants
Silicon Carbide (SiC) optical constants are fundamental inputs for radiative
transfer models of astrophysical dust environments. However, previously
published values contain errors and do not adequately represent the bulk
physical properties of the cubic (beta) SiC polytype usually found around
carbon stars. We provide new, uncompromised optical constants for beta- and
alpha-SiC derived from single-crystal reflectance spectra and investigate
quantitatively whether there is any difference between alpha- and beta-SiC that
can be seen in infrared spectra and optical functions.
Previous optical constants for SiC do not reflect the true bulk properties,
and they are only valid for a narrow grain size range. The new optical
constants presented here will allow narrow constraints to be placed on the
grain size and shape distribution that dominate in astrophysical environments.
In addition, our calculated absorption coefficients are much higher than
laboratory measurements, which has an impact on the use of previous data to
constrain abundances of these dust grains.Comment: 12 pages; 10 figures; laboratory optical constants available from
CDS. Accepted by Astronomy & Astrophysic
Non-contact temperature measurement of a falling drop
The 105 meter drop tube at NASA-Marshall has been used in a number of experiments to determine the effects of containerless, microgravity processing on the undercooling and solidification behavior of metals and alloys. These experiments have been limited, however, because direct temperature measurement of the falling drops has not been available. Undercooling and nucleation temperatures are calculated from thermophysical properties based on droplet cooling models. In most cases these properties are not well known, particularly in the undercooled state. This results in a large amount of uncertainty in the determination of nucleation temperatures. If temperature measurement can be accomplished then the thermal history of the drops could be well documented. This would lead to a better understanding of the thermophysical and thermal radiative properties of undercooled melts. An effort to measure the temperature of a falling drop is under way. The technique uses two color pyrometry and high speed data acquisition. The approach is presented along with some preliminary data from drop tube experiments. The results from droplet cooling models is compared with noncontact temperature measurements
Characteristics of Low-Latitude Coronal Holes near the Maximum of Solar cycle 24
We investigate the statistics of 288 low-latitude coronal holes extracted
from SDO/AIA-193 filtergrams over the time range 2011/01/01 to 2013/12/31. We
analyse the distribution of characteristic coronal hole properties, such as the
areas, mean AIA-193 intensities, and mean magnetic field densities, the local
distribution of the SDO/AIA-193 intensity and the magnetic field within the
coronal holes, and the distribution of magnetic flux tubes in coronal holes. We
find that the mean magnetic field density of all coronal holes under study is
3.0 +- 1.6 G, and the percentage of unbalanced magnetic flux is 49 +- 16 %. The
mean magnetic field density, the mean unsigned magnetic field density, and the
percentage of unbalanced magnetic flux of coronal holes depend strongly
pairwise on each other, with correlation coefficients cc > 0.92. Furthermore,
we find that the unbalanced magnetic flux of the coronal holes is predominantly
concentrated in magnetic flux tubes: 38 % (81 %) of the unbalanced magnetic
flux of coronal holes arises from only 1 % (10 %) of the coronal hole area,
clustered in magnetic flux tubes with field strengths > 50 G (10 G). The
average magnetic field density and the unbalanced magnetic flux derived from
the magnetic flux tubes correlate with the mean magnetic field density and the
unbalanced magnetic flux of the overall coronal hole (cc > 0.93). These
findings give evidence that the overall magnetic characteristics of coronal
holes are governed by the characteristics of the magnetic flux tubes.Comment: 15 figure
Optical constants of silicon carbide for astrophysical applications. II. Extending optical functions from IR to UV using single-crystal absorption spectra
Laboratory measurements of unpolarized and polarized absorption spectra of
various samples and crystal stuctures of silicon carbide (SiC) are presented
from 1200--35,000 cm ( 8--0.28 m) and used to improve
the accuracy of optical functions ( and ) from the infrared (IR) to the
ultraviolet (UV). Comparison with previous 6--20 m
thin-film spectra constrains the thickness of the films and verifies that
recent IR reflectivity data provide correct values for in the IR region. We
extract and needed for radiative transfer models using a new
``difference method'', which utilizes transmission spectra measured from two
SiC single-crystals with different thicknesses. This method is ideal for
near-IR to visible regions where absorbance and reflectance are low and can be
applied to any material. Comparing our results with previous UV measurements of
SiC, we distinguish between chemical and structural effects at high frequency.
We find that for all spectral regions, 3C (-SiC) and the polarization of 6H (a type of -SiC) have almost identical
optical functions that can be substituted for each other in modeling
astronomical environments. Optical functions for of 6H SiC
have peaks shifted to lower frequency, permitting identification of this
structure below m. The onset of strong UV absorption for pure
SiC occurs near 0.2 m, but the presence of impurities redshifts the rise
to 0.33 m. Optical functions are similarly impacted. Such large
differences in spectral characteristics due to structural and chemical effects
should be observable and provide a means to distinguish chemical variation of
SiC dust in space.Comment: 46 pages inc. 8 figures and 2 full tables. Also 6 electronic-only
data files. Accepted by Ap
Processing of Presolar Grains around Post-Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars: Silicon Carbide as the Carrier of the 21 Micron Feature
doi: 10.1086/379973Some proto-planetary nebulae (PPNs) exhibit an enigmatic feature in their infrared spectra at ~21 μm. This feature is not seen in the spectra of either the precursors to PPNs, the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, or the successors of PPNs, "normal" planetary nebulae (PNs). However, the 21 μm feature has been seen in the spectra of PNs with Wolf-Rayet central stars. Therefore, the carrier of this feature is unlikely to be a transient species that only exists in the PPN phase. This feature has been attributed to various molecular and solid-state species, none of which satisfy all constraints, although titanium carbide (TiC) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have seemed the most viable. We present new laboratory data for silicon carbide (SiC) and show that it has a spectral feature that is a good candidate for the carrier of the 21 μm feature. The SiC spectral feature appears at approximately the same wavelength (depending on the polytype/grain size) and has the same asymmetric profile as the observed astronomical feature. We suggest that processing and cooling of the SiC grains known to exist around carbon-rich AGB stars are responsible for the emergence of the enigmatic 21 μm feature. The emergence of this feature in the spectra of post-AGB stars demonstrates the processing of dust due to the changing physical environments around evolving stars.A. M. H. was supported by NSF AST 98-05924
Switching the Conductance of a Molecular Junction using a Proton Transfer Reaction
A novel mechanism for switching a molecular junction based on a proton
transfer reaction triggered by an external electrostatic field is proposed. As
a specific example to demonstrate the feasibility of the mechanism, the
tautomers [2,5-(4-hydroxypyridine)] and {2,5-[4(1H)-pyridone]} are considered.
Employing a combination of first-principles electronic structure calculations
and Landauer transport theory, we show that both tautomers exhibit very
different conductance properties and realize the "on" and "off" states of a
molecular switch. Moreover, we provide a proof of principle that both forms can
be reversibly converted into each other using an external electrostatic field.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
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