2,128 research outputs found
MOND and IMF variations in early-type galaxies from ATLAS3D
MOdified Newtonian dynamics (MOND) represents a phenomenological alternative
to dark matter (DM) for the missing mass problem in galaxies and clusters of
galaxies. We analyze the central regions of a local sample of
early-type galaxies from the survey, to see if the data can be
reproduced without recourse to DM. We estimate dynamical masses in the MOND
context through Jeans analysis, and compare to stellar masses
from stellar population synthesis. We find that the observed stellar
mass--velocity dispersion relation is steeper than expected assuming MOND with
a fixed stellar initial mass function (IMF) and a standard value for the
acceleration parameter . Turning from the space of observables to
model space, a) fixing the IMF, a universal value for cannot be
fitted, while, b) fixing and leaving the IMF free to vary, we find
that it is "lighter" (Chabrier-like) for low-dispersion galaxies, and "heavier"
(Salpeter-like) for high dispersions. This MOND-based trend matches inferences
from Newtonian dynamics with DM, and from detailed analysis of spectral
absorption lines, adding to the converging lines of evidence for a
systematically-varying IMF.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication on MNRAS Letters, typos
corrected and further references adde
Evolution of central dark matter of early-type galaxies up to z ~ 0.8
We investigate the evolution of dark and luminous matter in the central
regions of early-type galaxies (ETGs) up to z ~ 0.8. We use a spectroscopically
selected sample of 154 cluster and field galaxies from the EDisCS survey,
covering a wide range in redshifts (z ~ 0.4-0.8), stellar masses ( ~ 10.5-11.5 dex) and velocity dispersions
( ~ 100-300 \, km/s). We obtain central dark matter (DM)
fractions by determining the dynamical masses from Jeans modelling of galaxy
aperture velocity dispersions and the from galaxy colours, and
compare the results with local samples. We discuss how the correlations of
central DM with galaxy size (i.e. the effective radius, ),
and evolve as a function of redshift, finding
clear indications that local galaxies are, on average, more DM dominated than
their counterparts at larger redshift. This DM fraction evolution with can
be only partially interpreted as a consequence of the size-redshift evolution.
We discuss our results within galaxy formation scenarios, and conclude that the
growth in size and DM content which we measure within the last 7 Gyr is
incompatible with passive evolution, while it is well reproduced in the
multiple minor merger scenario. We also discuss the impact of the IMF on our DM
inferences and argue that this can be non-universal with the lookback time. In
particular, we find the Salpeter IMF can be better accommodated by low redshift
systems, while producing stellar masses at high- which are unphysically
larger than the estimated dynamical masses (particularly for
lower- systems).Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables, MNRAS in pres
Nonparametric Regression Analysis of Cyclist Waiting Times across Three Behavioral Typologies
This paper seeks to predict the average waiting time, defined as the time spent moving at 1 ms−1 or less, of urban bicyclists during rush hours while performing different maneuvers at intersections. Individual predictive models are built for the three cyclist typologies previously identified on a large database of GPS traces recorded in the city of Bologna, Italy. Individual models are built for the three cyclist typologies and bootstrapping has confirmed the validity and robustness of the results. The results allow the integration of waiting times in route choice models for cyclists, thus improving the rational bases by which cyclists makes their decisions. Moreover, the modeling allows transportation engineers to understand how different cyclist typologies perceive different variables that affect their waiting times. Future work should focus on testing the model transferability to other case studies
Finding Strong Gravitational Lenses in the Kilo Degree Survey with Convolutional Neural Networks
The volume of data that will be produced by new-generation surveys requires
automatic classification methods to select and analyze sources. Indeed, this is
the case for the search for strong gravitational lenses, where the population
of the detectable lensed sources is only a very small fraction of the full
source population. We apply for the first time a morphological classification
method based on a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) for recognizing strong
gravitational lenses in square degrees of the Kilo Degree Survey (KiDS),
one of the current-generation optical wide surveys. The CNN is currently
optimized to recognize lenses with Einstein radii arcsec, about
twice the -band seeing in KiDS. In a sample of colour-magnitude
selected Luminous Red Galaxies (LRG), of which three are known lenses, the CNN
retrieves 761 strong-lens candidates and correctly classifies two out of three
of the known lenses. The misclassified lens has an Einstein radius below the
range on which the algorithm is trained. We down-select the most reliable 56
candidates by a joint visual inspection. This final sample is presented and
discussed. A conservative estimate based on our results shows that with our
proposed method it should be possible to find massive LRG-galaxy
lenses at z\lsim 0.4 in KiDS when completed. In the most optimistic scenario
this number can grow considerably (to maximally 2400 lenses), when
widening the colour-magnitude selection and training the CNN to recognize
smaller image-separation lens systems.Comment: 24 pages, 17 figures. Published in MNRA
Stellar population gradients from cosmological simulations: dependence on mass and environment in local galaxies
The age and metallicity gradients for a sample of group and cluster galaxies
from N-body+hydrodynamical simulation are analyzed in terms of galaxy stellar
mass. Dwarf galaxies show null age gradient with a tail of high and positive
values for systems in groups and cluster outskirts. Massive systems have
generally zero age gradients which turn to positive for the most massive ones.
Metallicity gradients are distributed around zero in dwarf galaxies and become
more negative with mass; massive galaxies have steeper negative metallicity
gradients, but the trend flatten with mass. In particular, fossil groups are
characterized by a tighter distribution of both age and metallicity gradients.
We find a good agreement with both local observations and independent
simulations. The results are also discussed in terms of the central age and
metallicity, as well as the total colour, specific star formation and velocity
dispersion.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication on MNRA
Constraining decaying dark energy density models with the CMB temperature-redshift relation
We discuss the thermodynamic and dynamical properties of a variable dark
energy model with density scaling as , z being the
redshift. These models lead to the creation/disruption of matter and radiation,
which affect the cosmic evolution of both matter and radiation components in
the Universe. In particular, we have studied the temperature-redshift relation
of radiation, which has been constrained using a recent collection of cosmic
microwave background (CMB) temperature measurements up to . We find
that, within the uncertainties, the model is indistinguishable from a
cosmological constant which does not exchange any particles with other
components. Future observations, in particular measurements of CMB temperature
at large redshift, will allow to give firmer bounds on the effective equation
of state parameter for such types of dark energy models.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figure, to appear in the Proceedings of the 3rd
Italian-Pakistani Workshop on Relativistic Astrophysics, Lecce 20-22 June
2011, published in Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS
Stellar mass-to-light ratio gradients in galaxies: correlations with mass
We analyse the stellar mass-to-light ratio (M/L) gradients in a large sample of local galaxies taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, spanning a wide range of stellar masses and morphological types. As suggested by the well-known relationship between M/L values and colours, we show that M/L gradients are strongly correlated with colour gradients, which we trace to the effects of age variations. Stellar M/L gradients generally follow patterns of variation with stellar mass and galaxy type that were previously found for colour and metallicity gradients. In late-type galaxies M/L gradients are negative, steepening with increasing mass. In early-type galaxies M/L gradients are shallower, while presenting a twofold trend: they decrease with mass up to a characteristic mass of and increase at larger masses. We compare our findings with other analyses and discuss some implications for galaxy formation and for dark matter estimate
Nuclear constraints on non-Newtonian gravity at femtometer scale
Effects of the non-Newtonian gravity on properties of finite nuclei are
studied by consistently incorporating both the direct and exchange contribution
of the Yukawa potential in the Hartree-Fock approach using a well-tested Skyrme
force for the strong interaction. It is shown for the first time that the
strength of the Yukawa term in the non-Newtonian gravity is limited to
within the length scale
of fm in order for the calculated properties of finite nuclei
not to be in conflict with accurate experimental data available.Comment: Additional discussions and references added; related Lab Talk is
available via http://iopscience.iop.org/0954-3899/labtalk-article/5229
SPIDER - VI. The Central Dark Matter Content of Luminous Early-Type Galaxies: Benchmark Correlations with Mass, Structural Parameters and Environment
We analyze the central dark-matter (DM) content of \sim 4,500 massive (M*
\gsim 10^{10} Msun), low-redshift (z<0.1), early-type galaxies (ETGs), with
high-quality ugrizYJHK photometry and optical spectroscopy from SDSS and
UKIDSS. We estimate the "central" fraction of DM within the K-band effective
radius, \Re, using spherically symmetric isotropic galaxy models. We discuss
the role of systematics. The main results of the present work are the
following: (1) DM fractions increase systematically with both structural
parameters and mass proxies, as in previous studies, and decrease with central
stellar density. 2) All correlations involving DM fractions are caused by two
fundamental ones with galaxy effective radius and central velocity dispersion.
These correlations are independent of each other, so that ETGs populate a
central-DM plane (DMP), i.e. a correlation among fraction of total-to-stellar
mass, effective radius, and velocity dispersion, whose scatter along the
total-to-stellar mass axis amounts to \sim 0.15 dex. (3) In general, under the
assumption of an isothermal or a constant M/L profile for the total mass
distribution, a Chabrier IMF is favoured with respect to a bottom-heavier
Salpeter IMF, as the latter produces negative (i.e. unphysical) DM fractions
for more than 50% of the galaxies in our sample. For a Chabrier IMF, the DM
estimates agree with \LambdaCDM toy-galaxy models based on contracted DM-halo
density profiles. We also find agreement with predictions from hydrodynamical
simulations. (4) The central DM content of ETGs does not depend significantly
on the environment where galaxies reside, with group and field ETGs having
similar DM trends. (Abridged)Comment: 20 pages, 13 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication on MNRAS,
version including revisions after the referee's report and feedbacks from
communit
Nonequilibrium Green's function theory for transport and gain properties of quantum cascade structures
The transport and gain properties of quantum cascade (QC) structures are
investigated using a nonequilibrium Green's function (NGF) theory which
includes quantum effects beyond a Boltzmann transport description. In the NGF
theory, we include interface roughness, impurity, and electron-phonon
scattering processes within a self-consistent Born approximation, and
electron-electron scattering in a mean-field approximation. With this theory we
obtain a description of the nonequilibrium stationary state of QC structures
under an applied bias, and hence we determine transport properties, such as the
current-voltage characteristic of these structures. We define two contributions
to the current, one contribution driven by the scattering-free part of the
Hamiltonian, and the other driven by the scattering Hamiltonian. We find that
the dominant part of the current in these structures, in contrast to simple
superlattice structures, is governed mainly by the scattering Hamiltonian. In
addition, by considering the linear response of the stationary state of the
structure to an applied optical field, we determine the linear susceptibility,
and hence the gain or absorption spectra of the structure. A comparison of the
spectra obtained from the more rigorous NGF theory with simpler models shows
that the spectra tend to be offset to higher values in the simpler theories.Comment: 44 pages, 16 figures, appearing in Physical Review B Dec 200
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