Abundances of massive stars: some recent developments

Thanks to their usefulness in various fields of astrophysics (e.g. mixing processes in stars, chemical evolution of galaxies), the last few years have witnessed a large increase in the amount of abundance data for early-type stars. Two intriguing results emerging since the last reviews on this topic will be discussed: (a) nearby OB stars exhibit metal abundances generally lower than the solar/meteoritic estimates; (b) evolutionary models of single objects including rotation are largely unsuccessful in explaining the CNO properties of stars in the Galaxy and in the Magellanic clouds.Comment: Invited review presented at 'Evolution and Pulsation of Massive Stars on the Main Sequence and Close to it' (Liege, July 2008). To appear in Communications in Asteroseismology (8 pages and 7 colour figures

Are magnetic OB stars more prone to mixing? Still an unsettled issue

We review our knowledge of the mixing properties of magnetic OB stars and discuss whether the observational data presently available support, as predicted by some theoretical models, the idea that magnetic phenomena favour the transport of the chemical elements. A (likely statistical) relationship between enhanced mixing and the existence of a field has been emerging over the last few years. As discussed in this contribution, however, a clear answer to this question is presently hampered by the lack of large and well-defined samples of magnetic and non-magnetic stars.Comment: 5 pages, one colour figure. In 'Four decades of research on massive stars: a scientific meeting in honour of A.F.J. Moffat', ASP Conf. Series, in pres

Mixing in two magnetic OB stars discovered by the MiMeS collaboration

Recent observational and theoretical arguments suggest that magnetic OB stars may suffer more mixing than their non magnetic analogs. We present the results of an NLTE abundance study revealing a lack of CN-cycled material at the surface of two magnetic stars discovered by the MiMeS project (NGC2244 #201 and HD 57682). The existence of a strong magnetic field is therefore not a sufficient condition for deep mixing in main-sequence OB stars.Comment: 2 pages, no figures. To appear in proceedings of IAUS272 'Active OB Stars: Structure, Evolution, Mass Loss and Critical Limits

Thin film module electrical configuration versus electrical performance

The as made and degraded states of thin film silicon (TFS) based modules have been modelled in terms of series resistance losses. The origins of these losses lie in interface and bulk regions of the devices. When modules degrade under light exposure, increases occur in both the interface and bulk components of the loss based on series resistance. Actual module performance can thus be simulated by use of only one unknown parameter, shunt losses. Use of the simulation to optimize module design indicates that the current design of 25 cells per linear foot is near optimum. Degradation performance suggests a shift to approx. 35 cells to effect maximum output for applications not constrained to 12 volts. Earlier studies of energy based performance and tandem structures should be updated to include stability factors, not only the initial loss factor tested here, but also appropriate annealing factors

Condensation and Metastability in the 2D Potts Model

For the first order transition of the Ising model below $T_c$, Isakov has proven that the free energy possesses an essential singularity in the applied field. Such a singularity in the control parameter, anticipated by condensation theory, is believed to be a generic feature of first order transitions, but too weak to be observable. We study these issues for the temperature driven transition of the $q$ states 2D Potts model at $q>q_c=4$. Adapting the droplet model to this case, we relate its parameters to the critical properties at $q_c$ and confront the free energy to the many informations brought by previous works. The essential singularity predicted at the transition temperature leads to observable effects in numerical data. On a finite lattice, a metastability domain of temperatures is identified, which shrinks to zero in the thermodynamical limit. ~Comment: 32 pages, 6 figures, Late