6,333 research outputs found
Cygnus X-2, super-Eddington mass transfer, and pulsar binaries
We consider the unusual evolutionary state of the secondary star in Cygnus
X-2. Spectroscopic data give a low mass (M_2 \simeq 0.5 - 0.7\msun) and yet a
large radius (R_2 \simeq 7\rsun) and high luminosity (L_2 \simeq 150\lsun).
We show that this star closely resembles a remnant of early massive Case B
evolution, during which the neutron star ejected most of the \sim 3\msun
transferred from the donor (initial mass M_{\rm 2i}\sim 3.6\msun) on its
thermal time-scale yr. As the system is far too wide to result from
common-envelope evolution, this strongly supports the idea that a neutron star
efficiently ejects the excess inflow during super--Eddington mass transfer.
Cygnus X-2 is unusual in having had an initial mass ratio in a narrow critical range near . Smaller lead to long-period systems with the former donor near the Hayashi line,
and larger to pulsar binaries with shorter periods and relatively
massive white dwarf companions. The latter naturally explain the surprisingly
large companion masses in several millisecond pulsar binaries. Systems like
Cygnus X-2 may thus be an important channel for forming pulsar binaries.Comment: 9 pages, 4 encapsulated figures, LaTeX, revised version with a few
typos corrected and an appendix added, accepted by MNRA
Asymptotic Level Density of the Elastic Net Self-Organizing Feature Map
Whileas the Kohonen Self Organizing Map shows an asymptotic level density
following a power law with a magnification exponent 2/3, it would be desired to
have an exponent 1 in order to provide optimal mapping in the sense of
information theory. In this paper, we study analytically and numerically the
magnification behaviour of the Elastic Net algorithm as a model for
self-organizing feature maps. In contrast to the Kohonen map the Elastic Net
shows no power law, but for onedimensional maps nevertheless the density
follows an universal magnification law, i.e. depends on the local stimulus
density only and is independent on position and decouples from the stimulus
density at other positions.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figures. Link to publisher under
http://link.springer.de/link/service/series/0558/bibs/2415/24150939.ht
Lie Algebras and Suppression of Decoherence in Open Quantum Systems
Since there are many examples in which no decoherence-free subsystems exist
(among them all cases where the error generators act irreducibly on the system
Hilbert space), it is of interest to search for novel mechanisms which suppress
decoherence in these more general cases. Drawing on recent work
(quant-ph/0502153) we present three results which indicate decoherence
suppression without the need for noiseless subsystems. There is a certain
trade-off; our results do not necessarily apply to an arbitrary initial density
matrix, or for completely generic noise parameters. On the other hand, our
computational methods are novel and the result--suppression of decoherence in
the error-algebra approach without noiseless subsystems--is an interesting new
direction.Comment: 7 page
Outstanding Educational Performance Awards: Highlighting Top Achieving Arkansas Schools, 2009
Since our founding in 2003, the mission of the Office for Education Policy has been to look at pressing issues through the lens of academic research and disseminate our findings to educators, policymakers, and other stakeholders around Arkansas. Every once in a while, however, we think it is okay to stray from issue analysis and simply share some good news! So, in this Arkansas Education Report (AER) we merely aim to highlight excellent performance and give our congratulations. To that end, we are happy to highlight the top performing schools around the state in an annual AER entitled the Outstanding Educational Performance Awards
Wigner flow reveals topological order in quantum phase space dynamics
The behaviour of classical mechanical systems is characterised by their phase
portraits, the collections of their trajectories. Heisenberg's uncertainty
principle precludes the existence of sharply defined trajectories, which is why
traditionally only the time evolution of wave functions is studied in quantum
dynamics. These studies are quite insensitive to the underlying structure of
quantum phase space dynamics. We identify the flow that is the quantum analog
of classical particle flow along phase portrait lines. It reveals hidden
features of quantum dynamics and extra complexity. Being constrained by
conserved flow winding numbers, it also reveals fundamental topological order
in quantum dynamics that has so far gone unnoticed.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure
Outstanding Educational Performance Awards: Highlighting High Achieving Arkansas Schools, 2010
So, in this Arkansas Education Report (AER) we aim to highlight excellent performance and give our congratulations. To that end, we are happy to highlight many high performing schools around the state in our now-annual AER entitled the Outstanding Educational Performance Awards
Cygnus X-2: the Descendant of an Intermediate-Mass X-Ray Binary
The X-ray binary Cygnus X-2 (Cyg X-2) has recently been shown to contain a
secondary that is much more luminous and hotter than is appropriate for a
low-mass subgiant. We present detailed binary-evolution calculations which
demonstrate that the present evolutionary state of Cyg X-2 can be understood if
the secondary had an initial mass of around 3.5 M_sun and started to transfer
mass near the end of its main-sequence phase (or, somewhat less likely, just
after leaving the main sequence). Most of the mass of the secondary must have
been ejected from the system during an earlier rapid mass-transfer phase. In
the present phase, the secondary has a mass of around 0.5 M_sun with a
non-degenerate helium core. It is burning hydrogen in a shell, and mass
transfer is driven by the advancement of the burning shell. Cyg X-2 therefore
is related to a previously little studied class of intermediate-mass X-ray
binaries (IMXBs). We suggest that perhaps a significant fraction of X-ray
binaries presently classified as low-mass X-ray binaries may be descendants of
IMXBs and discuss some of the implications
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