721 research outputs found

    Analysis of LIGO data for gravitational waves from binary neutron stars

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    We report on a search for gravitational waves from coalescing compact binary systems in the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds. The analysis uses data taken by two of the three LIGO interferometers during the first LIGO science run and illustrates a method of setting upper limits on inspiral event rates using interferometer data. The analysis pipeline is described with particular attention to data selection and coincidence between the two interferometers. We establish an observational upper limit of R<\mathcal{R}<1.7 \times 10^{2}peryearperMilkyWayEquivalentGalaxy(MWEG),with90coalescencerateofbinarysystemsinwhicheachcomponenthasamassintherange13 per year per Milky Way Equivalent Galaxy (MWEG), with 90% confidence, on the coalescence rate of binary systems in which each component has a mass in the range 1--3 M_\odot$.Comment: 17 pages, 9 figure

    Planck intermediate results. VIII. Filaments between interacting clusters

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    About half of the baryons of the Universe are expected to be in the form of filaments of hot and low density intergalactic medium. Most of these baryons remain undetected even by the most advanced X-ray observatories which are limited in sensitivity to the diffuse low density medium. The Planck satellite has provided hundreds of detections of the hot gas in clusters of galaxies via the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (tSZ) effect and is an ideal instrument for studying extended low density media through the tSZ effect. In this paper we use the Planck data to search for signatures of a fraction of these missing baryons between pairs of galaxy clusters. Cluster pairs are good candidates for searching for the hotter and denser phase of the intergalactic medium (which is more easily observed through the SZ effect). Using an X-ray catalogue of clusters and the Planck data, we select physical pairs of clusters as candidates. Using the Planck data we construct a local map of the tSZ effect centered on each pair of galaxy clusters. ROSAT data is used to construct X-ray maps of these pairs. After having modelled and subtracted the tSZ effect and X-ray emission for each cluster in the pair we study the residuals on both the SZ and X-ray maps. For the merging cluster pair A399-A401 we observe a significant tSZ effect signal in the intercluster region beyond the virial radii of the clusters. A joint X-ray SZ analysis allows us to constrain the temperature and density of this intercluster medium. We obtain a temperature of kT = 7.1 +- 0.9, keV (consistent with previous estimates) and a baryon density of (3.7 +- 0.2)x10^-4, cm^-3. The Planck satellite mission has provided the first SZ detection of the hot and diffuse intercluster gas.Comment: Accepted by A&

    Star Formation and Dynamics in the Galactic Centre

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    The centre of our Galaxy is one of the most studied and yet enigmatic places in the Universe. At a distance of about 8 kpc from our Sun, the Galactic centre (GC) is the ideal environment to study the extreme processes that take place in the vicinity of a supermassive black hole (SMBH). Despite the hostile environment, several tens of early-type stars populate the central parsec of our Galaxy. A fraction of them lie in a thin ring with mild eccentricity and inner radius ~0.04 pc, while the S-stars, i.e. the ~30 stars closest to the SMBH (<0.04 pc), have randomly oriented and highly eccentric orbits. The formation of such early-type stars has been a puzzle for a long time: molecular clouds should be tidally disrupted by the SMBH before they can fragment into stars. We review the main scenarios proposed to explain the formation and the dynamical evolution of the early-type stars in the GC. In particular, we discuss the most popular in situ scenarios (accretion disc fragmentation and molecular cloud disruption) and migration scenarios (star cluster inspiral and Hills mechanism). We focus on the most pressing challenges that must be faced to shed light on the process of star formation in the vicinity of a SMBH.Comment: 68 pages, 35 figures; invited review chapter, to be published in expanded form in Haardt, F., Gorini, V., Moschella, U. and Treves, A., 'Astrophysical Black Holes'. Lecture Notes in Physics. Springer 201

    Planck 2015 results. XXVII. The Second Planck Catalogue of Sunyaev-Zeldovich Sources

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    We present the all-sky Planck catalogue of Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) sources detected from the 29 month full-mission data. The catalogue (PSZ2) is the largest SZ-selected sample of galaxy clusters yet produced and the deepest all-sky catalogue of galaxy clusters. It contains 1653 detections, of which 1203 are confirmed clusters with identified counterparts in external data-sets, and is the first SZ-selected cluster survey containing > 10310^3 confirmed clusters. We present a detailed analysis of the survey selection function in terms of its completeness and statistical reliability, placing a lower limit of 83% on the purity. Using simulations, we find that the Y5R500 estimates are robust to pressure-profile variation and beam systematics, but accurate conversion to Y500 requires. the use of prior information on the cluster extent. We describe the multi-wavelength search for counterparts in ancillary data, which makes use of radio, microwave, infra-red, optical and X-ray data-sets, and which places emphasis on the robustness of the counterpart match. We discuss the physical properties of the new sample and identify a population of low-redshift X-ray under- luminous clusters revealed by SZ selection. These objects appear in optical and SZ surveys with consistent properties for their mass, but are almost absent from ROSAT X-ray selected samples

    D* Production in Deep Inelastic Scattering at HERA

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    This paper presents measurements of D^{*\pm} production in deep inelastic scattering from collisions between 27.5 GeV positrons and 820 GeV protons. The data have been taken with the ZEUS detector at HERA. The decay channel D+(D0Kπ+)π+D^{*+}\to (D^0 \to K^- \pi^+) \pi^+ (+ c.c.) has been used in the study. The e+pe^+p cross section for inclusive D^{*\pm} production with 5<Q2<100GeV25<Q^2<100 GeV^2 and y<0.7y<0.7 is 5.3 \pms 1.0 \pms 0.8 nb in the kinematic region {1.3<pT(D±)<9.01.3<p_T(D^{*\pm})<9.0 GeV and η(D±)<1.5| \eta(D^{*\pm}) |<1.5}. Differential cross sections as functions of p_T(D^{*\pm}), η(D±),W\eta(D^{*\pm}), W and Q2Q^2 are compared with next-to-leading order QCD calculations based on the photon-gluon fusion production mechanism. After an extrapolation of the cross section to the full kinematic region in p_T(D^{*\pm}) and η\eta(D^{*\pm}), the charm contribution F2ccˉ(x,Q2)F_2^{c\bar{c}}(x,Q^2) to the proton structure function is determined for Bjorken xx between 2 \cdot 104^{-4} and 5 \cdot 103^{-3}.Comment: 17 pages including 4 figure

    Observation of Scaling Violations in Scaled Momentum Distributions at HERA

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    Charged particle production has been measured in deep inelastic scattering (DIS) events over a large range of xx and Q2Q^2 using the ZEUS detector. The evolution of the scaled momentum, xpx_p, with Q2,Q^2, in the range 10 to 1280 GeV2GeV^2, has been investigated in the current fragmentation region of the Breit frame. The results show clear evidence, in a single experiment, for scaling violations in scaled momenta as a function of Q2Q^2.Comment: 21 pages including 4 figures, to be published in Physics Letters B. Two references adde

    Measurement of the B0-anti-B0-Oscillation Frequency with Inclusive Dilepton Events

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    The B0B^0-Bˉ0\bar B^0 oscillation frequency has been measured with a sample of 23 million \B\bar B pairs collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric B Factory at SLAC. In this sample, we select events in which both B mesons decay semileptonically and use the charge of the leptons to identify the flavor of each B meson. A simultaneous fit to the decay time difference distributions for opposite- and same-sign dilepton events gives Δmd=0.493±0.012(stat)±0.009(syst)\Delta m_d = 0.493 \pm 0.012{(stat)}\pm 0.009{(syst)} ps1^{-1}.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Physical Review Letter

    The Challenges of Creativity in Software Organizations

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    Part 1: Creating ValueInternational audienceManaging creativity has proven to be one of the most important drivers in software development and use. The continuous changing market environment drives companies like Google, SAS Institute and LEGO to focus on creativity as an increasing necessity when competing through sustained innovations. However, creativity in the information systems (IS) environment is a challenge for most organizations that is primarily caused by not knowing how to strategize creative processes in relation to IS strategies, thus, causing companies to act ad hoc in their creative endeavors. In this paper, we address the organizational challenges of creativity in software organizations. Grounded in a previous literature review and a rigorous selection process, we identify and present a model of seven important factors for creativity in software organizations. From these factors, we identify 21 challenges that software organizations experience when embarking on creative endeavors and transfer them into a comprehensive framework. Using an interpretive research study, we further study the framework by analyzing how the challenges are integrated in 27 software organizations. Practitioners can use this study to gain a deeper understanding of creativity in their own business while researchers can use the framework to gain insight while conducting interpretive field studies of managing creativity
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