2,122 research outputs found
Global 21cm signal experiments: a designer's guide
[Abridged] The spatially averaged global spectrum of the redshifted 21cm line
has generated much experimental interest, for it is potentially a direct probe
of the Epoch of Reionization and the Dark Ages. Since the cosmological signal
here has a purely spectral signature, most proposed experiments have little
angular sensitivity. This is worrisome because with only spectra, the global
21cm signal can be difficult to distinguish from foregrounds such as Galactic
synchrotron radiation, as both are spectrally smooth and the latter is orders
of magnitude brighter. We establish a mathematical framework for global signal
data analysis in a way that removes foregrounds optimally, complementing
spectra with angular information. We explore various experimental design
trade-offs, and find that 1) with spectral-only methods, it is impossible to
mitigate errors that arise from uncertainties in foreground modeling; 2)
foreground contamination can be significantly reduced for experiments with fine
angular resolution; 3) most of the statistical significance in a positive
detection during the Dark Ages comes from a characteristic high-redshift trough
in the 21cm brightness temperature; and 4) Measurement errors decrease more
rapidly with integration time for instruments with fine angular resolution. We
show that if observations and algorithms are optimized based on these findings,
an instrument with a 5 degree beam can achieve highly significant detections
(greater than 5-sigma) of even extended (high Delta-z) reionization scenarios
after integrating for 500 hrs. This is in contrast to instruments without
angular resolution, which cannot detect gradual reionization. Abrupt ionization
histories can be detected at the level of 10-100's of sigma. The expected
errors are also low during the Dark Ages, with a 25-sigma detection of the
expected cosmological signal after only 100 hrs of integration.Comment: 34 pages, 30 figures. Replaced (v2) to match accepted PRD version
(minor pedagogical additions to text; methods, results, and conclusions
unchanged). Fixed two typos (v3); text, results, conclusions etc. completely
unchange
Active Galactic Nuclei in Void Regions
We present a comprehensive study of accretion activity in the most underdense
environments in the universe, the voids, based on the SDSS DR2 data. Based on
investigations of multiple void regions, we show that AGN's occurrence rate and
properties differ from those in walls. AGN are more common in voids than in
walls, but only among moderately luminous and massive galaxies (M_r < -20, log
M_*/M_sun < 10.5), and this enhancement is more pronounced for the weakly
accreting systems (i.e., L_[O III] < 10^39 erg/s). Void AGN hosted by
moderately massive and luminous galaxies are accreting at equal or lower rates
than their wall counterparts, show less obscuration than in walls, and
similarly aged stellar populations. The very few void AGN in massive bright
hosts accrete more strongly, are more obscured, and are associated with younger
stellar emission than wall AGN. Thus, accretion strength is probably connected
to the availability of fuel supply, and accretion and star-formation co-evolve
and rely on the same source of fuel. Nearest neighbor statistics indicate that
the weak accretion activity (LINER-like) is not influenced by the local
environment. However, H IIs, Seyferts, and Transition objects prefer more
grouped small scale structures, indicating that the rate at which galaxies
interact with each other affects their activity. These trends support a
potential H II -> Seyfert/Transition Object -> LINER evolutionary sequence that
we show is apparent in many properties of actively line-emitting galaxies, in
both voids and walls. The subtle differences between void and wall AGN might be
explained by a longer, less disturbed duty cycle of these systems in voids.Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures (1 color); to appear in ApJ, submitted on May 11,
200
Spatial Correlation Function of X-ray Selected AGN
We present a detailed description of the first direct measurement of the
spatial correlation function of X-ray selected AGN. This result is based on an
X-ray flux-limited sample of 219 AGN discovered in the contiguous 80.7 deg^2
region of the ROSAT North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) Survey. Clustering is detected at
the 4 sigma level at comoving scales in the interval r = 5-60 h^-1 Mpc. Fitting
the data with a power law of slope gamma=1.8, we find a correlation length of
r_0 = 7.4 (+1.8, -1.9) h^-1 Mpc (Omega_M=0.3, Omega_Lambda=0.7). The median
redshift of the AGN contributing to the signal is z_xi=0.22. This clustering
amplitude implies that X-ray selected AGN are spatially distributed in a manner
similar to that of optically selected AGN. Furthermore, the ROSAT NEP
determination establishes the local behavior of AGN clustering, a regime which
is poorly sampled in general. Combined with high-redshift measures from optical
studies, the ROSAT NEP results argue that the AGN correlation strength
essentially does not evolve with redshift, at least out to z~2.2. In the local
Universe, X-ray selected AGN appear to be unbiased relative to galaxies and the
inferred X-ray bias parameter is near unity, b_X~1. Hence X-ray selected AGN
closely trace the underlying mass distribution. The ROSAT NEP AGN catalog,
presented here, features complete optical identifications and spectroscopic
redshifts. The median redshift, X-ray flux, and X-ray luminosity are z=0.41,
f_X=1.1*10^-13 cgs, and L_X=9.2*10^43 h_70^-2 cgs (0.5-2.0 keV), respectively.
Unobscured, type 1 AGN are the dominant constituents (90%) of this soft X-ray
selected sample of AGN.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ, a version with
high-resolution figures is available at
http://www.eso.org/~cmullis/papers/Mullis_et_al_2004b.ps.gz, a
machine-readable version of the ROSAT NEP AGN catalog is available at
http://www.eso.org/~cmullis/research/nep-catalog.htm
Near-Infrared Adaptive Optics Imaging of the Central Regions of Nearby Sc Galaxies: I. M33
Near-infrared images obtained with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT)
Adaptive Optics Bonnette (AOB) are used to investigate the stellar content
within 18 arcsec of the center of the Local Group spiral galaxy M33. AGB stars
with near-infrared spectral-energy distributions similar to those of giants in
the solar neighborhood and Baade's Window are detected over most of the field.
The bolometric luminosity function (LF) of these stars has a discontinuity near
M_{bol} = -5.25, and comparisons with evolutionary tracks suggest that most of
the AGB stars formed in a burst of star formation 1 - 3 Gyr in the past. The
images are also used to investigate the integrated near-infrared photometric
properties of the nucleus and the central light concentration. The nucleus is
bluer than the central light concentration, in agreement with previous studies
at visible wavelengths. The CO index of the central light concentration 0.5
arcsec from the galaxy center is 0.05, which corresponds to [Fe/H] = -1.2 for
simple stellar systems. Hence, the central light concentration could not have
formed from the chemically-enriched material that dominates the present-day
inner disk of M33.Comment: 23 pages of text + 11 figures; to appear in A
Recommended from our members
Low density molecular gas in the galaxy
The distributions and physical conditions in molecular gas in the interstellar medium have been investigated in both the Galaxy and towards external galaxies. For example, Galactic plane surveys in the CO J =1-0 line with the Columbia 1.2-m telescope and with the Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory (FCRAO) 14-m telescopes have been able to trace spiral arms more clearly than HI surveys have been able to reveal, and indicate that most of molecular mass is contained in Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs). Extensive maps of the whole Milky Way showed two prominent features, the 4-kpc molecular ring and the Galactic center. The physical conditions in the Galaxy have been studied by comparing the intensity of CO J =1-0 line with those of other lines, e.g., 13CO J =1-0, higher J transitions of CO, and dense gas tracers such as HCO+, CS, and HCN.
Previous studies were however strongly biased towards regions where CO emission was known to be intense. The radial distribution of molecular hydrogen shows that most of the H2 gas which is indirectly traced by observations of its associated CO emission, originates from the inner Galaxy (Dame 1993). Extending outwards from a galacto-centric distance of ~7 kpc, the H2 mass surface density decreases dramatically, and HI dominates over H2 in the outer Galaxy. What are physical conditions of molecular gas where the CO emission is relatively weak, and can we really trace all of the molecular gas through obervations of CO? These kinds of problems have not been solved yet, but are addressed in our study
Post-polymerization functionalization of poly(ethylene oxide)–poly(β-6-heptenolactone) diblock copolymers to tune properties and self-assembly
Copolymers were synthesized and functionalized with a variety of moieties to tune self-assembly and install drugs or fluorescent dyes. , Polyester-based amphiphilic block copolymers and their nanoassemblies are of significant interest for a wide range of applications due to the degradability of the polyester block. However, the commonly used polyesters lack functional groups on their backbones, limiting the possibilities to chemically modify these polymers. Described here are new poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)–poly(β-6-heptenolactone) (PHEL) block copolymers having pendant alkenes at each repeat unit on the PHEL block. First, the self-assembly of these block copolymers in aqueous solution was studied and it was found that they formed solid nanoparticles and vesicles depending on the relative block lengths. Next the alkene moieties of the block copolymer were modified with either hydrophilic or hydrophobic pendant groups using thiol–ene reactions, allowing the hydrophilic mass fractions and consequently the self-assembled morphologies to be tuned, accessing both smaller nanoparticles and cylindrical assemblies. It was also demonstrated that the anti-cancer drug paclitaxel or a fluorescent rhodamine dye could be easily conjugated to the block copolymers and the self-assembly of these conjugates was explored. Overall, the results of this study demonstrate that PEO-PHEL block copolymers can serve as versatile backbones for the preparation of functional, polyester-based materials
Clonal interference and Muller's ratchet in spatial habitats
Competition between independently arising beneficial mutations is enhanced in
spatial populations due to the linear rather than exponential growth of clones.
Recent theoretical studies have pointed out that the resulting fitness dynamics
is analogous to a surface growth process, where new layers nucleate and spread
stochastically, leading to the build up of scale-invariant roughness. This
scenario differs qualitatively from the standard view of adaptation in that the
speed of adaptation becomes independent of population size while the fitness
variance does not. Here we exploit recent progress in the understanding of
surface growth processes to obtain precise predictions for the universal,
non-Gaussian shape of the fitness distribution for one-dimensional habitats,
which are verified by simulations. When the mutations are deleterious rather
than beneficial the problem becomes a spatial version of Muller's ratchet. In
contrast to the case of well-mixed populations, the rate of fitness decline
remains finite even in the limit of an infinite habitat, provided the ratio
between the deleterious mutation rate and the square of the
(negative) selection coefficient is sufficiently large. Using again an analogy
to surface growth models we show that the transition between the stationary and
the moving state of the ratchet is governed by directed percolation
OH Zeeman Magnetic Field Detections Toward Five Supernova Remnants Using the VLA
We have observed the OH (1720 MHz) line in five galactic SNRs with the VLA to
measure their magnetic field strengths using the Zeeman effect. We detected all
12 of the bright ( mJy) OH (1720 MHz) masers previously detected
by Frail et al. (1996) and Green et al. (1997) and measured significant
magnetic fields (i.e. ) in ten of them. Assuming that the
``thermal'' Zeeman equation can be used to estimate for OH
masers, our estimated fields range from 0.2 to 2 mG. These magnetic field
strengths are consistent with the hypothesis that ambient molecular cloud
magnetic fields are compressed via the SNR shock to the observed values.
Magnetic fields of this magnitude exert a considerable influence on the
properties of the cloud with the magnetic pressures ( erg
cm) exceeding the pressure in the ISM or even the thermal pressure of
the hot gas interior to the remnant. This study brings the number of galactic
SNRs with OH (1720 MHz) Zeeman detections to ten.Comment: 23 pages, 14 figures, accepted to ApJ, for higher resolution images
of Figs 4,11, and 12 see http://www.pa.uky.edu/~brogan/brog_publ.htm
Quasar Clustering and the Lifetime of Quasars
Although the population of luminous quasars rises and falls over a period of
10^9 years, the typical lifetime of individual quasars is uncertain by several
orders of magnitude. We show that quasar clustering measurements can
substantially narrow the range of possible lifetimes with the assumption that
luminous quasars reside in the most massive host halos. If quasars are
long-lived, then they are rare phenomena that are highly biased with respect to
the underlying dark matter, while if they are short-lived they reside in more
typical halos that are less strongly clustered. For a given quasar lifetime, we
calculate the minimum host halo mass by matching the observed space density of
quasars, using the Press-Schechter approximation. We use the results of Mo &
White to calculate the clustering of these halos, and hence of the quasars they
contain, as a function of quasar lifetime. A lifetime of t_Q = 4 x 10^7 years,
the e-folding timescale of an Eddington luminosity black hole with accretion
efficiency eps=0.1, corresponds to a quasar correlation length r_0 ~ 10 Mpc/h
in low-density cosmological models at z=2-3; this value is consistent with
current clustering measurements, but these have large uncertainties.
High-precision clustering measurements from the 2dF and Sloan quasar surveys
will test our key assumption of a tight correlation between quasar luminosity
and host halo mass, and if this assumption holds then they should determine t_Q
to a factor of three or better. An accurate determination of the quasar
lifetime will show whether supermassive black holes acquire most of their mass
during high-luminosity accretion, and it will show whether the black holes in
the nuclei of typical nearby galaxies were once the central engines of
high-luminosity quasars.Comment: ApJ Accepted (Feb 2001). 30 pages, 8 embedded ps figures, AASTEX5.
Added discussion of quasar luminosity evolution. Also available at
http://www.ociw.edu/~martini/pubs
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