2,467 research outputs found
Structure and Nonlinear Development of Edge Localized Magnetohydrodynamic Instabilities on the ASDEX Upgrade Tokamak
Vibrational spectroscopic force field studies of dimethyl sulfoxide and hexakis(dimethyl sulfoxide)scandium(III) iodide, and crystal and solution structure of the hexakis(dimethyl sulfoxide)scandium(III) ion
Hexakis(dimethyl sulfoxide) scandium(III) iodide, [Sc(OS(CH3)(2))(6)]I-3 contains centrosymmetric hexasolvated scandium(III) ions with an Sc-O bond distance of 2.069(3) Angstrom. EXAFS spectra yield a mean Sc-O bond distance of 2.09(1) Angstrom for solvated scandium(III) ions in dimethyl sulfoxide solution, consistent with six-coordination. Raman and infrared absorption spectra have been recorded, also of the deuterated compound, and analysed by means of normal coordinate methods, together with spectra of dimethyl sulfoxide. The effects on the vibrational spectra of the weak intermolecular C-H...O interactions and of the dipole dipole interactions in liquid dimethyl sulfoxide have been evaluated, in particular for the S O stretching mode. The strong Raman band at 1043.6 cm(-1) and the intense IR absorption at 1062.6 cm(-1) have been assigned as the S-O stretching frequencies of the dominating species in liquid dimethyl sulfoxide, evaluated as centrosymmetric dimers with antiparallel polar S-O groups. The shifts of vibrational frequencies and force constants for coordinated dimethyl sulfoxide ligands in hexasolvated trivalent metal ion complexes are discussed. Hexasolvated scandium( III) ions are found in dimethyl sulfoxide solution and in [Sc(OSMe2)(6)]I-3. The iodide ion dipole attraction shifts the methyl group C H stretching frequency for (S-)C-H...I- more than for the intermolecular (S-)C-H...O interactions in liquid dimethyl sulfoxide
Mapping the Recent Star Formation History of the Disk of M51
Using data acquired as part of a unique Hubble Heritage imaging program of
broadband colors of the interacting spiral system M51/NGC 5195, we have
conducted a photometric study of the stellar associations across the entire
disk of the galaxy in order to assess trends in size, luminosity, and local
environment associated with recent star formation activity in the system.
Starting with a sample of over 900 potential associations, we have produced
color-magnitude and color-color diagrams for the 120 associations that were
deemed to be single-aged. It has been found that main sequence turnoffs are not
evident for the vast majority of the stellar associations in our set,
potentially due to the overlap of isochronal tracks at the high mass end of the
main sequence, and the limited depth of our images at the distance of M51. In
order to obtain ages for more of our sample, we produced model spectral energy
distributions (SEDs) to fit to the data from the GALEXEV simple stellar
population (SSP) models of Bruzual and Charlot (2003). These SEDs can be used
to determine age, size, mass, metallicity, and dust content of each association
via a simple chi-squared minimization to each association's B, V, and I-band
fluxes. The derived association properties are mapped as a function of
location, and recent trends in star formation history of the galaxy are
explored in light of these results. This work is the first phase in a program
that will compare these stellar systems with their environments using
ultraviolet data from GALEX and infrared data from Spitzer, and ultimately we
plan to apply the same stellar population mapping methodology to other nearby
face-on spiral galaxies.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 1 table. Accepted to The Astronomical Journa
Clues about the scarcity of stripped-envelope stars from the evolutionary state of the sdO+Be binary system phi Persei
Stripped-envelope stars (SESs) form in binary systems after losing mass
through Roche-lobe overflow. They bear astrophysical significance as sources of
UV and ionizing radiation in older stellar populations and, if sufficiently
massive, as stripped supernova progenitors. Binary evolutionary models predict
them to be common, but only a handful of subdwarfs (i.e., SESs) with B-type
companions are known. This could be the result of observational biases
hindering detection, or an incorrect understanding of binary evolution. We
reanalyze the well-studied post-interaction binary phi Persei. Recently, new
data improved the orbital solution of the system, which contains a ~1.2 Msun
SES and a rapidly rotating ~9.6 Msun Be star. We compare with an extensive grid
of evolutionary models using a Bayesian approach and find initial masses of the
progenitor of 7.2+/-0.4 Msun for the SES and 3.8+/-0.4 Msun for the Be star.
The system must have evolved through near-conservative mass transfer. These
findings are consistent with earlier studies. The age we obtain, 57+/-9 Myr, is
in excellent agreement with the age of the alpha Persei cluster. We note that
neither star was initially massive enough to produce a core-collapse supernova,
but mass exchange pushed the Be star above the mass threshold. We find that the
subdwarf is overluminous for its mass by almost an order of magnitude, compared
to the expectations for a helium core burning star. We can only reconcile this
if the subdwarf is in a late phase of helium shell burning, which lasts only
2-3% of the total lifetime as a subdwarf. This could imply that up to ~50 less
evolved, dimmer subdwarfs exist for each system similar to phi Persei. Our
findings can be interpreted as a strong indication that a substantial
population of SESs indeed exists, but has so far evaded detection because of
observational biases and lack of large-scale systematic searches.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Interaction effects on dynamic correlations in non-condensed Bose gases
We consider dynamic, i.e., frequency-dependent, correlations in non-condensed
ultracold atomic Bose gases. In particular, we consider the single-particle
correlation function and its power spectrum. We compute this power spectrum for
a one-component Bose gas, and show how it depends on the interatomic
interactions that lead to a finite single-particle relaxation time. As another
example, we consider the power spectrum of spin-current fluctuations for a
two-component Bose gas and show how it is determined by the spin-transport
relaxation time.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
Carbon Abundances in Starburst Galaxies of the Local Universe
The cosmological origin of carbon, the fourth most abundant element in the
Universe, is not well known and matter of heavy debate. We investigate the
behavior of C/O to O/H in order to constrain the production mechanism of
carbon. We measured emission-line intensities in a spectral range from 1600 to
10000 \AA\ on Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) long-slit spectra of
18 starburst galaxies in the local Universe. We determined chemical abundances
through traditional nebular analysis and we used a Markov Chain Monte Carlo
(MCMC) method to determine where our carbon and oxygen abundances lie in the
parameter space. We conclude that our C and O abundance measurements are
sensible. We analyzed the behavior of our sample in the [C/O] vs. [O/H] diagram
with respect to other objects such as DLAs, neutral ISM measurements, and disk
and halo stars, finding that each type of object seems to be located in a
specific region of the diagram. Our sample shows a steeper C/O vs. O/H slope
with respect to other samples, suggesting that massive stars contribute more to
the production of C than N at higher metallicities, only for objects where
massive stars are numerous; otherwise intermediate-mass stars dominate the C
and N production.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap
The rotation rates of massive stars: the role of binary interaction through tides, mass transfer and mergers
Rotation is thought to be a major factor in the evolution of massive stars,
especially at low metallicity, with consequences for their chemical yields,
ionizing flux and final fate. Determining the natal rotation-rate distribution
of stars is of high priority given its importance as a constraint on theories
of massive star formation and as input for models of stellar populations in the
local Universe and at high redshift. Recently, it has become clear that the
majority of massive stars interact with a binary companion before they die. We
investigate how this affects the distribution of rotation rates.
For this purpose, we simulate a massive binary-star population typical for
our Galaxy assuming continuous star formation. We find that, because of binary
interaction, 20^+5_-10% of all massive main-sequence stars have projected
rotational velocities in excess of 200km/s. We evaluate the effect of uncertain
input distributions and physical processes and conclude that the main
uncertainties are the mass transfer efficiency and the possible effect of
magnetic braking, especially if magnetic fields are generated or amplified
during mass accretion and stellar mergers.
The fraction of rapid rotators we derive is similar to that observed. If
indeed mass transfer and mergers are the main cause for rapid rotation in
massive stars, little room remains for rapidly rotating stars that are born
single. This implies that spin down during star formation is even more
efficient than previously thought. In addition, this raises questions about the
interpretation of the surface abundances of rapidly rotating stars as evidence
for rotational mixing. Furthermore, our results allow for the possibility that
all early-type Be stars result from binary interactions and suggest that
evidence for rotation in explosions, such as long gamma-ray bursts, points to a
binary origin.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ., no changes
with v1 apart from fixed typos/ref
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