382 research outputs found
Approaches to Three-Dimensional Transformation Optical Media Using Quasi-Conformal Coordinate Transformations
We introduce an approach to the design of three-dimensional transformation
optical (TO) media based on a generalized quasi-conformal mapping approach. The
generalized quasi-conformal TO (QCTO) approach enables the design of media that
can, in principle, be broadband and low-loss, while controlling the propagation
of waves with arbitrary angles of incidence and polarization. We illustrate the
method in the design of a three-dimensional "carpet" ground plane cloak and of
a flattened Luneburg lens. Ray-trace studies provide a confirmation of the
performance of the QCTO media, while also revealing the limited performance of
index-only versions of these devices
Design, theory, and measurement of a polarization insensitive absorber for terahertz imaging
We present the theory, design, and realization of a polarization-insensitive
metamaterial absorber for terahertz frequencies. We derive
geometrical-independent conditions for effective medium absorbers in general,
and for resonant metamaterials specically. Our fabricated design reaches and
absorptivity of 78% at 1.145 ThzComment: 6 Pages, 5 figures; figures update
A Perfect Metamaterial Absorber
We present the design for an absorbing metamaterial element with near unity
absorbance. Our structure consists of two metamaterial resonators that couple
separately to electric and magnetic fields so as to absorb all incident
radiation within a single unit cell layer. We fabricate, characterize, and
analyze a metamaterial absorber with a slightly lower predicted absorbance of
96%. This achieves a simulated full width at half maximum (FWHM) absorbance of
4% thus making this material ideal for imaging purposes. Unlike conventional
absorbers, our metamaterial consists solely of metallic elements. The
underlying substrate can therefore be chosen independently of the substrate's
absorptive qualities and optimized for other parameters of interest. We detail
the design and simulation process that led to our metamaterial, and our
experiments demonstrate a peak absorbance greater than 88% at 11.5 GHz
Cumulants as non-Gaussian qualifiers
We discuss the requirements of good statistics for quantifying
non-Gaussianity in the Cosmic Microwave Background. The importance of
rotational invariance and statistical independence is stressed, but we show
that these are sometimes incompatible. It is shown that the first of these
requirements prefers a real space (or wavelet) formulation, whereas the latter
favours quantities defined in Fourier space. Bearing this in mind we decide to
be eclectic and define two new sets of statistics to quantify the level of
non-Gaussianity. Both sets make use of the concept of cumulants of a
distribution. However, one set is defined in real space, with reference to the
wavelet transform, whereas the other is defined in Fourier space. We derive a
series of properties concerning these statistics for a Gaussian random field
and show how one can relate these quantities to the higher order moments of
temperature maps. Although our frameworks lead to an infinite hierarchy of
quantities we show how cosmic variance and experimental constraints give a
natural truncation of this hierarchy. We then focus on the real space
statistics and analyse the non-Gaussian signal generated by points sources
obscured by large scale Gaussian fluctuations. We conclude by discussing the
practical implementations of these techniques
Ultra-broadband Light Absorption by a Sawtooth Anisotropic Metamaterial Slab
We present an ultra broadband thin-film infrared absorber made of saw-toothed
anisotropic metamaterial. Absorbtivity of higher than 95% at normal incidence
is supported in a wide range of frequencies, where the full absorption width at
half maximum is about 86%. Such property is retained well at a very wide range
of incident angles too. Light of shorter wavelengths are harvested at upper
parts of the sawteeth of smaller widths, while light of longer wavelengths are
trapped at lower parts of larger tooth widths. This phenomenon is explained by
the slowlight modes in anisotropic metamaterial waveguide. Our study can be
applied in the field of designing photovoltaic devices and thermal emitters.Comment: 12 pages, 4 picture
The Clustering of Colour Selected Galaxies
We present measurements of the angular correlation function of galaxies
selected from a B_J=23.5 multicolour survey of two 5 degree by 5 degree fields
located at high galactic latitudes. The galaxy catalogue of approximately
400,000 galaxies is comparable in size to catalogues used to determine the
galaxy correlation function at low-redshift. Measurements of the z=0.4
correlation function at large angular scales show no evidence for a break from
a power law though our results are not inconsistent with a break at >15 Mpc.
Despite the large fields-of-view, there are large discrepancies between the
measurements of the correlation function in each field, possibly due to dwarf
galaxies within z=0.11 clusters near the South Galactic Pole.
Colour selection is used to study the clustering of galaxies z=0 to z=0.4.
The galaxy correlation function is found to strongly depend on colour with red
galaxies more strongly clustered than blue galaxies by a factor of 5 at small
scales. The slope of the correlation function is also found to vary with colour
with gamma=1.8 for red galaxies while gamma=1.5 for blue galaxies. The
clustering of red galaxies is consistently strong over the entire magnitude
range studied though there are large variations between the two fields. The
clustering of blue galaxies is extremely weak over the observed magnitude range
with clustering consistent with r_0=2 Mpc. This is weaker than the clustering
of late-type galaxies in the local Universe and suggests galaxy clustering is
more strongly correlated with colour than morphology. This may also be the
first detection of a substantial low redshift galaxy population with clustering
properties similar to faint blue galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. 13 pages, 20 figure
Large-scale periodicity in the distribution of QSO absorption-line systems
The spatial-temporal distribution of absorption-line systems (ALSs) observed
in QSO spectra within the cosmological redshift interval z = 0.0--4.3 is
investigated on the base of our updated catalog of absorption systems. We
consider so called metallic systems including basically lines of heavy
elements. The sample of the data displays regular variations (with amplitudes ~
15 -- 20%) in the z-distribution of ALSs as well as in the eta-distribution,
where eta is a dimensionless line-of-sight comoving distance, relatively to
smoother dependences. The eta-distribution reveals the periodicity with period
Delta eta = 0.036 +/- 0.002, which corresponds to a spatial characteristic
scale (108 +/- 6) h(-1) Mpc or (alternatively) a temporal interval (350 +/- 20)
h(-1) Myr for the LambdaCDM cosmological model. We discuss a possibility of a
spatial interpretation of the results treating the pattern obtained as a trace
of an order imprinted on the galaxy clustering in the early Universe.Comment: AASTeX, 13 pages, with 9 figures, Accepted for publication in
Astrophysics & Space Scienc
Large Scale Structure of the Universe
Galaxies are not uniformly distributed in space. On large scales the Universe
displays coherent structure, with galaxies residing in groups and clusters on
scales of ~1-3 Mpc/h, which lie at the intersections of long filaments of
galaxies that are >10 Mpc/h in length. Vast regions of relatively empty space,
known as voids, contain very few galaxies and span the volume in between these
structures. This observed large scale structure depends both on cosmological
parameters and on the formation and evolution of galaxies. Using the two-point
correlation function, one can trace the dependence of large scale structure on
galaxy properties such as luminosity, color, stellar mass, and track its
evolution with redshift. Comparison of the observed galaxy clustering
signatures with dark matter simulations allows one to model and understand the
clustering of galaxies and their formation and evolution within their parent
dark matter halos. Clustering measurements can determine the parent dark matter
halo mass of a given galaxy population, connect observed galaxy populations at
different epochs, and constrain cosmological parameters and galaxy evolution
models. This chapter describes the methods used to measure the two-point
correlation function in both redshift and real space, presents the current
results of how the clustering amplitude depends on various galaxy properties,
and discusses quantitative measurements of the structures of voids and
filaments. The interpretation of these results with current theoretical models
is also presented.Comment: Invited contribution to be published in Vol. 8 of book "Planets,
Stars, and Stellar Systems", Springer, series editor T. D. Oswalt, volume
editor W. C. Keel, v2 includes additional references, updated to match
published versio
Measuring our universe from galaxy redshift surveys
Galaxy redshift surveys have achieved significant progress over the last
couple of decades. Those surveys tell us in the most straightforward way what
our local universe looks like. While the galaxy distribution traces the bright
side of the universe, detailed quantitative analyses of the data have even
revealed the dark side of the universe dominated by non-baryonic dark matter as
well as more mysterious dark energy (or Einstein's cosmological constant). We
describe several methodologies of using galaxy redshift surveys as cosmological
probes, and then summarize the recent results from the existing surveys.
Finally we present our views on the future of redshift surveys in the era of
Precision Cosmology.Comment: 82 pages, 31 figures, invited review article published in Living
Reviews in Relativity, http://www.livingreviews.org/lrr-2004-
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