194 research outputs found
Chandra Observations of SNR 1987A
We report on the results of our monitoring program of the X-ray remnant of
supernova 1987A with the {\it Chandra X-Ray Observatory}. We have performed two
new observations during the {\it Chandra} Cycle 3 period, bringing the total to
six monitoring observations over the past three years. These six observations
provide a detailed time history of the birth of a new supernova remnant in
X-rays. The high angular resolution images indicate that soft X-ray bright
knots are associated with the optical spots, while hard X-ray features are
better correlated with radio images. We interpret this in terms of a model in
which fast shocks propagating through the circumstellar HII region produce the
hard X-ray and radio emission, while the soft X-ray and optical emission arise
in slower shocks entering into dense knots in the circumstellar inner ring. New
observations begin to show changes in the morphology that may herald a new
stage in the development of this incipient supernova remnant. The observed
X-ray fluxes increase by nearly a factor of three over the last 30 months. The
X-ray remnant is expanding at a velocity of 5000 km s.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, 2 color figures, To appear in AdSpR (Proceedings
34th COSPAR Synposium E1.4 "High Energy Studies of Supernova Remnants and
Neutron stars" For high resolution color figures contact [email protected]
Semilinear mixed problems on Hilbert complexes and their numerical approximation
Arnold, Falk, and Winther recently showed [Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 47 (2010),
281-354] that linear, mixed variational problems, and their numerical
approximation by mixed finite element methods, can be studied using the
powerful, abstract language of Hilbert complexes. In another recent article
[arXiv:1005.4455], we extended the Arnold-Falk-Winther framework by analyzing
variational crimes (a la Strang) on Hilbert complexes. In particular, this gave
a treatment of finite element exterior calculus on manifolds, generalizing
techniques from surface finite element methods and recovering earlier a priori
estimates for the Laplace-Beltrami operator on 2- and 3-surfaces, due to Dziuk
[Lecture Notes in Math., vol. 1357 (1988), 142-155] and later Demlow [SIAM J.
Numer. Anal., 47 (2009), 805-827], as special cases. In the present article, we
extend the Hilbert complex framework in a second distinct direction: to the
study of semilinear mixed problems. We do this, first, by introducing an
operator-theoretic reformulation of the linear mixed problem, so that the
semilinear problem can be expressed as an abstract Hammerstein equation. This
allows us to obtain, for semilinear problems, a priori solution estimates and
error estimates that reduce to the Arnold-Falk-Winther results in the linear
case. We also consider the impact of variational crimes, extending the results
of our previous article to these semilinear problems. As an immediate
application, this new framework allows for mixed finite element methods to be
applied to semilinear problems on surfaces.Comment: 22 pages; v2: major revision, particularly sharpening of error
estimates in Section
Baryogenesis in the Two-Higgs Doublet Model
We consider the generation of the baryon asymmetry in the two-Higgs doublet
model. Investigating the thermal potential in the presence of CP violation, as
relevant for baryogenesis, we find a strong first-order phase transition if the
extra Higgs states are heavier than about 300 GeV. The mass of the lightest
Higgs can be as large as about 200 GeV. We compute the bubble wall properties,
including the profile of the relative complex phase between the two Higgs vevs.
The baryon asymmetry is generated by top transport, which we treat in the WKB
approximation. We find a baryon asymmetry consistent with observations. The
neutron electric dipole moment is predicted to be larger than about 10^{-27}ecm
and can reach the current experimental bound. Low values of tan\beta are
favored.Comment: 25 pages, 7 figure
Improving water productivity, reducing poverty and enhancing equity in mixed crop-livestock systems in the Indo-Gangetic Basin
The âImproving water productivity, reducing poverty and enhancing equity in mixed crop-livestock systems in the Indo-Gangetic Basinâ
was designed and conducted by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI),
in partnership with international and national partners, to address the relative neglect of
livestock water needs of crop-livestock farming systems.
The primary objective of this project was to optimize the productive use of water in the
crop-livestock farming systems of semi-arid areas to enhance livelihoods, reduce
poverty, contribute to gender equity, and protect the environment. This was addressed
through an integrated approach led by a multi-disciplinary team across three States of
the Ganga Basin
Cross-Correlation of the Cosmic Microwave Background with the 2MASS Galaxy Survey: Signatures of Dark Energy, Hot Gas, and Point Sources
We cross-correlate the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) temperature
anisotropies observed by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) with
the projected distribution of extended sources in the Two Micron All Sky Survey
(2MASS). By modelling the theoretical expectation for this signal, we extract
the signatures of dark energy (Integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect;ISW), hot gas
(thermal Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect;thermal SZ), and microwave point sources in
the cross-correlation. Our strongest signal is the thermal SZ, at the 3.1-3.7
\sigma level, which is consistent with the theoretical prediction based on
observations of X-ray clusters. We also see the ISW signal at the 2.5 \sigma
level, which is consistent with the expected value for the concordance LCDM
cosmology, and is an independent signature of the presence of dark energy in
the universe. Finally, we see the signature of microwave point sources at the
2.7 \sigma level.Comment: 35 pages (preprint format), 8 figures. In addition to minor revisions
based on referee's comments, after correcting for a bug in the code, the SZ
detection is consistent with the X-ray observations. Accepeted for
publication in Physical Review
Bubble collisions and measures of the multiverse
To compute the spectrum of bubble collisions seen by an observer in an
eternally-inflating multiverse, one must choose a measure over the diverging
spacetime volume, including choosing an "initial" hypersurface below which
there are no bubble nucleations. Previous calculations focused on the case
where the initial hypersurface is pushed arbitrarily deep into the past.
Interestingly, the observed spectrum depends on the orientation of the initial
hypersurface, however one's ability observe the effect rapidly decreases with
the ratio of inflationary Hubble rates inside and outside one's bubble. We
investigate whether this conclusion might be avoided under more general
circumstances, in particular placing the observer's bubble near the initial
hypersurface. We find that it is not. As a point of reference, a substantial
appendix reviews relevant aspects of the measure problem of eternal inflation.Comment: 24 pages, two figures, plus 16-page appendix with one figure; v2:
minor improvements and clarifications, conclusions unchanged (version to
appear in JCAP
Quantum Inequalities for the Electromagnetic Field
A quantum inequality for the quantized electromagnetic field is developed for
observers in static curved spacetimes. The quantum inequality derived is a
generalized expression given by a mode function expansion of the four-vector
potential, and the sampling function used to weight the energy integrals is
left arbitrary up to the constraints that it be a positive, continuous function
of unit area and that it decays at infinity. Examples of the quantum inequality
are developed for Minkowski spacetime, Rindler spacetime and the Einstein
closed universe.Comment: 19 pages, 1 table and 1 figure. RevTex styl
Baryogenesis, Electric Dipole Moments and Dark Matter in the MSSM
We study the implications for electroweak baryogenesis (EWB) within the
minimal supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) of present and future searches for
the permanent electric dipole moment (EDM) of the electron, for neutralino dark
matter, and for supersymmetric particles at high energy colliders. We show that
there exist regions of the MSSM parameter space that are consistent with both
present two-loop EDM limits and the relic density and that allow for successful
EWB through resonant chargino and neutralino processes at the electroweak phase
transition. We also show that under certain conditions the lightest neutralino
may be simultaneously responsible for both the baryon asymmetry and relic
density. We give present constraints on chargino/neutralino-induced EWB implied
by the flux of energetic neutrinos from the Sun, the prospective constraints
from future neutrino telescopes and ton-sized direct detection experiments, and
the possible signatures at the Large Hadron Collider and International Linear
Collider.Comment: 32 pages, 10 figures; version to appear on JHE
Metastable Vacua in Flux Compactifications and Their Phenomenology
In the context of flux compactifications, metastable vacua with a small
positive cosmological constant are obtained by combining a sector where
supersymmetry is broken dynamically with the sector responsible for moduli
stabilization, which is known as the F-uplifting. We analyze this procedure in
a model-independent way and study phenomenological properties of the resulting
vacua.Comment: 21 pages, 19 figures; v2: matches version published in JHE
Unitarity bounds on low scale quantum gravity
We study the unitarity of models with low scale quantum gravity both in four
dimensions and in models with a large extra-dimensional volume. We find that
models with low scale quantum gravity have problems with unitarity below the
scale at which gravity becomes strong. An important consequence of our work is
that their first signal at the Large Hadron Collider would not be of a
gravitational nature such as graviton emission or small black holes, but rather
linked to the mechanism which fixes the unitarity problem. We also study models
with scalar fields with non minimal couplings to the Ricci scalar. We consider
the strength of gravity in these models and study the consequences for
inflation models with non-minimally coupled scalar fields. We show that a
single scalar field with a large non-minimal coupling can lower the Planck mass
in the TeV region. In that model, it is possible to lower the scale at which
gravity becomes strong down to 14 TeV without violating unitarity below that
scale.Comment: 15 page
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