534 research outputs found
Microwave measurements of the photonic bandgap in a two-dimensional photonic crystal slab
We have measured the photonic bandgap in the transmission of microwaves
through a two-dimensional photonic crystal slab. The structure was constructed
by cementing acrylic rods in a hexagonal closed-packed array to form
rectangular stacks. We find a bandgap centered at approximately 11 GHz, whose
depth, width and center frequency vary with the number of layers in the slab,
angle of incidence and microwave polarization.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Journal of Applied Physic
What is the Hidden Depolarization Mechanism in Low Luminosity AGN?
Millimeter wavelength polarimetry of accreting black hole systems can provide
a tomographic probe of the accretion flow on a wide range of linear scales. We
searched for linear polarization in two low luminosity active galactic nuclei
(LLAGN), M81 and M84, using the Combined Array for Millimeter Astronomy (CARMA)
and the Submillimeter Array (SMA). We find upper limits of
averaging over the full bandwidth and with a rotation measure (RM) synthesis
technique. These low polarization fractions, along with similar low values for
LLAGN M87 and 3C84, suggest that LLAGN have qualitatively different
polarization properties than radio-loud sources and Sgr A*. If the sources are
intrinsically polarized and then depolarized by Faraday rotation then we place
lower limits on the RM of a few times for the full
bandwidth case and for the RM synthesis
analysis. These limits are inconsistent with or marginally consistent with
expected accretion flow properties. Alternatively, the sources may be
depolarized by cold electrons within a few Schwarzschild radii from the black
hole, as suggested by numerical models.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ
Millimeter polarisation of the protoplanetary nebula OH 231.8+4.2: A follow-up study with CARMA
In order to investigate the characteristics and influence of the magnetic
field in evolved stars, we performed a follow-up investigation of our previous
submillimeter analysis of the proto-planetary nebula (PPN) OH 231.8+4.2 (Sabin
et al. 2014), this time at 1.3mm with the CARMA facility in polarisation mode
for the purpose of a multi-scale analysis. OH 231.8+4.2 was observed at ~2.5"
resolution and we detected polarised emission above the 3-sigma threshold (with
a mean polarisation fraction of 3.5 %). The polarisation map indicates an
overall organised magnetic field within the nebula. The main finding in this
paper is the presence of a structure mostly compatible with an ordered toroidal
component that is aligned with the PPN's dark lane. We also present some
alternative magnetic field configuration to explain the structure observed.
These data complete our previous SMA submillimeter data for a better
investigation and understanding of the magnetic field structure in OH
231.8+4.2.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA
Simple 1-mm receivers with fixed tuned double sideband SIS mixer and wideband InP MMIC amplifier
We report on attempts to broaden the IF bandwidth of the BIMA 1mm SIS receivers by cascading fixed tuned double-sideband (DSB) SIS mixers and wideband MMIC IF amplifiers. To obtain the flattest receiver gain across the IF band we tested three schemes for keeping the mixer and amplifier as electrically close as possible. In Receiver I, we connected separate mixer and MMIC modules by a 1" stainless steel SMA elbow. In Receiver II, we integrated mixer and MMIC into a modified BIMA mixer module. In Receiver III, we devised a thermally split block where mixer and MMIC can be maintained at different temperatures in the same module. The best average receiver noise we achieved by combining SIS mixer and MMIC amplifier is 45 -50 K DSB for ν_(LO) = 215 - 240 GHz and below 80 K DSB for ν_(LO) = 205 - 270 GHz. The receiver noise can be made reasonably flat over the CARMA IF band (ν_(IF) = 1 - 5 GHz). Noise temperatures for all three receivers are comparable to or better than those obtained with the BIMA receiver
High Resolution Millimeter-Wave Mapping of Linearly Polarized Dust Emission: Magnetic Field Structure in Orion
We present 1.3 and 3.3 mm polarization maps of Orion-KL obtained with the
BIMA array at approximately 4 arcsec resolution. Thermal emission from
magnetically aligned dust grains produces the polarization. Along the Orion
``ridge'' the polarization position angle varies smoothly from about 10 degrees
to 40 degrees, in agreement with previous lower resolution maps. In a small
region south of the Orion ``hot core,'' however, the position angle changes by
90 degrees. This abrupt change in polarization direction is not necessarily the
signpost of a twisted magnetic field. Rather, in this localized region
processes other than the usual Davis-Greenstein mechanism might align the dust
grains with their long axes parallel with the field, orthogonal to their normal
orientation.Comment: AAS preprint:14 pages, 2 figures (3mm.eps and 1mm.eps); requires
aaspp4.sty To be published in Astrophysical Journal Letter
Coexisting conical bipolar and equatorial outflows from a high-mass protostar
The BN/KL region in the Orion molecular cloud is an archetype in the study of
the formation of stars much more massive than the Sun. This region contains
luminous young stars and protostars, but it is difficult to study because of
overlying dust and gas. Our basic expectations are shaped to some extent by the
present theoretical picture of star formation, the cornerstone of which is that
protostars acrete gas from rotating equatorial disks, and shed angular momentum
by ejecting gas in bipolar outflows. The main source of the outflow in the
BN/KL region may be an object known as radio source I, which is commonly
believed to be surrounded by a rotating disk of molecular material. Here we
report high-resolution observations of silicon monoxide (SiO) and water maser
emission from the gas surrounding source I; we show that within 60 AU (about
the size of the Solar System), the region is dominated by a conical bipolar
outflow, rather than the expected disk. A slower outflow, close to the
equatorial plane of the protostellar system, extends to radii of 1,000 AU.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures. Accepted by Nature. To appear December 199
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