3,429 research outputs found
Supersoft X-rays reveal a classical nova in the M 31 globular cluster Bol 126
[Abridged] Classical novae (CNe) represent the main class of supersoft X-ray
sources (SSSs) in the central region of our neighbouring galaxy M 31. Only
three confirmed novae and three SSSs have been discovered in globular clusters
(GCs) of any galaxy so far, of which one nova and two SSSs (including the nova)
were found in M 31 GCs. To study the SSS state of CNe we carried out a
high-cadence X-ray monitoring of the M 31 central area with XMM-Newton and
Chandra. We analysed X-ray and optical data of a new transient X-ray source in
the M 31 GC Bol 126, discovered serendipitously in Swift observations. Our
optical data set was based on regular M 31 monitoring programmes from five
different small telescopes. Additionally, we made use of Pan-STARRS 1 data
obtained during the PAndromeda survey. Our observations reveal that the X-ray
source in Bol 126 is the third SSS in an M 31 GC and can be confirmed as the
second CN in the M 31 GC system. This nova is named M31N 2010-10f. Its
properties in the X-ray and optical regimes agree with a massive white dwarf
(M_WD >~ 1.3 M_sun) in the binary system. Incorporating the data on previously
found (suspected) novae in M 31 GCs we used our high-cadence X-ray monitoring
observations to estimate a tentative nova rate in the M 31 GC system of 0.05
/yr/GC. An optical estimate, based on the recent 10.5-year WeCAPP survey, gives
a lower nova rate, which is compatible with the X-ray rate on the 95%
confidence level. There is growing evidence that the nova rate in GCs is higher
than expected from primordial binary formation and under conditions as in the
field. Dynamical binary formation and/or additional accretion from the
intracluster medium are possible scenarios for an increased nova rate, but
observational confirmation for this enhancement has been absent, so far.
Regular X-ray monitoring observations of M 31 provide a promising strategy to
find these novae.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysic
Nonlinear sigma model study of a frustrated spin ladder
A model of two-leg spin-S ladder with two additional frustrating diagonal
exchange couplings J_{D}, J_{D}' is studied within the framework of the
nonlinear sigma model approach. The phase diagram has a rich structure and
contains 2S gapless phase boundaries which split off the boundary to the fully
saturated ferromagnetic phase when J_{D} and J_{D}' become different. For the
S=1/2 case, the phase boundaries are identified as separating two topologically
distinct Haldane-type phases discussed recently by Kim et al.
(cond-mat/9910023).Comment: revtex 4 pages, figures embedded (psfig
Unitary representations of nilpotent super Lie groups
We show that irreducible unitary representations of nilpotent super Lie
groups can be obtained by induction from a distinguished class of sub super Lie
groups. These sub super Lie groups are natural analogues of polarizing
subgroups that appear in classical Kirillov theory. We obtain a concrete
geometric parametrization of irreducible unitary representations by nonnegative
definite coadjoint orbits. As an application, we prove an analytic
generalization of the Stone-von Neumann theorem for Heisenberg-Clifford super
Lie groups
Electronic structure of the muonium center as a shallow donor in ZnO
The electronic structure and the location of muonium centers (Mu) in
single-crystalline ZnO were determined for the first time. Two species of Mu
centers with extremely small hyperfine parameters have been observed below 40
K. Both Mu centers have an axial-symmetric hyperfine structure along with a
[0001] axis, indicating that they are located at the AB_{O,//} and BC_{//}
sites. It is inferred from their small ionization energy (~6 meV and 50 meV)
and hyperfine parameters (~10^{-4} times the vacuum value) that these centers
behave as shallow donors, strongly suggesting that hydrogen is one of the
primary origins of n type conductivity in as-grown ZnO.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, submitted to PR
Origin of the reduced exchange bias in epitaxial FeNi(111)/CoO(111) bilayer
We have employed Soft and Hard X-ray Resonant Magnetic Scattering and
Polarised Neutron Diffraction to study the magnetic interface and the bulk
antiferromagnetic domain state of the archetypal epitaxial
NiFe(111)/CoO(111) exchange biased bilayer. The combination of
these scattering tools provides unprecedented detailed insights into the still
incomplete understanding of some key manifestations of the exchange bias
effect. We show that the several orders of magnitude difference between the
expected and measured value of exchange bias field is caused by an almost
anisotropic in-plane orientation of antiferromagnetic domains. Irreversible
changes of their configuration lead to a training effect. This is directly seen
as a change in the magnetic half order Bragg peaks after magnetization
reversal. A 30 nm size of antiferromagnetic domains is extracted from the width
the (1/2 1/2 1/2) antiferromagnetic magnetic peak measured both by neutron and
x-ray scattering. A reduced blocking temperature as compared to the measured
antiferromagnetic ordering temperature clearly corresponds to the blocking of
antiferromagnetic domains. Moreover, an excellent correlation between the size
of the antiferromagnetic domains, exchange bias field and frozen-in spin ratio
is found, providing a comprehensive understanding of the origin of exchange
bias in epitaxial systems.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, submitte
Sperm: seminal fluid interactions and the adjustment of sperm quality in relation to female attractiveness
An important predictor of male fitness is the fertilizing efficiency of their ejaculates. Ejaculates are costly to produce and males are predicted to devote greater resources to copulations with reproductively superior females. It is well established that males allocate different numbers of sperm to ejaculates. However, less is known about how males adjust their sperm quality, which has important implications for our understanding of fertilization and the evolution of sexual strategies. Here we test in the fowl, Gallus gallus, whether males adjust their sperm velocity by differentially allocating seminal fluid to copulations with attractive and unattractive females. To disentangle the contributions of sperm and seminal fluid to sperm velocity, we separated and remixed sperm and seminal fluid from ejaculates allocated to females of different attractiveness. We show that dominant males increase the velocity of the sperm they invest in more attractive females by allocating larger ejaculates that contain seminal fluid that increases sperm velocity. Furthermore, we find weak evidence that males also allocate sperm with higher velocity, irrespective of seminal fluid, to more attractive females
Deriving global structure of the Galactic Magnetic Field from Faraday Rotation Measures of extragalactic sources
We made use of the two latest sets of Rotational Measures (RMs) of
extra-galactic radio sources, namely the NRAO VLA Sky Survey otation Measures
Catalogue, and a compilation by Kronberg&Newton-McGee(2011), to infer the
global structure of the Galactic Magnetic Field (GMF). We have checked that
these two data sets are consistent with each other. Motivated by clear patterns
in the observed distribution of RMs over the sky, we considered GMF models
consisting of the two components: disk (spiral or ring) and halo. The
parameters of these components were determined by fitting different model field
geometries to the observed RMs. We found that the model consisting of a
symmetric (with respect to the Galactic plane) spiral disk and anti-symmetric
halo fits the data best, and reproduces the observed distribution of RMs over
the sky very well. We confirm that ring disk models are disfavored. Our results
favor small pitch angles around -5 degrees and an increased vertical scale of
electron distribution, in agreement with some previous studies. Based on our
fits, we identify two benchmark models suitable for studies of cosmic ray
propagation, including the ultra-high energies.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figures, 4 tables misprints corrected, presentation
improved generally matches the published versio
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