40,464 research outputs found
On the role of physisorption states in molecular scattering: A semi-local density-functional theory study on O2/Ag(111)
We simulate the scattering of O from Ag(111) with classical dynamics
simulations performed on a six-dimensional potential energy surface calculated
within semi-local density-functional theory (DFT). The enigmatic experimental
trends that originally required the conjecture of two types of repulsive walls,
arising from a physisorption and chemisorption part of the interaction
potential, are fully reproduced. Given the inadequate description of the
physisorption properties in semi-local DFT, our work casts severe doubts on the
prevalent notion to use molecular scattering data as indirect evidence for the
existence of such states.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Coupling of non-crossing wave modes in a two-dimensional plasma crystal
We report an experimental observation of coupling of the transverse vertical
and longitudinal in-plane dust-lattice wave modes in a two-dimensional complex
plasma crystal in the absence of mode crossing. A new large diameter rf plasma
chamber was used to suspend the plasma crystal. The observations are confirmed
with molecular-dynamics simulations. The coupling manifests itself in traces of
the transverse vertical mode appearing in the measured longitudinal spectra and
vice versa. We calculate the expected ratio of the trace to the principal mode
with a theoretical analysis of the modes in a crystal with finite temperature
and find good agreement with the experiment and simulations.Comment: 4 figures, 5 pages, accepted for publication in PRL Nov 201
Harnack Inequality and Regularity for a Product of Symmetric Stable Process and Brownian Motion
In this paper, we consider a product of a symmetric stable process in
and a one-dimensional Brownian motion in . Then we
define a class of harmonic functions with respect to this product process. We
show that bounded non-negative harmonic functions in the upper-half space
satisfy Harnack inequality and prove that they are locally H\"older continuous.
We also argue a result on Littlewood-Paley functions which are obtained by the
-harmonic extension of an function.Comment: 23 page
Two-temperature coronal flow above a thin disk
We extended the disk corona model (Meyer & Meyer-Hofmeister 1994; Meyer, Liu,
& Meyer-Hofmeister 2000a) to the inner region of galactic nuclei by including
different temperatures in ions and electrons as well as Compton cooling. We
found that the mass evaporation rate and hence the fraction of accretion energy
released in the corona depend strongly on the rate of incoming mass flow from
outer edge of the disk, a larger rate leading to more Compton cooling, less
efficient evaporation and a weaker corona. We also found a strong dependence on
the viscosity, higher viscosity leading to an enhanced mass flow in the corona
and therefore more evaporation of gas from the disk below. If we take accretion
rates in units of the Eddington rate our results become independent on the mass
of the central black hole. The model predicts weaker contributions to the hard
X-rays for objects with higher accretion rate like narrow-line Seyfert 1
galaxies (NLS1s), in agreement with observations. For luminous active galactic
nuclei (AGN) strong Compton cooling in the innermost corona is so efficient
that a large amount of additional heating is required to maintain the corona
above the thin disk.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures. ApJ accepte
A Local One-Zone Model of MHD Turbulence in Dwarf Nova Disks
The evolution of the magnetorotational instability (MRI) during the
transition from outburst to quiescence in a dwarf nova disk is investigated
using three-dimensional MHD simulations. The shearing box approximation is
adopted for the analysis, so that the efficiency of angular momentum transport
is studied in a small local patch of the disk: this is usually referred as to a
one-zone model. To take account of the low ionization fraction of the disk, the
induction equation includes both ohmic dissipation and the Hall effect. We
induce a transition from outburst to quiescence by an instantaneous decrease of
the temperature. The evolution of the MRI during the transition is found to be
very sensitive to the temperature of the quiescent disk. As long as the
temperature is higher than a critical value of about 2000 K, MHD turbulence and
angular momentum transport is sustained by the MRI. However, MHD turbulence
dies away within an orbital time if the temperature falls below this critical
value. In this case, the stress drops off by more than 2 orders of magnitude,
and is dominated by the Reynolds stress associated with the remnant motions
from the outburst. The critical temperature depends slightly on the distance
from the central star and the local density of the disk.Comment: 20 pages, 2 tables, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Wavelets: mathematics and applications
The notion of wavelets is defined. It is briefly described {\it what} are
wavelets, {\it how} to use them, {\it when} we do need them, {\it why} they are
preferred and {\it where} they have been applied. Then one proceeds to the
multiresolution analysis and fast wavelet transform as a standard procedure for
dealing with discrete wavelets. It is shown which specific features of signals
(functions) can be revealed by this analysis, but can not be found by other
methods (e.g., by the Fourier expansion). Finally, some examples of practical
application are given (in particular, to analysis of multiparticle production}.
Rigorous proofs of mathematical statements are omitted, and the reader is
referred to the corresponding literature.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, Latex, Phys. Atom. Nuc
The Nature of the Giant Outbursts in the Bursting Pulsar GRO J 1744-28
We investigate the possible role of an accretion disk instability in
producing the giant outbursts seen in GRO J1744-28. Specifically, we study the
global, time dependent evolution of the Lightman-Eardley instability which can
develop near the inner edge of an accretion disk when the radiation pressure
becomes comparable to the gas pressure. Broadly speaking, our results are
compatible with earlier works by Taam \& Lin and by Lasota \& Pelat. The
uniqueness of GRO J1744-28 appears to be associated with the constraint that,
in order for outbursts to occur, the rate of accretion at the inner edge must
be within a narrow range just above the critical accretion rate at which
radiation pressure is beginning to become significant.Comment: 11 pages in .tex file, 4 Postscript figures, .tex file uses
aasms.sty; Ap. J. L. 1996, in pres
The Bulk Channel in Thermal Gauge Theories
We investigate the thermal correlator of the trace of the energy-momentum
tensor in the SU(3) Yang-Mills theory. Our goal is to constrain the spectral
function in that channel, whose low-frequency part determines the bulk
viscosity. We focus on the thermal modification of the spectral function,
. Using the operator-product expansion we give
the high-frequency behavior of this difference in terms of thermodynamic
potentials. We take into account the presence of an exact delta function
located at the origin, which had been missed in previous analyses. We then
combine the bulk sum rule and a Monte-Carlo evaluation of the Euclidean
correlator to determine the intervals of frequency where the spectral density
is enhanced or depleted by thermal effects. We find evidence that the thermal
spectral density is non-zero for frequencies below the scalar glueball mass
and is significantly depleted for .Comment: (1+25) pages, 6 figure
An Incoherent Dynamo in Accretion Disks
We use the mean-field dynamo equations to show that an incoherent alpha
effect in mirror-symmetric turbulence in a shearing flow can generate a large
scale, coherent magnetic field. We illustrate this effect with simulations of a
few simple systems. In accretion disks, this process can lead to axisymmetric
magnetic domains whose radial and vertical dimensions will be comparable to the
disk height. This process may be responsible for observations of dynamo
activity seen in simulations of dynamo-generated turbulence involving, for
example, the Balbus-Hawley instability. In this case the magnetic field
strength will saturate at times the ambient pressure in real
accretion disks. The resultant dimensionless viscosity will be of the same
order. In numerical simulations the azimuthal extent of the simulated annulus
should be substituted for . We compare the predictions of this model to
numerical simulations previously reported by Brandenburg et al. (1995). In a
radiation pressure dominated environment this estimate for viscosity should be
reduced by a factor of due to magnetic buoyancy.Comment: 23 pages, uses aaste
Dust detection by the wave instrument on STEREO: nanoparticles picked up by the solar wind?
The STEREO/WAVES instrument has detected a very large number of intense
voltage pulses. We suggest that these events are produced by impact ionisation
of nanoparticles striking the spacecraft at a velocity of the order of
magnitude of the solar wind speed. Nanoparticles, which are half-way between
micron-sized dust and atomic ions, have such a large charge-to-mass ratio that
the electric field induced by the solar wind magnetic field accelerates them
very efficiently. Since the voltage produced by dust impacts increases very
fast with speed, such nanoparticles produce signals as high as do much larger
grains of smaller speeds. The flux of 10-nm radius grains inferred in this way
is compatible with the interplanetary dust flux model. The present results may
represent the first detection of fast nanoparticles in interplanetary space
near Earth orbit.Comment: In press in Solar Physics, 13 pages, 5 figure
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