2,591 research outputs found
Constraining coherent low frequency radio flares from compact binary mergers
The presence and detectability of coherent radio emission from compact binary
mergers (containing at least one neutron star) remains poorly constrained due
to large uncertainties in the models. These compact binary mergers may
initially be detected as Short Gamma-ray Bursts (SGRBs) or via their
gravitational wave emission. Several radio facilities have developed rapid
response modes enabling them to trigger on these events and search for this
emission. For this paper, we constrain this coherent radio emission using the
deepest available constraints for GRB 150424A, which were obtained via a
triggered observation with the Murchison Widefield Array. We then expand this
analysis to determine the properties of magnetar merger remnants that may be
formed via a general population of binary neutron star mergers. Our results
demonstrate that many of the potential coherent emission mechanisms that have
been proposed for such events can be detected or very tightly constrained by
the complementary strategies used by the current generation of low-frequency
radio telescopes.Comment: 19 pages, submitted to MNRA
Dielectrophoresis model for the colossal electroresistance of phase-separated manganites
We propose a dielectrophoresis model for phase-separated manganites. Without
increase of the fraction of metallic phase, an insulator-metal transition
occurs when a uniform electric field applied across the system exceeds a
threshold value. Driven by the dielectrophoretic force, the metallic clusters
reconfigure themselves into stripes along the direction of electric field,
leading to the filamentous percolation. This process, which is time-dependent,
irreversible and anisotropic, is a probable origin of the colossal
electroresistance in manganites.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Surface tension of electrolytes: Hydrophilic and hydrophobic ions near an interface
We calculate the ion distributions around an interface in fluid mixtures of
highly polar and less polar fluids (water and oil) for two and three ion
species. We take into account the solvation and image interactions between ions
and solvent. We show that hydrophilic and hydrophobic ions tend to undergo a
microphase separation at an interface, giving rise to an enlarged electric
double layer. We also derive a general expression for the surface tension of
electrolyte systems, which contains a negative electrostatic contribution
proportional to the square root of the bulk salt density. The amplitude of this
square-root term is small for hydrophilic ion pairs, but is much increased for
hydrophilic and hydrophobic ion pairs. For three ion species including
hydrophilic and hydrophobic ions, we calculate the ion distributions to explain
those obtained by x-ray reflectivity measurements.Comment: 8 figure
Two Parameters for Three Dimensional Wetting Transitions
Critical effects at complete and critical wetting in three dimensions are
studied using a coupled effective Hamiltonian H[s(y),\ell]. The model is
constructed via a novel variational principle which ensures that the choice of
collective coordinate s(y) near the wall is optimal. We highlight the
importance of a new wetting parameter \Omega(T) which has a strong influence on
critical properties and allows the status of long-standing Monte-Carlo
simulation controversies to be re-examined.Comment: 4 pages RevTex, 2 encapsulated postscript figures, to appear in
Europhys. Let
Metastable liquid-liquid coexistence and density anomalies in a core-softened fluid
Linearly-sloped or `ramp' potentials belong to a class of core-softened
models which possess a liquid-liquid critical point (LLCP) in addition to the
usual liquid-gas critical point. Furthermore they exhibit thermodynamic
anomalies in the density and compressibility, the nature of which may be akin
to those occurring in water. Previous simulation studies of ramp potentials
have focused on just one functional form, for which the LLCP is
thermodynamically stable. In this work we construct a series of ramp
potentials, which interpolate between this previously studied form and a
ramp-based approximation to the Lennard-Jones (LJ) potential. By means of Monte
Carlo simulation, we locate the LLCP, the first order high density liquid
(HDL)-low density liquid (LDL) coexistence line, and the line of density maxima
for a selection of potentials in the series. We observe that as the LJ limit is
approached, the LLCP becomes metastable with respect to freezing into a
hexagonal close packed crystalline solid. The qualitative nature of the phase
behaviour in this regime shows a remarkable resemblance to that seen in
simulation studies of accurate water models. Specifically, the density of the
liquid phase exceeds that of the solid; the gradient of the metastable LDL-HDL
line is negative in the pressure (p)-temperature (T) plane; while the line of
density maxima in the p-T plane has a shape similar to that seen in water and
extends well into the {\em stable} liquid region of the phase diagram. As such,
our results lend weight to the `second critical point' hypothesis as an
explanation for the anomalous behaviour of water.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure
Constraining properties of GRB magnetar central engines using the observed plateau luminosity and duration correlation
An intrinsic correlation has been identified between the luminosity and
duration of plateaus in the X-ray afterglows of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs;
Dainotti et al. 2008), suggesting a central engine origin. The magnetar central
engine model predicts an observable plateau phase, with plateau durations and
luminosities being determined by the magnetic fields and spin periods of the
newly formed magnetar. This paper analytically shows that the magnetar central
engine model can explain, within the 1 uncertainties, the correlation
between plateau luminosity and duration. The observed scatter in the
correlation most likely originates in the spread of initial spin periods of the
newly formed magnetar and provides an estimate of the maximum spin period of
~35 ms (assuming a constant mass, efficiency and beaming across the GRB
sample). Additionally, by combining the observed data and simulations, we show
that the magnetar emission is most likely narrowly beamed and has 20%
efficiency in conversion of rotational energy from the magnetar into the
observed plateau luminosity. The beaming angles and efficiencies obtained by
this method are fully consistent with both predicted and observed values. We
find that Short GRBs and Short GRBs with Extended Emission lie on the same
correlation but are statistically inconsistent with being drawn from the same
distribution as Long GRBs, this is consistent with them having a wider beaming
angle than Long GRBs.Comment: MNRAS Accepte
Non-Equilibrium Surface Tension of the Vapour-Liquid Interface of Active Lennard-Jones Particles
We study a three-dimensional system of self-propelled Brownian particles
interacting via the Lennard-Jones potential. Using Brownian Dynamics
simulations in an elongated simulation box, we investigate the steady states of
vapour-liquid phase coexistence of active Lennard-Jones particles with planar
interfaces. We measure the normal and tangential components of the pressure
tensor along the direction perpendicular to the interface and verify mechanical
equilibrium of the two coexisting phases. In addition, we determine the
non-equilibrium interfacial tension by integrating the difference of the normal
and tangential component of the pressure tensor, and show that the surface
tension as a function of strength of particle attractions is well-fitted by
simple power laws. Finally, we measure the interfacial stiffness using
capillary wave theory and the equipartition theorem, and find a simple linear
relation between surface tension and interfacial stiffness with a
proportionality constant characterized by an effective temperature.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures (Corrected typos and References
Phase separation dynamics in a two-dimensional magnetic mixture
Based on classical density functional theory (DFT), we investigate the
demixing phase transition of a two-dimensional, binary Heisenberg fluid
mixture. The particles in the mixture are modeled as Gaussian soft spheres,
where one component is characterized by an additional classical spin-spin
interaction of Heisenberg type. Within the DFT we treat the particle
interactions using a mean-field approximation. For certain magnetic coupling
strengths we calculate phase diagrams in the density-concentration plane. For
sufficiently large coupling strengths and densities, we find a demixing phase
transition driven by the ferromagnetic interactions of the magnetic species. We
also provide a microscopic description (i.e., density profiles) of the
resulting non-magnetic/magnetic fluid-fluid interface. Finally, we investigate
the phase separation using dynamical density functional theory (DDFT),
considering both nucleation processes and spinodal demixing.Comment: 15 pages, 10 figure
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