16,844 research outputs found
Evolution of the disc atmosphere in the X-ray binary MXB 1659-298, during its 2015-2017 outburst
We report on the evolution of the X-ray emission of the accreting neutron
star (NS) low mass X-ray binary (LMXB), MXB 1659-298, during its most recent
outburst in 2015-2017. We detected 60 absorption lines during the soft state
(of which 21 at more than 3 ), that disappeared in the hard state
(e.g., the Fe xxv and Fe xxvi lines). The absorbing plasma is at rest, likely
part of the accretion disc atmosphere. The bulk of the absorption features can
be reproduced by a high column density () of highly
ionised () plasma. Its disappearance during the
hard state is likely the consequence of a thermal photo-ionisation instability.
MXB 1659-298's continuum emission can be described by the sum of an absorbed
disk black body and its Comptonised emission, plus a black body component. The
observed spectral evolution with state is in line with that typically observed
in atoll and stellar mass black hole LMXB. The presence of a relativistic Fe
K disk-line is required during the soft state. We also tentatively
detect the Fe xxii doublet, whose ratio suggests an electron density of the
absorber of , hence, the absorber is likely located at
from the illuminating source, well inside the Compton and
outer disc radii. MXB 1659-298 is the third well monitored atoll LMXB
showcasing intense Fe xxv and Fe xxvi absorption during the soft state that
disappears during the hard state.Comment: MNRAS in pres
Planetary Nebulae with UVIT II: Revelations from FUV vision of Butterfly Nebula NGC 6302
The high excitation planetary nebula, NGC 6302, has been imaged in two
far-ultraviolet (FUV) filters, F169M (Sapphire; {\lambda}: 1608
{\AA}) and F172M (Silica; {\lambda}: 1717 {\AA}) and two NUV
filters, N219M (B15; {\lambda}: 2196 {\AA}) and N279N (N2;
{\lambda}: 2792 {\AA}) with the Ultra Violet Imaging Telescope
(UVIT). The FUV F169M image shows faint emission lobes that extend to about 5
arcmin on either side of the central source. Faint orthogonal collimated
jet-like structures are present on either side of the FUV lobes through the
central source. These structures are not present in the two NUV filters nor in
the FUV F172M filter. Optical and IR images of NGC 6302 show bright emission
bipolar lobes in the east-west direction with a massive torus of molecular gas
and dust seen as a dark lane in the north-south direction. The FUV lobes are
much more extended and oriented at a position angle of 113{\deg}. They and the
jet-like structures might be remnants of an earlier evolutionary phase, prior
to the dramatic explosive event that triggered the Hubble type bipolar flows
approximately 2200 years ago. The source of the FUV lobe and jet emission is
not known, but is likely due to fluorescent emission from H molecules. The
cause of the difference in orientation of optical and FUV lobes is not clear
and, we speculate, could be related to two binary interactions.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
The RCB star V854 Cen is surrounded by a hot dusty shell
Aims : The hydrogen-deficient supergiants known as R Coronae Borealis (RCB)
stars might be the result of a double-degenerate merger of two white dwarfs
(WDs), or a final helium shell flash in a planetary nebula central star. In
this context, any information on the geometry of their circumstellar
environment and, in particular, the potential detection of elongated
structures, is of great importance. Methods : We obtained near-IR observations
of V854 Cen with the AMBER recombiner located at the Very Large Telescope
Interferometer (VLTI) array with the compact array (B35m) in 2013 and the
long array (B140m) in 2014. At each time, V854 Cen was at maximum light.
The - and -band continua were investigated by means of spectrally
dependant geometric models. These data were supplemented with mid-IR VISIR/VLT
images. Results : A dusty slightly elongated over density is discovered both in
the - and -band images. With the compact array, the central star is
unresolved (\,mas), but a flattened dusty environment of mas is discovered whose flux increases from about 20% in the
band to reach about 50% at 2.3\micron, which indicates hot
(T1500\,K) dust in the close vicinity of the star. The major axis is
oriented at a position angle (P.A.) of 12629. Adding the long-array
configuration dataset provides tighter constraints on the star diameter
( mas), a slight increase of the overdensity to
mas and a consistent P.A. of 13349. The closure phases, sensitive to
asymmetries, are null and compatible with a centro-symmetric, unperturbed
environment excluding point sources at the level of 3% of the total flux in
2013 and 2014. The VISIR images exhibit a flattened aspect ratio at the 15-20%
level at larger distances (1\arcsec) with a position angle of
9219, marginally consistent with the interferometric observations.
Conclusions : This is the first time that a moderately elongated structure has
been observed around an RCB star. These observations confirm the numerous
suggestions for a bipolar structure proposed for this star in the literature,
which were mainly based on polarimetric and spectroscopic observations.Comment: Accepted by A\&A, new version after language editing, Astronomy and
Astrophysics (2014
A Spitzer view of protoplanetary disks in the gamma Velorum cluster
We present new Spitzer Space Telescope observations of stars in the young ~5
Myr gamma Velorum stellar cluster. Combining optical and 2MASS photometry, we
have selected 579 stars as candidate members of the cluster. With the addition
of the Spitzer mid-infrared data, we have identified 5 debris disks around
A-type stars, and 5-6 debris disks around solar-type stars, indicating that the
strong radiation field in the cluster does not completely suppress the
production of planetesimals in the disks of cluster members. However, we find
some evidence that the frequency of circumstellar primordial disks is lower,
and the IR flux excesses are smaller than for disks around stellar populations
with similar ages. This could be evidence for a relatively fast dissipation of
circumstellar dust by the strong radiation field from the highest mass star(s)
in the cluster. Another possibility is that gamma Velorum stellar cluster is
slightly older than reported ages and the the low frequency of primordial disks
reflects the fast disk dissipation observed at ~5 Myr.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal: 32 pages; 11
Figure
Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov theory versus local-density approximation for superfluid trapped fermionic atoms
We investigate a gas of superfluid fermionic atoms trapped in two hyperfine
states by a spherical harmonic potential. We propose a new regularization
method to remove the ultraviolet divergence in the Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov
equations caused by the use of a zero-range atom-atom interaction. Compared
with a method used in the literature, our method is simpler and has improved
convergence properties. Then we compare Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov calculations
with the semiclassical local-density approximation. We observe that for systems
containing a small number of atoms shell effects, which cannot be reproduced by
the semiclassical calculation, are very important. For systems with a large
number of atoms at zero temperature the two calculations are in quite good
agreement, which, however, is deteriorated at non-zero temperature, especially
near the critical temperature. In this case the different behavior can be
explained within the Ginzburg-Landau theory.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, revtex; v2: references and clarifying remarks
adde
Stimuli-responsive local drug molecule delivery to adhered cells in a 3D nanocomposite scaffold
Drug delivery systems capable of providing controlled and localized drug release are a highly important tool in the biomedical field because they can provide site-specific, sustained, and controlled drug release at the place where the drug is most needed, and they allow for significantly lower doses of the drug at other parts of the body, reducing the drug\u2019s potential side effects. In this respect, we describe pH-responsive PMO/alginate nanocomposite (NC) scaffolds with different pH-responsive strengths for controlled local drug delivery applications. To prepare the PMO/alginate NC scaffolds, PMOs were first loaded with anti-cancer molecules and then coated with a non-biopolymer or a biopolymer, after which the PMOs were embedded into an alginate network. We found that drug release from the PMOs was regulated by the pH of the environment and the surface coating of the PMOs due to the different pHdependent levels of electrostatic interactions between all the charged components of the NC scaffolds. The non-biopolymer-coated formulation of the NC scaffold can be utilized to deliver higher dosages of drug molecules directly to cells, while the biopolymer-coated system is useful for slow and prolonged release of drugs and for enhanced cell adhesion. Nonetheless, both systems can be utilized, in particular, to deliver higher dosages of drug molecules directly to cancer cells while delivering less of the drug to healthy cells
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