2,525 research outputs found
Crystal Nucleation by Laser-Induced Cavitation\ud
High-speed and high-resolution photography have been used to investigate the relationship between creation, expansion, and collapse of a vapor cavity induced by a 6 ns laser pulse and the subsequent nucleation of crystals. A thin layer of supersaturated aqueous solutions of (NH4)2SO4 and KMnO4 was confined between two glass plates with a separation of 50 and 100 ÎŒm. The expansion and collapse of the laser-induced vapor bubble occurred over a total time scale of 200 ÎŒs, while the first identifiable crystal appears one second after the laser pulse. Crystals were observed to form on a ring with a diameter of 70 ÎŒm centered in the focal point of the laser. The ring is preceded by an optical disturbance observed through the cavity around 30â50 ÎŒs after the laser pulse and vapor cavity formation. This ring-shaped optical disturbance originates from changes in refractive index induced by crystal nuclei formation. The formation of the nuclei most probably coincides with the formation of the bubble, when the rate of evaporation and the supersaturation are at their maxima. Apparently, it takes the nuclei around 30â50 ÎŒs to grow to a particle size with a visible optical disturbanc
The Reproducibility of Ultrasonographic Findings of Rectosigmoid Endometriosis Among Examiners With Different Level of Expertise
Objective: To analyze the reproducibility of ultrasonographic (US) findings of rectosigmoid endometriosis among examiners with different level of expertise using stored three-dimensional (3D) volumes of the posterior compartment of the pelvis as a part of SANABA (Sardinia-Navarra-Barcelona) collaborative study. Materials and methods: Six examiners in 3 academic Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, with different levels of experience and blinded to each other, evaluated 60 stored 3D volumes from the posterior compartment of the pelvis and looked for the presence or absence of features of rectosigmoid endometriotic lesions defined as an irregular hypoechoic nodule with or without hypoechoic foci at the level of the muscularis propria of the anterior wall rectum sigma. Multiplanar view and virtual navigation were used. All examiners had to assess the 3D volume of posterior compartment of the pelvis and classify it as present or absent disease. To analyze intra-observer and the inter-observer agreements, each examiner performed the assessment twice with a 2-week interval between the first and second assessments. Reproducibility was assessed by calculating the weighted Kappa index. Results: Intra-observer reproducibility was moderate to very good for all observers (Kappa index ranging from 0.49 to 0.96) associated with a good diagnostic accuracy of each reader. Inter-observer reproducibility was fair to very good (Kappa index range: 0.21â0.87). Conclusions: The typical US sign of rectosigmoid endometriosis is reasonably recognizable to observers with different level of expertise when assessed in stored 3D volumes
The contribution of Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxies to the soft X-ray background
The ROSAT Ultradeep HRI survey in the Lockman Hole contains a complete sample
of 91 X-ray sources with fluxes in the 0.5-2 keV band larger than 1.2 times
10e-15 erg cm-2 s-1, where over about 75 per cent of the sources are quasars or
Seyfert galaxies. During the course of our optical identification work, we have
obtained optical spectra of 67 narrow emission line galaxies (NELG), which are
physically not associated with the X-ray sources. We have derived the
equivalent width (EW) and the full width at half maximum (FWHM) for the most
prominent emission lines of 41 quasars and Seyfert galaxies taken from the
ROSAT Deep Survey (RDS), which has a flux limit of 5.5 times 10e-15 erg cm-2
s-1 in the 0.5-2.0 keV band. Furthermore we have obtained the EW and FWHM
values of the field NELGs. Here we present the spectroscopic discrimination
between RDS Seyfert galaxies and field galaxies (NELG). The analysis of the
emission lines has revealed that a single object out of 69 spectroscopically
identified AGN fits the optical criteria of Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxies
(NLS1). This may indicate that NLS1 contribute only marginally to the soft
X-ray background, but we can not exclude a possible larger contribution.Comment: Invited talk presented at the Joint MPE,AIP,ESO workshop on NLS1s,
Bad Honnef, Dec. 1999, to appear in New Astronomy Reviews; also available at
http://wave.xray.mpe.mpg.de/conferences/nls1-worksho
Average UV Quasar Spectra in the Context of Eigenvector 1: A Baldwin Effect Governed by Eddington Ratio?
We present composite UV spectra for low redshift Type 1 AGN binned to exploit
the information content of the Eigenvector 1 (E1) parameter space. Composite
spectra allow a decomposition of the CIV1549 line profile - one of the
strongest high-ionization lines. The simplest CIV decomposition into narrow
(NLR), broad (BLR) and very broad (VBLR) components suggests that different
components have an analog in Hb with two major exceptions. VBLR emission is
seen only in population B (FWHM(Hb)>4000 km/s) sources. A blue
shifted/asymmetric BLR component is seen only in pop. A (FWHM(Hb)<4000 km/s)
HIL such as CIV. The blueshifted component is thought to arise in a wind or
outflow. Our analysis suggests that such a wind can only be produced in pop. A
(almost all radio-quiet) sources where the accretion rate is relatively high.
Comparison between broad UV lines in radio-loud (RL) and radio-quiet (RQ)
sources shows few significant differences. Clear evidence is found for a narrow
CIV component in most radio-loud sources. We find also some indirect
indications that the black hole (BH) spin, rather than BH mass or accretion
rate is a key trigger in determining whether an object will be RL or RQ. We
find a ten-fold decrease in EW CIV with Eddington ratio (decreasing from ~1 to
\~0.01) while NV shows no change. These trends suggest a luminosity-independent
"Baldwin effect" where the physical driver may be the Eddington ratio.Comment: 39 pages, 6 figures. To appear in Ap
Ultraviolet and optical properties of Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxies
Narrow Line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies are remarkable for their extreme
continuum and emission line properties which are not well understood. New
results bearing on the spectroscopic characteristics of these objects are
presented here, with the aim of establishing their typical ultraviolet and
optical spectral behavior. We employ HST observations of 22 NLS1s, which
represent a substantial improvement over previous work in terms of data quality
and sample size. High signal-to-noise NLS1 composite spectra are constructed,
allowing accurate measurements of the continuum shape and the strengths,
ratios, and widths for lines, including weak features which are barely
identifiable in other Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) composites. We find that the
NLS1 sources have redder UV-blue continua than those typically measured in
other quasars and Seyferts. Objects with UV line absorption show redder
spectra, suggesting that dust is important in modifying the continuum shapes.
The data also permit a detailed investigation of the previously proposed link
between NLS1s and z >~ 4 quasars. Direct comparison of their composite spectra,
as well as a Principal Component Analysis, suggest that high-z QSOs do not show
a strong preference toward NLS1 behavior.Comment: 23 pages (incl. 9 figures, 4 tables), to appear in The Publications
of the Astronomical Society of the Pacifi
Neurocognition and functional outcome in patients with psychotic, non-psychotic bipolar I disorder, and schizophrenia. A five-year follow-up
Bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ) are characterized by neurocognitive and functional deficits with marked heterogeneity. It has been suggested that BD with a history of psychotic symptoms (BD-P) could constitute a phenotypically homogeneous subtype characterized by greater neurocognitive and functional impairments, or by a distinct trajectory of such deficits. The aim of this study was to compare the neurocognitive and functional course of euthymic BD-P, euthymic BD patients without a history of psychosis (BD-NP), stabilized patients with schizophrenia and healthy subjects, during a five-year follow-up
Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer Spectroscopy of Absorption and Emission Lines from the Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxy NGC 4051
We present three Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) observations
of the Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC4051. The most prominent features in the
far-ultraviolet (FUV) spectrum are the OVI emission and absorption lines and
the HI Lyman series absorption lines which are detected up to the Lyman edge.
We also identify weak emission from NIII, CIII, and HeII. The CIII line shows
absorption while none is detected in the NIII and HeII lines. In HI and CIII we
detect two main absorption systems at outflow velocities of -50+/-30 and
-240+/-40 km/s, as well as a possible third one at ~ -450 km/s. These systems
are consistent in velocity with the 10 absorption systems found previously in
CIV, NV, and SiIV, though the individual systems are blended together in the
FUV spectrum. We estimate column densities of the two main absorption systems
and find that the HI column density is lower for systems with larger outflow
velocity. We detect no flux or spectral variations of NGC4051 at FUV
wavelengths during three epochs spanning one year. This is consistent with the
optical light curve which shows no variations between the three epochs. It is
also consistent with the X-ray light curve which shows consistent flux levels
at the three epochs of the FUSE observations, although the X-ray light curve
shows strong variations on much shorter timescales.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures (5 in color), emulateapj, accepted for publication
in The Astronomical Journa
Multiwavelength Monitoring of the Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxy Akn 564. II. Ultraviolet Continuum and Emission-line Variability
We present results of an intensive two-month campaign of approximately daily
spectrophotometric monitoring of the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy Akn 564 with
HST. The fractional variability amplitude of the continuum variations between
1365-3000 A is ~6%, about a factor 3 less than that found in typical Seyfert 1
galaxies over a similar period of time. However, large amplitude, short
time-scale flaring behavior is evident, with trough-to-peak flux changes of
about 18% in approximately 3 days. We present evidence for wavelength-dependent
continuum time delays, with the variations at 3000 A lagging behind those at
1365 A by about 1 day. These delays may be interpreted as evidence for a
stratified continuum reprocessing region, possibly an accretion-disk structure.
The Lyman-alpha 1216 emission-line exhibits flux variations of about 1%
amplitude.Comment: 27 pages, 14 figures. Accepted by Astrophysical Journa
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