2,952 research outputs found
Xeff analysis method optimization to enhance IACTs performances
The seek of high precision analyses in -ray astronomy leads to the
implementation of multivariate combination, benefiting from several
reconstruction methods. Such analysis, called , was developed for the
H.E.S.S. data using three shower reconstruction methods. This paper presents
the improvement granted to this analysis by refining the distribution
calculation of discriminant variables, considering observation conditions, and
adding new variables in the combination. The efficiency of the
analysis is presented using simulations and real data. A comparison with the
standard analysis (model++), for a typical set of sources, shows a significant
gain in sensitivity.Comment: Contribution to the Proceedings of the 34th International Cosmic Ray
Conference (ICRC 2015), The Hague, The Netherland
Contamination of stellar-kinematic samples and uncertainty about dark matter annihilation profiles in ultrafaint dwarf galaxies: the example of Segue I
The expected gamma-ray flux coming from dark matter annihilation in dwarf
spheroidal (dSph) galaxies depends on the so-called `J-factor', the integral of
the squared dark matter density along the line-of-sight. We examine the degree
to which estimates of J are sensitive to contamination (by foreground Milky Way
stars and stellar streams) of the stellar-kinematic samples that are used to
infer dark matter densities in `ultrafaint' dSphs. Applying standard kinematic
analyses to hundreds of mock data sets that include varying levels of
contamination, we find that mis-classified contaminants can cause J-factors to
be overestimated by orders of magnitude. Stellar-kinematic data sets for which
we obtain such biased estimates tend 1) to include relatively large fractions
of stars with ambiguous membership status, and 2) to give estimates for J that
are sensitive to specific choices about how to weight and/or to exclude stars
with ambiguous status. Comparing publicly-available stellar-kinematic samples
for the nearby dSphs Reticulum~II and Segue~I, we find that only the latter
displays both of these characteristics. Estimates of Segue~I's J-factor should
therefore be regarded with a larger degree of caution when planning and
interpreting gamma-ray observations. Moreover, robust interpretations regarding
dark matter annihilation in dSph galaxies in general will require explicit
examination of how interlopers might affect the inferred dark matter density
profile.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures. New appendix A (joint light/dark matter
likelihood), results unchanged. Match accepted MNRAS versio
Spherical Jeans analysis for dark matter indirect detection in dwarf spheroidal galaxies - Impact of physical parameters and triaxiality
Dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies are among the most promising targets for the
indirect detection of dark matter (DM) from annihilation and/or decay products.
Empirical estimates of their DM content - and hence the magnitudes of expected
signals - rely on inferences from stellar-kinematic data. However, various
kinematic analyses can give different results and it is not obvious which are
most reliable. Using extensive sets of mock data of various sizes (mimicking
'ultra-faint' and 'classical' dSphs) and an MCMC engine, here we investigate
biases, uncertainties, and limitations of analyses based on parametric
solutions to the spherical Jeans equation. For a variety of functional forms
for the tracer and DM density profiles, as well as the orbital anisotropy
profile, we examine reliability of estimates for the astrophysical J- and
D-factors for annihilation and decay, respectively. For large (N > 1000)
stellar-kinematic samples typical of 'classical' dSphs, errors tend to be
dominated by systematics, which can be reduced through the use of sufficiently
general and flexible functional forms. For small (N < 100) samples typical of
'ultrafaints', statistical uncertainties tend to dominate systematic errors and
flexible models are less necessary. We define an optimal strategy that would
mitigate sensitivity to priors and other aspects of analyses based on the
spherical Jeans equation. We also find that the assumption of spherical
symmetry can bias estimates of J (with the 95% credibility intervals not
encompassing the true J-factor) when the object is mildly triaxial (axis ratios
b/a = 0.8, c/a = 0.6). A concluding table summarises the typical error budget
and biases for the different sample sizes considered.Comment: 21 pages, 20 figures. Minor changes (several clarifications): match
the MNRAS accepted versio
Neutron monitors and muon detectors for solar modulation studies: Interstellar flux, yield function, and assessment of critical parameters in count rate calculations
Particles count rates at given Earth location and altitude result from the
convolution of (i) the interstellar (IS) cosmic-ray fluxes outside the solar
cavity, (ii) the time-dependent modulation of IS into Top-of-Atmosphere (TOA)
fluxes, (iii) the rigidity cut-off (or geomagnetic transmission function) and
grammage at the counter location, (iv) the atmosphere response to incoming TOA
cosmic rays (shower development), and (v) the counter response to the various
particles/energies in the shower. Count rates from neutron monitors or muon
counters are therefore a proxy to solar activity. In this paper, we review all
ingredients, discuss how their uncertainties impact count rate calculations,
and how they translate into variation/uncertainties on the level of solar
modulation (in the simple Force-Field approximation). The main
uncertainty for neutron monitors is related to the yield function. However,
many other effects have a significant impact, at the 5-10\% level on
values. We find no clear ranking of the dominant effects, as some depend on the
station position and/or the weather and/or the season. An abacus to translate
any variation of count rates (for neutron and detectors) to a variation
of the solar modulation is provided.Comment: 28 pages, 16 figures, 9 tables, match accepted version in AdSR (minor
corrections, Dorman (1974,2004,2009) reference textbooks added
Neutron monitors and muon detectors for solar modulation studies: 2. time series
The level of solar modulation at different times (related to the solar
activity) is a central question of solar and galactic cosmic-ray physics. In
the first paper of this series, we have established a correspondence between
the uncertainties on ground-based detectors count rates and the parameter
(modulation level in the force-field approximation) reconstructed from
these count rates. In this second paper, we detail a procedure to obtain a
reference time series from neutron monitor data. We show that we can
have an unbiased and accurate reconstruction (). We also discuss the potential of Bonner spheres spectrometers and muon
detectors to provide time series. Two by-products of this calculation
are updated values for the cosmic-ray database and a web interface to
retrieve and plot from the 50's to today
(\url{http://lpsc.in2p3.fr/crdb}).Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables. AdSR, in press. Web interface to get
modulation parameter phi(t): new tab in http://lpsc.in2p3.fr/crd
Variation of the X-ray non-thermal emission in the Arches cloud
The origin of the iron fluorescent line at 6.4 keV from an extended region
surrounding the Arches cluster is debated and the non-variability of this
emission up to 2009 has favored the low-energy cosmic-ray origin over a
possible irradiation by hard X-rays. By probing the variability of the Arches
cloud non-thermal emission in the most recent years, including a deep
observation in 2012, we intend to discriminate between the two competing
scenarios. We perform a spectral fit of XMM-Newton observations collected from
2000 to 2013 in order to build the Arches cloud lightcurve corresponding to
both the neutral Fe Kalpha line and the X-ray continuum emissions. We reveal a
30% flux drop in 2012, detected with more than 4 sigma significance for both
components. This implies that a large fraction of the studied non-thermal
emission is due to the reflection of an X-ray transient source.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS Letter
Constraints on WIMP Dark Matter from the High Energy PAMELA data
A new calculation of the ratio in cosmic rays is compared to the
recent PAMELA data. The good match up to 100 GeV allows to set constraints on
exotic contributions from thermal WIMP dark matter candidates. We derive
stringent limits on possible enhancements of the WIMP \pbar flux: a =100 GeV (1 TeV) signal cannot be increased by more than a factor 6 (40)
without overrunning PAMELA data. Annihilation through the channel is
also inspected and cross-checked with data. This scenario is
strongly disfavored as it fails to simultaneously reproduce positron and
antiproton measurements.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, the bibliography has been updated, minor
modifications have been made in the tex
Sensitivity studies for the cubic-kilometre deep-sea neutrino telescope KM3NeT
The observation of high-energy neutrinos from astrophysical sources would
substantially improve our knowledge and understanding of the non-thermal
processes in these sources, and would in particular pinpoint the accelerators
of cosmic rays. The sensitivity of different design options for a future
cubic-kilometre scale neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea is
investigated for generic point sources and in particular for some of the
galactic objects from which TeV gamma emmission has recently been observed by
the H.E.S.S. atmospheric Cherenkov telescope. The effect of atmospheric
background on the source detection probabilities has been taken into account
through full simulation. The estimated event rates are compared to previous
results and limits from present neutrino telescopes.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, contribution of the 30th International Cosmic Ray
conferenc
Thermodynamic insight into stimuli-responsive behaviour of soft porous crystals
Knowledge of the thermodynamic potential in terms of the independent variables allows to characterize the macroscopic state of the system. However, in practice, it is difficult to access this potential experimentally due to irreversible transitions that occur between equilibrium states. A showcase example of sudden transitions between (meta) stable equilibrium states is observed for soft porous crystals possessing a network with long-range structural order, which can transform between various states upon external stimuli such as pressure, temperature and guest adsorption. Such phase transformations are typically characterized by large volume changes and may be followed experimentally by monitoring the volume change in terms of certain external triggers. Herein, we present a generalized thermodynamic approach to construct the underlying Helmholtz free energy as a function of the state variables that governs the observed behaviour based on microscopic simulations. This concept allows a unique identification of the conditions under which a material becomes flexible
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