192 research outputs found
X-ray and -ray Studies of the Millisecond Pulsar and Possible X-ray Binary/Radio Pulsar Transition Object PSR J1723-2837
We present X-ray observations of the "redback" eclipsing radio millisecond
pulsar and candidate radio pulsar/X-ray binary transition object PSR
J1723-2837. The X-ray emission from the system is predominantly non-thermal and
exhibits pronounced variability as a function of orbital phase, with a factor
of ~2 reduction in brightness around superior conjunction. Such temporal
behavior appears to be a defining characteristic of this variety of peculiar
millisecond pulsar binaries and is likely caused by a partial geometric
occultation by the main-sequence-like companion of a shock within the binary.
There is no indication of diffuse X-ray emission from a bow shock or pulsar
wind nebula associated with the pulsar. We also report on a search for point
source emission and -ray pulsations in Fermi Large Area Telescope data
using a likelihood analysis and photon probability weighting. Although PSR
J1723-2837 is consistent with being a -ray point source, due to the
strong Galactic diffuse emission at its position a definitive association
cannot be established. No statistically significant pulsations or modulation at
the orbital period are detected. For a presumed source detection, the implied
-ray luminosity is 5% of its spin-down power. This indicates
that PSR J1723-2837 is either one of the least efficient -ray producing
millisecond pulsars or, if the detection is spurious, the -ray emission
pattern is not directed towards us.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures; accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Dust-filled axially symmetric universes with a cosmological constant
Following the recent recognition of a positive value for the vacuum energy
density and the realization that a simple Kantowski-Sachs model might fit the
classical tests of cosmology, we study the qualitative behavior of three
anisotropic and homogeneous models: Kantowski-Sachs, Bianchi type-I and Bianchi
type-III universes, with dust and a cosmological constant, in order to find out
which are physically permitted. We find that these models undergo
isotropization up to the point that the observations will not be able to
distinguish between them and the standard model, except for the Kantowski-Sachs
model
with smaller than some critical value
. Even if one imposes that the Universe should be nearly
isotropic since the last scattering epoch (), meaning that the
Universe should have approximately the same Hubble parameter in all directions
(considering the COBE 4-Year data), there is still a large range for the matter
density parameter compatible with Kantowsky-Sachs and Bianchi type-III if
, for a very small . The
Bianchi type-I model becomes exactly isotropic owing to our restrictions and we
have in this case. Of course, all these models
approach locally an exponential expanding state provided the cosmological
constant .Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, 1 table. Published in Physical Review D 1
Generalized observers and velocity measurements in General Relativity
To resolve some unphysical interpretations related to velocity measurements
by static observers, we discuss the use of generalized observer sets, give a
prescription for defining the speed of test particles relative to those
observers and show that, for any locally inertial frame, the speed of a freely
falling material particle is always less than the speed of light at the
Schwarzschild black hole surface.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figure, submitted to General Relativity and Gravitatio
Interior of a Schwarzschild black hole revisited
The Schwarzschild solution has played a fundamental conceptual role in
general relativity, and beyond, for instance, regarding event horizons,
spacetime singularities and aspects of quantum field theory in curved
spacetimes. However, one still encounters the existence of misconceptions and a
certain ambiguity inherent in the Schwarzschild solution in the literature. By
taking into account the point of view of an observer in the interior of the
event horizon, one verifies that new conceptual difficulties arise. In this
work, besides providing a very brief pedagogical review, we further analyze the
interior Schwarzschild black hole solution. Firstly, by deducing the interior
metric by considering time-dependent metric coefficients, the interior region
is analyzed without the prejudices inherited from the exterior geometry. We
also pay close attention to several respective cosmological interpretations,
and briefly address some of the difficulties associated to spacetime
singularities. Secondly, we deduce the conserved quantities of null and
timelike geodesics, and discuss several particular cases in some detail.
Thirdly, we examine the Eddington-Finkelstein and Kruskal coordinates directly
from the interior solution. In concluding, it is important to emphasize that
the interior structure of realistic black holes has not been satisfactorily
determined, and is still open to considerable debate.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures, Revtex4. V2: Version to appear in Foundations of
Physic
Linearized stability analysis of thin-shell wormholes with a cosmological constant
Spherically symmetric thin-shell wormholes in the presence of a cosmological
constant are constructed applying the cut-and-paste technique implemented by
Visser. Using the Darmois-Israel formalism the surface stresses, which are
concentrated at the wormhole throat, are determined. This construction allows
one to apply a dynamical analysis to the throat, considering linearized radial
perturbations around static solutions. For a large positive cosmological
constant, i.e., for the Schwarzschild-de Sitter solution, the region of
stability is significantly increased, relatively to the null cosmological
constant case, analyzed by Poisson and Visser. With a negative cosmological
constant, i.e., the Schwarzschild-anti de Sitter solution, the region of
stability is decreased. In particular, considering static solutions with a
generic cosmological constant, the weak and dominant energy conditions are
violated, while for the null and strong energy conditions are
satisfied. The surface pressure of the static solution is strictly positive for
the Schwarzschild and Schwarzschild-anti de Sitter spacetimes, but takes
negative values, assuming a surface tension in the Schwarzschild-de Sitter
solution, for high values of the cosmological constant and the wormhole throat
radius.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, LaTeX2e, IOP style files. Accepted for
publication in Classical and Quantum Gravit
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