Lagrangian Volume Deformations around Simulated Galaxies

We present a detailed analysis of the local evolution of 206 Lagrangian Volumes (LVs) selected at high redshift around galaxy seeds, identified in a large-volume $\Lambda$ cold dark matter ($\Lambda$CDM) hydrodynamical simulation. The LVs have a mass range of $1 - 1500 \times 10^{10} M_\odot$. We follow the dynamical evolution of the density field inside these initially spherical LVs from $z=10$ up to $z_{\rm low} = 0.05$, witnessing highly non-linear, anisotropic mass rearrangements within them, leading to the emergence of the local cosmic web (CW). These mass arrangements have been analysed in terms of the reduced inertia tensor $I_{ij}^r$, focusing on the evolution of the principal axes of inertia and their corresponding eigendirections, and paying particular attention to the times when the evolution of these two structural elements declines. In addition, mass and component effects along this process have also been investigated. We have found that deformations are led by dark matter dynamics and they transform most of the initially spherical LVs into prolate shapes, i.e. filamentary structures. An analysis of the individual freezing-out time distributions for shapes and eigendirections shows that first most of the LVs fix their three axes of symmetry (like a skeleton) early on, while accretion flows towards them still continue. Very remarkably, we have found that more massive LVs fix their skeleton earlier on than less massive ones. We briefly discuss the astrophysical implications our findings could have, including the galaxy mass-morphology relation and the effects on the galaxy-galaxy merger parameter space, among others.Comment: 23 pages, 20 figures. Minor editorial improvement

Large-scale gas dynamics in the adhesion model: Implications for the two-phase massive galaxy formation scenario

This article has been accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society ©: 2011 RAS © 2011 The AuthorsPublished by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society. All rights reservedWe have studied the mass assembly and star formation histories of massive galaxies identified at low redshift in different cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. To this end, we have carried out a detailed follow-up backwards in time of their constituent mass elements (sampled by particles) of different types. After that, the configurations they depict at progressively higher zs were carefully analysed. The analyses show that these histories share common generic patterns, irrespective of particular circumstances. In any case, however, the results we have found are different depending on the particle type. The most outstanding differences follow. We have found that by z∼ 3.5-6, mass elements identified as stellar particles at z= 0 exhibit a gaseous cosmic-web-like morphology with scales of ∼1 physical Mpc, where the densest mass elements have already turned into stars by z∼ 6. These settings are in fact the densest pieces of the cosmic web, where no hot particles show up, and dynamically organized as a hierarchy of flow convergence regions (FCRs), that is, attraction basins for mass flows. At high z FCRs undergo fast contractive deformations with very low angular momentum, shrinking them violently. Indeed, by z∼ 1 most of the gaseous or stellar mass they contain shows up as bound to a massive elliptical-like object at their centres, with typical half-mass radii of rmass star∼ 2-3kpc. After this, a second phase comes about where the mass assembly rate is much slower and characterized by mergers involving angular momentum. On the other hand, mass elements identified at the diffuse hot coronae surrounding massive galaxies at z= 0 do not display a clear web-like morphology at any z. Diffuse gas is heated when FCRs go through contractive deformations. Most of this gas remains hot and with low density throughout the evolution. To shed light on the physical foundations of the behaviour revealed by our analyses (i.e. a two-phase formation process with different implications for diffuse or shocked mass elements), as well as on their possible observational implications, these patterns have been confronted with some generic properties of singular flows as described by the adhesion model (i.e. potential character of the velocity field, singular versus regular points, dressing, locality when a spectrum of perturbations is implemented). We have found that the common patterns the simulations show can be interpreted as a natural consequence of flow properties that, moreover, could explain different generic observational results from massive galaxies or their samples. We briefly discuss some of themThis work was partially supported by the DGES (Spain) through the grants AYA2009-12792-C03-02 and AYA2009-12792- C03-03 from the PNAyA, as well as by the regional Madrid V PRICIT programme through the ASTROMADRID network (CAM S2009/ESP-1496

The stellar spheroid, the disk, and the dynamics of the cosmic web

Astrophysical Journal Letters 800.2 (2015): L30 reproduced by permission of the AASModels of the advanced stages of gravitational instability predict that baryons that form the stellar populations of current galaxies at z = 0 displayed a web-like structure at high z, as part of the cosmic web (CW). We explore details of these predictions using cosmological hydrodynamical simulations. When the stellar populations of the spheroid and disk components of simulated late-type galaxies are traced back separately to high zs we found CW-like structures where spheroid progenitors are more evolved than disk progenitors. The distinction between the corresponding stellar populations, as driven by their specific angular momentum content j, can be explained in terms of the CW evolution, extended to two processes occurring at lower z. First, the spheroid progenitors strongly lose j at collapse, which contrasts with the insignificant j loss of the disk progenitors. The second is related to the lack of alignment, at assembly, between the spheroid-to-be material and the already settled proto-disk, in contrast to the alignment of disk-to-be material, in some cases resulting from circumgalactic, disk-induced gravitational torques. The different final outcomes of these low-z processes have their origins in the different initial conditions driven by the CW dynamicsThis work was partially supported by the MICINN and MINECO (Spain) through the grants AYA2009-12792-C03-02, AYA2009-12792-C03-03, and AYA2012-31101 from the PNAyA, as well as by the "Supercomputación y e-Ciencia" Consolider-Ingenio CSD2007-0050 project. A.O. was financially supported through a FPI contract from AYA2009-12792-C03-03 and C.B.B. through a contract from AYA2012-3110

On studying the interaction between different stent models and rabbit tracheal tissue: numerical, endoscopic and histological comparison

Stenting technique is employed worldwide for treating atherosclerotic vessel and tracheal stenosis. Both diseases can be treated by means of metallic stents which present advantages but are affected by the main problem of restenosis of the stented area. In this study we have built a rabbit trachea numerical model and we have analyzed it before and after insertion and opening of two types of commercial stent: a Zilver® FlexTM Stent and a WallStentTM. In experimental parallel work, two types of stent were implanted in 30 New Zealand rabbits divided in two groups of 10 animals corresponding to each stent type and a third group made up of 10 animals without stent. The tracheal wall response was assessed by means of computerized tomography by endoscopy, macroscopic findings and histopathological study 90 days after stent deployment. Three idealized trachea models, one model for each group, were created in order to perform the computational study. The animal model was used to validate the numerical findings and to attempt to find qualitative correlations between numerical and experimental results. Experimental findings such as inflammation, granuloma and abnormal tissue growth, assessed from histomorphometric analyses were compared with derived numerical parameters such as wall shear stress (WSS) and maximum principal stress. The direct comparison of these parameters and the biological response supports the hypothesis that WSS and tensile stresses may lead to a greater tracheal epithelium response within the stented region, with the latter seeming to have the dominant role. This study may be helpful for improving stent design and demonstrates the feasibility offered by in-silico investigated tracheal structural and fluid dynamics

Disk galaxies with broken luminosity profiles from cosmological simulations

We present SPH cosmological simulations of the formation of three disk galaxies with a detailed treatment of chemical evolution and cooling. The resulting galaxies have properties compatible with observations: relatively high disk-to-total ratios, thin stellar disks and good agreement with the Tully-Fisher and the luminosity-size relations. They present a break in the luminosity profile at 3.0 +- 0.5 disk scale lengths, while showing an exponential mass profile without any apparent breaks, in line with recent observational results. Since the stellar mass profile is exponential, only differences in the stellar populations can be the cause of the luminosity break. Although we find a cutoff for the star formation rate imposed by a density threshold in our star formation model, it does not coincide with the luminosity break and is located at 4.3 +- 0.4 disk scale lengths, with star formation going on between both radii. The color profiles and the age profiles are "U-shaped", with the minimum for both profiles located approximately at the break radius. The SFR to stellar mass ratio increases until the break, explaining the coincidence of the break with the minimum of the age profile. Beyond the break we find a steep decline in the gas density and, consequently, a decline in the SFR and redder colors. We show that most stars (64-78%) in the outer disk originate in the inner disk and afterwards migrate there. Such stellar migrations are likely the main origin of the U-shaped age profile and, therefore, of the luminosity break.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Accepted by ApJ

Low thermal conductivity in La-filled cobalt antimonide skutterudites with an inhomogeneous filling factor prepared under high-pressure conditions

La-filled skutterudites LaxCo4Sb12 (x : 0.25 and 0.5) have been synthesized and sintered in one step under high-pressure conditions at 3.5 GPa in a piston-cylinder hydrostatic press. The structural properties of the reaction products were characterized by synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction, clearly showing an uneven filling factor of the skutterudite phases, confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. The non-homogeneous distribution of La filling atoms is adequate to produce a significant decrease in lattice thermal conductivity, mainly due to strain field scattering of high-energy phonons. Furthermore, the lanthanum filler primarily acts as an Einstein-like vibrational mode having a strong impact on the phonon scattering. Extra-low thermal conductivity values of 2.39 W/mK and 1.30 W/mK are measured for La0.25Co4Sb12 and La0.5Co4Sb12 nominal compositions at 780 K, respectively. Besides this, lanthanum atoms have contributed to increase the charge carrier concentration in the samples. In the case of La0.25Co4Sb12, there is an enhancement of the power factor and an improvement of the thermoelectric properties

Periglacial environments and frozen ground in the central Pyrenean high mountain area: Ground thermal regime and distribution of landforms and processes

Producción CientíficaThe periglacial belt is located in the highest parts of temperate mountains. The balance between mean air and ground temperatures and the presence of water determine the effectiveness of periglacial processes related to permafrost, the active layer or seasonally frozen ground (SFG). This study combines thermal and geomorphological data obtained in four Pyrenean massifs (Infierno‐Argualas, Posets, Maladeta and Monte Perdido) to improve knowledge on the occurrence and distribution of frozen ground. The methodology used is based on the study of landforms as frozen ground indicators, mapping processes, ground temperature analysis, basal temperature of snow, thermal mapping and geomatic surveys on rock glaciers and protalus lobes. In the Pyrenean high mountain areas the lower limit of frozen ground is at ~2,650m a.s.l., possible permafrost appears above 2,650m a.s.l. on north‐ and south‐facing slopes, and probable permafrost is dominant above 2,900m a.s.l. Unfrozen ground with cold‐associated geomorphological processes reach 2,900m a.s.l. and unfrozen and frozen ground distribution points to a patchy pattern throughout the periglacial belt. The most widespread frozen grounds are SFG. The thermal data, mean annual ground temperature, cold season temperatures, bottom temperature snow measurements, freeze/thaw cycles and distribution of landforms permit the establishment of a periglacial land system divided into three main belts: infraperiglacial, middle periglacial and supraperiglacial. The large number of processes and landforms that are involved and their altitudinal and spatial organization make up a complex environment that determines the geoecological dynamics of high mountain areas.Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad - Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (projects CGL2015-68144-R / GL2017- 82216-R

Electron-phonon renormalization of the absorption edge of the cuprous halides

Compared to most tetrahedral semiconductors, the temperature dependence of the absorption edges of the cuprous halides (CuCl, CuBr, CuI) is very small. CuCl and CuBr show a small increase of the gap $E_0$ with increasing temperature, with a change in the slope of $E_0$ vs. $T$ at around 150 K: above this temperature, the variation of $E_0$ with $T$ becomes even smaller. This unusual behavior has been clarified for CuCl by measurements of the low temperature gap vs. the isotopic masses of both constituents, yielding an anomalous negative shift with increasing copper mass. Here we report the isotope effects of Cu and Br on the gap of CuBr, and that of Cu on the gap of CuI. The measured isotope effects allow us to understand the corresponding temperature dependences, which we also report, to our knowledge for the first time, in the case of CuI. These results enable us to develop a more quantitative understanding of the phenomena mentioned for the three halides, and to interpret other anomalies reported for the temperature dependence of the absorption gap in copper and silver chalcogenides; similarities to the behavior observed for the copper chalcopyrites are also pointed out.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.