Measurements of one-point statistics in 21 cm intensity maps via foreground avoidance strategy

Measurements of the one-point probability distribution function and higher-order moments (variance, skewness, and kurtosis) of the high-redshift 21 cm fluctuations are among the most direct statistical probes of the non-Gaussian nature of structure formation and evolution during reionization. However, contamination from astrophysical foregrounds and instrument systematics pose significant challenges in measuring these statistics in real observations. In this work, we use forward modelling to investigate the feasibility of measuring 21 cm one-point statistics through a foreground avoidance strategy. Leveraging the well-known characteristic of foreground contamination in which it occupies a wedge-shape region in k-space, we apply a foreground wedge-cut filter that removes the contaminated modes from a mock data set based on the Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA) instrument, and measure the one-point statistics from the image-space representation of the remaining non-contaminated modes. We experiment with wedge-cutting over different frequency bandwidths and varying degrees of removal that correspond to different assumptions on the extent of the foreground sources on the sky and leakage from the Fourier Transform window function. We find that the centre of the band is the least biased from wedge-cutting while the edges of the band are unusable due to being highly down-weighted by the window function. Based on this finding, we introduce a rolling filter method that allows reconstruction of an optimal wedge-cut 21~cm intensity map over the full bandwidth using outputs from wedge-cutting over multiple sub-bands. We perform Monte Carlo simulations to show that HERA should be able to measure the rise in skewness and kurtosis near the end of reionization with the rolling wedge-cut method if foreground leakage from the Fourier transform window function can be controlled.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, submitted to MNRA

Evaporation residue cross-section measurements for O 16 + Tl 203,205

Evaporation residue cross sections for the 16O+203,205Tl reactions were measured at laboratory beam energies in the range of 82–113 MeV using a gas-filled separator. Transmission efficiency of the separator was estimated using a calibration reaction 16O+197Au and by simulating the evaporation residues angular distributions. Statistical model calculations were performed for both the measured systems. These calculations overestimate the experimental evaporation residue cross sections. This could be attributed to the presence of noncompound nuclear fission. An estimation of noncompound nuclear fission contribution was carried out. Comparison with neighboring systems shows that a slight change in the entrance channel or the compound nucleus properties makes a large difference in evaporation residue cross sections

First results of evaporation residue cross-section measurements of 32^{32}S+208^{208}Pb system

The dynamics of heavy ion-induced reactions play a critical role in forming super heavy elements (SHE), and one clear signature of the SHE formation is the evaporation residue (ER). In our pursuit of SHE, we present the heaviest element populated in India for ER cross-section measurements. These are the first-ever measurements of the Evaporation Residue (ER) cross-sections for the nuclear reactions between $^{32}$S and $^{208}$Pb. These measurements were conducted above the Coulomb barrier at four distinct beam energies in the laboratory frame, ranging from 176 to 191 MeV at the pelletron Linac facility at the Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC), New Delhi. The Hybrid Recoil Mass Analyzer (HYRA) in a gas-filled mode was employed for these experiments. The obtained range of ER cross-sections enriches our knowledge and helps advance the field of heavy ion-induced reactions, especially in the context of super heavy element formation.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2311.0904

Measurements of evaporation residue cross-sections and evaporation residue-gated γ\gamma-ray fold distributions for 32^{32}S+154^{154}Sm system

Evaporation Residue (ER) cross-sections and ER-gated $\gamma$-ray fold distributions are measured for the $^{32}$S + $^{154}$Sm nuclear reaction above the Coulomb barrier at six different beam energies from 148 to 191 MeV. $\gamma$-ray multiplicities and spin distributions are extracted from the ER-gated fold distributions. The ER cross-sections measured in the present work are found to be much higher than what was reported in a previous work using a very different target-projectile ($^{48}$Ti + $^{138}$Ba) combination, leading to the same compound nucleus $^{186}$Pt, with much less mass asymmetry in the entrance channel than the present reaction. This clearly demonstrates the effect of the entrance channel on ER production cross-section. The ER cross-sections measured in the present work are compared with the results of both the statistical model calculations and the dynamical model calculations. Statistical model calculations have been performed to generate a range of parameter space for both the barrier height and Kramers' viscosity parameter over which the ER cross-section data can be reproduced. The calculations performed using the dinuclear system (DNS) model reproduce the data considering both complete and incomplete fusion processes. DNS calculations indicate the need for the inclusion of incomplete fusion channel at higher energies to reproduce the ER cross-sections.Comment: 13 pages, 18 figure

The innovation of the symbiosome has enhanced the evolutionary stability of nitrogen fixation in legumes

Nitrogen-fixing symbiosis is globally important in ecosystem functioning and agriculture, yet the evolutionary history of nodulation remains the focus of considerable debate. Recent evidence suggesting a single origin of nodulation followed by massive parallel evolutionary losses raises questions about why a few lineages in the N2-fixing clade retained nodulation and diversified as stable nodulators, while most did not. Within legumes, nodulation is restricted to the two most diverse subfamilies, Papilionoideae and Caesalpinioideae, which show stable retention of nodulation across their core clades. We characterize two nodule anatomy types across 128 species in 56 of the 152 genera of the legume subfamily Caesalpinioideae: fixation thread nodules (FTs), where nitrogen-fixing bacteroids are retained within the apoplast in modified infection threads, and symbiosomes, where rhizobia are symplastically internalized in the host cell cytoplasm within membrane-bound symbiosomes (SYMs). Using a robust phylogenomic tree based on 997 genes from 147 Caesalpinioideae genera, we show that losses of nodulation are more prevalent in lineages with FTs than those with SYMs. We propose that evolution of the symbiosome allows for a more intimate and enduring symbiosis through tighter compartmentalization of their rhizobial microsymbionts, resulting in greater evolutionary stability of nodulation across this species-rich pantropical legume clade

A Roadmap for Astrophysics and Cosmology with High-Redshift 21 cm Intensity Mapping

In this white paper, we lay out a US roadmap for high-redshift 21 cm cosmology (30 < z < 6) in the 2020s. Beginning with the currently-funded HERA and MWA Phase II projects and advancing through the decade with a coordinated program of small-scale instrumentation, software, and analysis projects targeting technology development, this roadmap incorporates our current best understanding of the systematics confronting 21 cm cosmology into a plan for overcoming them, enabling next-generation, mid-scale 21 cm arrays to be proposed late in the decade. Submitted for consideration by the Astro2020 Decadal Survey Program Panel for Radio, Millimeter, and Submillimeter Observations from the Ground as a Medium-Sized Project.Comment: 10 pages (plus a cover page and references), 6 figures. Submitted as a APC White Paper for Astro202