2,004 research outputs found
Microcanonical finite-size scaling in specific heat diverging 2nd order phase transitions
A Microcanonical Finite Site Ansatz in terms of quantities measurable in a
Finite Lattice allows to extend phenomenological renormalization (the so called
quotients method) to the microcanonical ensemble. The Ansatz is tested
numerically in two models where the canonical specific-heat diverges at
criticality, thus implying Fisher-renormalization of the critical exponents:
the 3D ferromagnetic Ising model and the 2D four-states Potts model (where
large logarithmic corrections are known to occur in the canonical ensemble). A
recently proposed microcanonical cluster method allows to simulate systems as
large as L=1024 (Potts) or L=128 (Ising). The quotients method provides
extremely accurate determinations of the anomalous dimension and of the
(Fisher-renormalized) thermal exponent. While in the Ising model the
numerical agreement with our theoretical expectations is impressive, in the
Potts case we need to carefully incorporate logarithmic corrections to the
microcanonical Ansatz in order to rationalize our data.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure
Radial Velocities with CRIRES: Pushing precision down to 5-10 m/s
With the advent of high-resolution infrared spectrographs, Radial Velocity
(RV) searches enter into a new domain. As of today, the most important
technical question to address is which wavelength reference is the most
suitable for high-precision RV measurements.
In this work we explore the usage of atmospheric absorption features. We make
use of CRIRES data on two programs and three different targets. We re-analyze
the data of the TW Hya campaign, reaching a dispersion of about 6 m/s on the RV
standard in a time scale of roughly 1 week. We confirm the presence of a
low-amplitude RV signal on TW Hya itself, roughly 3 times smaller than the one
reported at visible wavelengths. We present RV measurements of Gl 86 as well,
showing that our approach is capable of detecting the signal induced by a
planet and correctly quantifying it.
Our data show that CRIRES is capable of reaching a RV precision of less than
10 m/s in a time-scale of one week. The limitations of this particular approach
are discussed, and the limiting factors on RV precision in the IR in a general
way. The implications of this work on the design of future dedicated IR
spectrographs are addressed as well.Comment: 9 pages, accepted for publication in A&
The CORALIE survey for southern extra-solar planets IX. A 1.3-day period brown dwarf disguised as a planet
In this article we present the case of HD 41004 AB, a system composed of a
K0V star and a 3.7-magnitude fainter M-dwarf companion separated by only 0.5
arcsec. An analysis of CORALIE radial-velocity measurements has revealed a
variation with an amplitude of about 50m/s and a periodicity of 1.3days. This
radial-velocity signal is consistent with the expected variation induced by the
presence a very low mass giant planetary companion to HD 41004 A, whose light
dominates the spectra. The radial-velocity measurements were then complemented
with a photometric campaign and with the analysis of the bisector of the
CORALIE Cross-Correlation Function (CCF). While the former revealed no
significant variations within the observational precision of 0.003-0.004 mag
(except for an observed flare event), the bisector analysis showed that the
line profiles are varying in phase with the radial-velocity. This latter
result, complemented with a series of simulations, has shown that we can
explain the observations by considering that HD 41004 B has a brown-dwarf
companion orbiting with the observed 1.3-day period. If confirmed, this
detection represents the first discovery of a brown dwarf in a very short
period (1.3-day) orbit around an M dwarf. Finally, this case should be taken as
a serious warning about the importance of analyzing the bisector when looking
for planets using radial-velocity techniques.Comment: 16 pages, 17 eps figures, A&A in press (Figure 11 not as in original
version due to size
Electronic Properties of Topological Materials: Optical Excitations in Moebius Conjugated Polymers
Electronic structures and optical excitations in Moebius conjugated polymers
are studied theoretically. Periodic and Moebius boundary conditions are applied
to the tight binding model of poly(para-phenylene), taking exciton effects into
account. We discuss that oligomers with a few structural units are more
effective than polymers for observations of effects of discrete wave numbers
that are shifted by the change in boundary condition. Next, calculations of
optical absorption spectra are reported. Certain components of optical
absorption for an electric field perpendicular to the polymer axis mix with
absorption spectra for an electric field parallel to the polymer axis.
Therefore, the polarization dependences of an electric field of light enable us
to detect whether conjugated polymers have the Moebius boundary.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, to be published in J. Phys. Soc. Jpn., Vol. 74
No. 2 (February, 2005), Letter sectio
Monte Carlo studies of the ordering of the one-dimensional Heisenberg spin glass with long-range power-law interactions
The nature of the ordering of the one-dimensional Heisenberg spin-glass model
with a long-range power-law interaction is studied by extensive Monte Carlo
simulations, with particular attention to the issue of the spin-chirality
decoupling/coupling. Large system sizes up to are studied. With
varying the exponent describing the power-law interaction, we observe
three distinct types of ordering regimes. For smaller , the spin and
the chirality order at a common finite temperature with a common
correlation-length exponent, exhibiting the standard spin-chirality coupling
behavior. For intermediate , the chirality orders at a temperature
higher than the spin, exhibiting the spin-chirality decoupling behavior. For
larger , both the spin and the chirality order at zero temperature. We
construct a phase diagram in the versus the temperature plane, and
discuss implications of the results. Critical properties associated with both
the chiral-glass and the spin-glass transitions are also determined.Comment: 28 pages, 26 figures, to appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jp
Evidence for a spectroscopic direct detection of reflected light from 51 Peg b
The detection of reflected light from an exoplanet is a difficult technical
challenge at optical wavelengths. Even though this signal is expected to
replicate the stellar signal, not only is it several orders of magnitude
fainter, but it is also hidden among the stellar noise. We apply a variant of
the cross-correlation technique to HARPS observations of 51 Peg to detect the
reflected signal from planet 51 Peg b. Our method makes use of the
cross-correlation function of a binary mask with high-resolution spectra to
amplify the minute planetary signal that is present in the spectra by a factor
proportional to the number of spectral lines when performing the cross
correlation. The resulting cross-correlation functions are then normalized by a
stellar template to remove the stellar signal. Carefully selected sections of
the resulting normalized CCFs are stacked to increase the planetary signal
further. The recovered signal allows probing several of the planetary
properties, including its real mass and albedo. We detect evidence for the
reflected signal from planet 51 Peg b at a significance of 3\sigma_noise. The
detection of the signal permits us to infer a real mass of 0.46^+0.06_-0.01
M_Jup (assuming a stellar mass of 1.04\;M_Sun) for the planet and an orbital
inclination of 80^+10_-19 degrees. The analysis of the data also allows us to
infer a tentative value for the (radius-dependent) geometric albedo of the
planet. The results suggest that 51Peg b may be an inflated hot Jupiter with a
high albedo (e.g., an albedo of 0.5 yields a radius of 1.9 \pm 0.3 R_Jup for a
signal amplitude of 6.0\pm0.4 x 10^-5). We confirm that the method we perfected
can be used to retrieve an exoplanet's reflected signal, even with current
observing facilities. The advent of next generation of observing facilities
will yield new opportunities for this type of technique to probe deeper into
exoplanets.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
The Spectrum of the Brown Dwarf Gliese 229B
We present a spectrum of the cool (T_eff = 900 K) brown dwarf Gliese 229B.
This spectrum, with a relatively high signal-to-noise ratio per spectral
resolution element (> 30), spans the wavelength range from 0.837 microns to 5.0
microns. We identify a total of four different major methane absorption
features, including the fundamental band at 3.3 microns, at least four steam
bands, and two neutral cesium features. We confirm the recent detection of
carbon monoxide (CO) in excess of what is predicted by thermochemical
equilibrium calculations. Carbon is primarily involved in a chemical balance
between methane and CO at the temperatures and pressures present in the outer
parts of a brown dwarf. At lower temperatures, the balance favors methane,
while in the deeper, hotter regions, the reaction reverses to convert methane
into CO. The presence of CO in the observable part of the atmosphere is
therefore a sensitive indicator of vertical flows. The high signal-to-noise
ratio in the 1 to 2.5 microns region permits us to place constraints on the
quantity of dust in the atmosphere of the brown dwarf. We are unable to
reconcile the observed spectrum with synthetic spectra that include the
presences of dust. The presence of CO but lack of dust may be a clue to the
location of the boundaries of the outer convective region of the atmosphere:
The lack of dust may mean that it is not being conveyed into the photosphere by
convection, or that it exists in patchy clouds. If the dust is not in clouds,
but rather sits below the outer convective region, we estimate that the
boundary between outer convective and inner radiative layers is between 1250 K
and 1600 K, in agreement with recent models.Comment: 15 pages, 8 figure
The HARPS search for southern extra-solar planets XXXII. Only 4 planets in the Gl~581 system
The Gl 581 planetary system has generated wide interest, because its 4
planets include both the lowest mass planet known around a main sequence star
other than the Sun and the first super-Earth planet in the habitable zone of
its star. A recent paper announced the possible discovery of two additional
super-Earth planets in that system, one of which would be in the middle of the
habitable zone of Gl 581. The statistical significance of those two discoveries
has, however, been questioned. We have obtained 121 new radial velocity
measurements of Gl 581 with the HARPS spectrograph on the ESO 3.6 m telescope,
and analyse those together with our previous 119 measurements of that star to
examine these potential additional planets. We find that neither is likely to
exist with their proposed parameters. We also obtained photometric observations
with the 2.5 m Isaac Newton Telescope during a potential transit of the inner
planet, Gl 581e, which had a 5% geometric transit probability. Those
observations exclude transits for planet densities under 4 times the Earth
density within -0.2 sigma to +2.7 sigma of the predicted transit center.Comment: Submitted to Astronomy & Astrophysic
Radial Velocities as an Exoplanet Discovery Method
The precise radial velocity technique is a cornerstone of exoplanetary
astronomy. Astronomers measure Doppler shifts in the star's spectral features,
which track the line-of/sight gravitational accelerations of a star caused by
the planets orbiting it. The method has its roots in binary star astronomy, and
exoplanet detection represents the low-companion-mass limit of that
application. This limit requires control of several effects of much greater
magnitude than the signal sought: the motion of the telescope must be
subtracted, the instrument must be calibrated, and spurious Doppler shifts
"jitter" must be mitigated or corrected. Two primary forms of instrumental
calibration are the stable spectrograph and absorption cell methods, the former
being the path taken for the next generation of spectrographs. Spurious,
apparent Doppler shifts due to non-center-of-mass motion (jitter) can be the
result of stellar magnetic activity or photospheric motions and granulation.
Several avoidance, mitigation, and correction strategies exist, including
careful analysis of line shapes and radial velocity wavelength dependence.Comment: Invited review chapter. 13pp. v2 includes corrections to Eqs 3-6,
updated references, and minor edit
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