41 research outputs found
Multiwavelength study of the starburst galaxy NGC7714. I: Ultraviolet-Optical spectroscopy
We have studied the physical conditions in the central 300 pc of the
proto-typical starburst galaxy NGC 7714. Our analysis is based on ultraviolet
spectroscopy with the HST+GHRS and ground-based optical observations.The data
are interpreted using evolutionary models optimized for young starburst
regions. The massive stellar population is derived in a self-consistent way
using the continuum and stellar absorption lines in the ultraviolet and the
nebular emission line optical spectrum.
The central starburst has an age of about 4.5 Myr, with little evidence for
an age spread. Wolf-Rayet features at the ultraviolet indicates a stellar
population of 2000 Wolf-Rayet stars. The overall properties of the newly
formed stars are quite similar to those derived, e.g., in 30 Doradus. A
standard Salpeter IMF is consistent with all observational constraints. We find
evidence for spatial structure within the central 300 pc sampled. Therefore it
is unlikely that the nucleus of NGC 7714 hosts a single star cluster exceeding
the properties of other known clusters. Contrary to previous suggestions, we
find no evidence for a nuclear supernova rate that would significantly exceed
the total disk-integrated rate. About one supernova event per century is
predicted.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures in a tar file. Accepted for publication in ApJ,
1999, March, issue 51
The Nuclear Stellar Cluster in the Seyfert~1 Galaxy NGC 3227: High Angular Resolution NIR Imaging and Spectroscopy
NIR high angular resolution speckle imaging and imaging spectroscopy of the
nuclear region (10'' ~ 840pc) of the Seyfert1 galaxy NGC3227 are presented. A
nuclear stellar cluster is slightly resolved in the J and H band with
increasing contribution to the NIR continuum from the K to the J band. The
stellar absorption lines are extended compared to the neighboring continuum
suggesting a cluster size of ~ 70pc FWHM. Analysis of those lines suggests that
the stars are contributing about 65% (40%) of the total continuum emission in
the H (K) band in a 3.6'' aperture. Population synthesis in conjunction with
NIR spectral synthesis indicates an age of 25 to 50 Myr when red supergiants
contribute most to the NIR light. This is supported by published optical data
on the MgIb line and the CaII triplet. Although a higher age of ~ 0.5 Gyr where
AGB stars dominate the NIR light can not be excluded, the observed parameters
are at the limit of those expected for a cluster dominated by AGB stars.
However, in either case the resolved stellar cluster contributes only about ~
15 % of the total dynamical mass in the inner 300pc implying another much older
stellar population. Pure constant star formation over the last 10 Gyr can be
excluded. Therefore, at least two star formation/starburst events took place in
the nucleus of NGC3227. Since such sequences in the nuclear star formation
history are also observed in the nuclei of other galaxies a link between the
activity of the star formation and the AGN itself seems likely.Comment: accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, 46 pages, 15
figure
Phase-space and Black Hole Entropy of Higher Genus Horizons in Loop Quantum Gravity
In the context of loop quantum gravity, we construct the phase-space of
isolated horizons with genus greater than 0. Within the loop quantum gravity
framework, these horizons are described by genus g surfaces with N punctures
and the dimension of the corresponding phase-space is calculated including the
genus cycles as degrees of freedom. From this, the black hole entropy can be
calculated by counting the microstates which correspond to a black hole of
fixed area. We find that the leading term agrees with the A/4 law and that the
sub-leading contribution is modified by the genus cycles.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figures. References updated. Minor changes to match
version to appear in Class. Quant. Gra
Star Formation Rates in Faint Radio Galaxies
The decimetric radio continuum luminosity of a star-forming galaxy appears to
be directly proportional to the rate of formation of supernovae in the galaxy.
Since decimetric radiation does not suffer significant extinction and is not
directive, radio luminosities may thus provide a particularly straightforward
way to determine the current rate of star formation. Using a sample of over 700
local galaxies we confirm the utility of the radio luminosity as a measure of
star formation rate by showing concordance with the rates predicted by U-band,
H-alpha, and far-infrared luminosites. We also show that there are systematic
discrepancies between these various indicators, suggesting that the H-alpha
luminosity may underestimate the star formation rate by approximately an order
of magnitude when the star formation rate is more than 20 solar mass per year.
We use this calibration and the measured radio luminosities of sub-mJy radio
sources to infer the star formation rate in approximately 60 star-forming
galaxies at moderate (z = 0.1) redshifts, both as the actual rate and as the
fraction of the existing mass of stars in the galaxy. For some of these objects
the inferred current rate of star formation could increase the stellar mass in
the galaxy by approximately 10% over an interval of about 30 Myr.Comment: 15 pages, 3 diagram
High-quality single-crystalline epitaxial regrowth on pulsed laser melting of Ti implanted GaAs
8 pags., 8 figs.We present a detailed investigation on the formation of supersaturated GaAs using Ti+ implantation followed by nanosecond Pulsed Laser Melting (PLM). We have synthesized high-crystal quality supersaturated GaAs layers with concentrations of Ti above the insulator to metal transition (Mott limit). The Ti-implanted concentration depth profiles after PLM obtained by Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS) show a redistribution of Ti impurities within the first hundred nanometers and superficial concentration up to 1 × 1021 cm−3. Raman spectroscopy of these Ti supersaturated, and regrown GaAs samples shows a sharp crystalline peak and tensile strain due to the Ti lattice incorporation. Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM) and high-resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) images show a good GaAs crystallinity after the PLM process. Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) reveals an enhanced Ti signal inside bubble-like structures and an appearance of interface oxide layer with all processed samples.Authors would like to acknowledge C.A.I. de Tecnicas Físicas of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid for ion implantation, and the technical. This work was partially supported by the Project MADRIDPV2 (Grant No. P20138/EMT-4308) funded by the Comunidad Autonoma de Madrid with the support of FEDER funds, by the Spanish MINECO (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad) under grants PID2020-116508RB-I00, PID2020-117498RB-I00 and RTI2018-096498-B-I00. One of the authors (S. Algaidy) would also like to
acknowledge financial support from Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. D.Caudevilla would also like to acknowledge a grant (PRE2018-083798), financed by MICINN and European Social
Fund. F. Perez-Zenteno would like to acknowledge financial support
Mexico grant program CONACyT under grant 786327. The authors
would like to also acknowledge the services of CAI de Espectroscopia of
UCM, (INA-LMA) de Universidad de Zaragoza and C.A.C.T.I de Universidad de Vigo for Raman, FIB-SEM and SIMS, respectivelyPeer reviewe
The spectral energy distribution of the central parsecs of the nearest AGN
Spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of the central few tens of parsec region
of some of the nearest, most well studied, active galactic nuclei (AGN) are
presented. These genuine AGN-core SEDs, mostly from Seyfert galaxies, are
characterised by two main features: an IR bump with the maximum in the 2-10
micron range, and an increasing X-ray spectrum in the 1 to ~200 keV region.
These dominant features are common to Seyfert type 1 and 2 objects alike. Type
2 AGN exhibit a sharp drop shortward of 2 micron, with the optical to UV region
being fully absorbed, while type 1s show instead a gentle 2 micron drop ensued
by a secondary, partially-absorbed optical to UV emission bump. Assuming the
bulk of optical to UV photons generated in these AGN are reprocessed by dust
and re-emitted in the IR in an isotropic manner, the IR bump luminosity
represents >70% of the total energy output in these objects while the high
energies above 20 keV are the second energetically important contribution.
Galaxies selected by their warm IR colours, i.e. presenting a relatively-flat
flux distribution in the 12 to 60 micron range have often being classified as
AGN. The results from these high spatial resolution SEDs question this
criterion as a general rule. It is found that the intrinsic shape of the IR SED
of an AGN and inferred bolometric luminosity largely depart from those derived
from large aperture data. AGN luminosities can be overestimated by up to two
orders of magnitude if relying on IR satellite data. We find these differences
to be critical for AGN luminosities below or about 10^{44} erg/s. Above this
limit, AGNs tend to dominate the light of their host galaxy regardless of the
aperture size used. We tentatively mark this luminosity as a threshold to
identify galaxy-light- vs AGN- dominated objects.Comment: 50 pages, 14 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA
Molecular evolution of HoxA13 and the multiple origins of limbless morphologies in amphibians and reptiles
Developmental processes and their results, morphological characters, are inherited through transmission of genes regulating development. While there is ample evidence that cis-regulatory elements tend to be modular, with sequence segments dedicated to different roles, the situation for proteins is less clear, being particularly complex for transcription factors with multiple functions. Some motifs mediating protein-protein interactions may be exclusive to particular developmental roles, but it is also possible that motifs are mostly shared among different processes. Here we focus on HoxA13, a protein essential for limb development. We asked whether the HoxA13 amino acid sequence evolved similarly in three limbless clades: Gymnophiona, Amphisbaenia and Serpentes. We explored variation in ω (dN/dS) using a maximum-likelihood framework and HoxA13sequences from 47 species. Comparisons of evolutionary models provided low ω global values and no evidence that HoxA13 experienced relaxed selection in limbless clades. Branch-site models failed to detect evidence for positive selection acting on any site along branches of Amphisbaena and Gymnophiona, while three sites were identified in Serpentes. Examination of alignments did not reveal consistent sequence differences between limbed and limbless species. We conclude that HoxA13 has no modules exclusive to limb development, which may be explained by its involvement in multiple developmental processes
High-quality single-crystalline epitaxial regrowth on pulsed laser melting of Ti implanted GaAs
We present a detailed investigation on the formation of supersaturated GaAs using Ti+ implantation followed by
nanosecond Pulsed Laser Melting (PLM). We have synthesized high-crystal quality supersaturated GaAs layers with concentrations of Ti above the insulator to metal transition (Mott limit). The Ti-implanted concentration depth profiles after PLM obtained by Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS) show a redistribution of Ti impurities within the first hundred nanometers and
superficial concentration up to 1 × 1021 redistr
cm-3. Raman spectroscopy of these Ti supersaturated, and regrown GaAs samples shows a sharp crystalline peak and tensile strain due to the Ti lattice incorporation. Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM) and high-resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) images show a good GaAs crystallinity after the PLM process. Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) reveals an enhanced Ti signal inside bubble-like structures and an appearance of interface oxide layer with all processed samples
Adipose tissue concentrations of non-persistent environmental phenols and local redox balance in adults from Southern Spain
The aim was to evaluate the associations of environmental phenol and paraben concentrations with the oxidative
microenvironment in adipose tissue. This study was conducted in a subsample (n=144) of the GraMo cohort
(Southern Spain). Concentrations of 9 phenols and 7 parabens, and levels of oxidative stress biomarkers were
quantified in adipose tissue. Associations were estimated using multivariable linear regression analyses adjusted
for potential confounders.
Benzophenone-3 (BP-3) concentration was borderline associated with enhanced glutathione peroxidase (GPx)
activity [exp(β)=1.20, p=0.060] and decreased levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) [exp(β)=0.55,
p=0.070]. Concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) and methylparaben (MeP) were associated to lower glutathione
reductase (GRd) activity [exp(β)=0.83, exp(β)=0.72, respectively], and BPA was borderline associated
to increased levels of oxidized glutathione (GSSG) [exp(β)=1.73, p-value=0.062]. MeP was inversely
associated to both hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1) and superoxide dismustase (SOD) activity, as well as to the levels of
thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) [0.75 < exp(β) < 0.79].
Our results suggest that some specific non-persistent pollutants may be associated with a disruption of the
activity of relevant antioxidant enzymes, in addition to the depletion of the glutathione stock. They might act as
a tissue-specific source of free radicals, contributing to the oxidative microenvironment in the adipose tissue.This research was supported
in part by research grants from the European Union Commission
(H2020-EJP-HBM4EU and SOE1/P1/F0082), Biomedical Research
Networking Center-CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública
(CIBERESP), from the Institute of Health Carlos III, supported by
European Regional Development Fund/FEDER (FIS-PI13/02406, FISPI14/
00067, FIS-PI16/01820, FIS-PI16/01812, FIS-PI16/01858 and
FIS-PI17/01743), and from the Consejería de Salud, Junta de Andalucía
(PS-0506-2016). Funding for the equipment used was provided by
Velux Fonden, Augustinus Fonden and Svend Andersen Fonden. The
authors thank Kirsten og Freddy Johansens Fond and the International
Centre for Research and Research Training in Endocrine Disruption of
Male Reproduction and Child Health (EDMaRC, Rigshospitalet,
Copenhagen University) for economic support. Dr. Juan Pedro Arrebola
is under contract within Ramón y Cajal Program (Ministerio de
Economía, Industria y Competitividad de España, RYC-2016-20155)
On the X-ray, optical emission line and black hole mass properties of local Seyfert galaxies
We investigate the relation between X-ray nuclear emission, optical emission
line luminosities and black hole masses for a sample of 47 Seyfert galaxies.
The sample, which has been selected from the Palomar optical spectroscopic
survey of nearby galaxies (Ho, Filippenko & Sargent 1997), covers a wide range
of nuclear powers, from L_{2-10 keV} ~ 10^{43} erg/s down to very low
luminosities (L_{2-10 keV} ~ 10^{38} erg/s). Best available data from Chandra,
XMM-Newton and, in a few cases, ASCA observations have been considered. Thanks
to the good spatial resolution available from these observations and a proper
modeling of the various spectral components, it has been possible to obtain
accurate nuclear X-ray luminosities not contaminated by off-nuclear sources
and/or diffuse emission. X-ray luminosities have then been corrected taking
into account the likely candidate Compton thick sources, which are a high
fraction (> 30%) among type 2 Seyferts in our sample. The main result of this
study is that we confirm strong linear correlations between 2-10 keV,
[OIII]\lambda5007, H_{alpha} luminosities which show the same slope as quasars
and luminous Seyfert galaxies, independent of the level of nuclear activity
displayed. Moreover, despite the wide range of Eddington ratios (L/L_{Edd})
tested here (six orders of magnitude, from 0.1 down to ~ 10^{-7}), no
correlation is found between the X-ray or optical emission line luminosities
and the black hole mass. Our results suggest that Seyfert nuclei in our sample
are consistent with being a scaled-down version of more luminous AGN.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysic