152 research outputs found
Detailed Radio Spectra of Selected Compact Sources in the Nucleus of M82
We have determined detailed radio spectra for 26 compact sources in the
starburst nucleus of M82, between 74 and 1.3 cm. Seventeen show low-frequency
turnovers. One other has a thermal emission spectrum, and we identify it as an
HII region. The low frequency turnovers are due to absorption by the
interstellar gas in M82. New information on the AGN candidate 44.01+595, shows
it to have a non-thermal falling powerlaw spectrum at the highest frequencies,
and that it is strongly absorbed below 2 GHz. We derive large magnetic fields
in the supernova remnants, of order 1-2 milliGauss, hence large pressures in
the sources suggest that the brightest ones are either expanding or are
strongly confined by a dense interstellar medium. From the largest source in
our sample, we derive a supernova rate of 0.016 SN/yr.Comment: 19 pages, 7 tables, 29 figures, LaTeX, requires AAS macros v. 4.0. To
appear in ApJ July 20, 199
Intense Current Structures Observed at Electron Kinetic Scales in the NearâEarth Magnetotail During Dipolarization and Substorm Current Wedge Formation
We use data from the 2013â2014 Cluster Inner Magnetosphere Campaign, with its uniquely small spacecraft separations (less than or equal to electron inertia length, λe), to study multiscale magnetic structures in 14 substormârelated prolonged dipolarizations in the nearâEarth magnetotail. Three time scales of dipolarization are identified: (i) a prolonged growth of the BZ component with duration â€20 min; (ii) BZ pulses with durations â€1 min during the BZ growth; and (iii) strong magnetic field gradients with durations â€2 s during the dipolarization growth. The values of these gradients observed at electron scales are several dozen times larger than the corresponding values of magnetic gradients simultaneously detected at ion scales. These nonlinear features in magnetic field gradients denote the formation of intense and localized (approximately a few λe) current structures during the dipolarization and substorm current wedge formation. These observations highlight the importance of electron scale processes in the formation of a 3âD substorm current system.Key PointsMultiscale current structure formed during dipolarization growthIntense current structures are transiently (â€2 s) observed at the leading and trailing edges of BZ pulses during dipolarization growthSpatial scales of the intense current structures are ~100â200 km ~(2.5â5.0)λePeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142547/1/grl56899_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142547/2/grl56899.pd
General relativistic plasma in higher dimensional space time
The well known (3+1) decomposition of Thorne and Macdonald is invoked to
write down the Einstein-Maxwell equations generalised to (d+1) dimensions and
also to formulate the plasma equations in a flat FRW like spacetime in higher
dimensions (HD). Assuming an equation of state for the background metric we
find solutions as also dispersion relations in different regimes of the
universe in a unified manner both for magnetised(un) cold plasma. We find that
for a free photon in expanding background we get maximum redshift in 4D
spacetime, while for a particular dimension it is so in pre recombination era.
Further wave propagation in magnetised plasma is possible for a restricted
frequency range only, depending on the number of dimensions. Relevant to point
out that unlike the special relativistic result this allowed range evolves with
time. Interestingly the dielectric constant of the plasma media remains
constant, not sharing the expansion of the background, which generalises a
similar 4D result of Holcomb-Tajima in radiation background to the case of
higher dimensions with cosmic matter obeying an equation of state . Further,
analogous to the flat space static case we observe the phenomenon of Faraday
rotation in higher dimensional case also.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figure
Seminal magnetic fields from Inflato-electromagnetic Inflation
We extend some previous attempts to explain the origin and evolution of
primordial magnetic fields during inflation induced from a 5D vacuum. We show
that the usual quantum fluctuations of a generalized 5D electromagnetic field
cannot provide us with the desired magnetic seeds. We show that special fields
without propagation on the extra non-compact dimension are needed to arrive to
appreciable magnetic strengths. We also identify a new magnetic tensor field
in this kind of extra dimensional theories. Our results are in very
good agreement with observational requirements, in particular from TeV Blazars
and CMB radiation limits we obtain that primordial cosmological magnetic fields
should be close scale invariance.Comment: Improved version. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1007.3891
by other author
A Radio and Optical Polarization Study of the Magnetic Field in the Small Magellanic Cloud
We present a study of the magnetic field of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC),
carried out using radio Faraday rotation and optical starlight polarization
data. Consistent negative rotation measures (RMs) across the SMC indicate that
the line-of-sight magnetic field is directed uniformly away from us with a
strength 0.19 +/- 0.06 microGauss. Applying the Chandrasekhar-Fermi method to
starlight polarization data yields an ordered magnetic field in the plane of
the sky of strength 1.6 +/- 0.4 microGauss oriented at a position angle 4 +/-
12 degs, measured counter-clockwise from the great circle on the sky joining
the SMC to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). We construct a three-dimensional
magnetic field model of the SMC, under the assumption that the RMs and
starlight polarization probe the same underlying large-scale field. The vector
defining the overall orientation of the SMC magnetic field shows a potential
alignment with the vector joining the center of the SMC to the center of the
LMC, suggesting the possibility of a "pan-Magellanic'' magnetic field. A
cosmic-ray driven dynamo is the most viable explanation of the observed field
geometry, but has difficulties accounting for the observed uni-directional
field lines. A study of Faraday rotation through the Magellanic Bridge is
needed to further test the pan-Magellanic field hypothesis.Comment: 28 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Numerical simulations of the Warm-Hot Intergalactic Medium
In this paper we review the current predictions of numerical simulations for
the origin and observability of the warm hot intergalactic medium (WHIM), the
diffuse gas that contains up to 50 per cent of the baryons at z~0. During
structure formation, gravitational accretion shocks emerging from collapsing
regions gradually heat the intergalactic medium (IGM) to temperatures in the
range T~10^5-10^7 K. The WHIM is predicted to radiate most of its energy in the
ultraviolet (UV) and X-ray bands and to contribute a significant fraction of
the soft X-ray background emission. While O VI and C IV absorption systems
arising in the cooler fraction of the WHIM with T~10^5-10^5.5 K are seen in
FUSE and HST observations, models agree that current X-ray telescopes such as
Chandra and XMM-Newton do not have enough sensitivity to detect the hotter
WHIM. However, future missions such as Constellation-X and XEUS might be able
to detect both emission lines and absorption systems from highly ionised atoms
such as O VII, O VIII and Fe XVII.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Space Science
Reviews, special issue "Clusters of galaxies: beyond the thermal view",
Editor J.S. Kaastra, Chapter 14; work done by an international team at the
International Space Science Institute (ISSI), Bern, organised by J.S.
Kaastra, A.M. Bykov, S. Schindler & J.A.M. Bleeke
Magnetogenesis from Cosmic String Loops
Large-scale coherent magnetic fields are observed in galaxies and clusters,
but their ultimate origin remains a mystery. We reconsider the prospects for
primordial magnetogenesis by a cosmic string network. We show that the magnetic
flux produced by long strings has been overestimated in the past, and give
improved estimates. We also compute the fields created by the loop population,
and find that it gives the dominant contribution to the total magnetic field
strength on present-day galactic scales. We present numerical results obtained
by evolving semi-analytic models of string networks (including both one-scale
and velocity-dependent one-scale models) in a Lambda-CDM cosmology, including
the forces and torques on loops from Hubble redshifting, dynamical friction,
and gravitational wave emission. Our predictions include the magnetic field
strength as a function of correlation length, as well as the volume covered by
magnetic fields. We conclude that string networks could account for magnetic
fields on galactic scales, but only if coupled with an efficient dynamo
amplification mechanism.Comment: 10 figures; v3: small typos corrected to match published version.
MagnetiCS, the code described in paper, is available at
http://markcwyman.com/ and
http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/dhw22/code/index.htm
Semi-analytical approach to magnetized temperature autocorrelations
The cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature autocorrelations, induced
by a magnetized adiabatic mode of curvature inhomogeneities, are computed with
semi-analytical methods. As suggested by the latest CMB data, a nearly
scale-invariant spectrum for the adiabatic mode is consistently assumed. In
this situation, the effects of a fully inhomogeneous magnetic field are
scrutinized and constrained with particular attention to harmonics which are
relevant for the region of Doppler oscillations. Depending on the parameters of
the stochastic magnetic field a hump may replace the second peak of the angular
power spectrum. Detectable effects on the Doppler region are then expected only
if the magnetic power spectra have quasi-flat slopes and typical amplitude
(smoothed over a comoving scale of Mpc size and redshifted to the epoch of
gravitational collapse of the protogalaxy) exceeding 0.1 nG. If the magnetic
energy spectra are bluer (i.e. steeper in frequency) the allowed value of the
smoothed amplitude becomes, comparatively, larger (in the range of 20 nG). The
implications of this investigation for the origin of large-scale magnetic
fields in the Universe are discussed. Connections with forthcoming experimental
observations of CMB temperature fluctuations are also suggested and partially
explored.Comment: 40 pages, 13 figure
The First Magnetic Fields
We review current ideas on the origin of galactic and extragalactic magnetic
fields. We begin by summarizing observations of magnetic fields at cosmological
redshifts and on cosmological scales. These observations translate into
constraints on the strength and scale magnetic fields must have during the
early stages of galaxy formation in order to seed the galactic dynamo. We
examine mechanisms for the generation of magnetic fields that operate prior
during inflation and during subsequent phase transitions such as electroweak
symmetry breaking and the quark-hadron phase transition. The implications of
strong primordial magnetic fields for the reionization epoch as well as the
first generation of stars is discussed in detail. The exotic, early-Universe
mechanisms are contrasted with astrophysical processes that generate fields
after recombination. For example, a Biermann-type battery can operate in a
proto-galaxy during the early stages of structure formation. Moreover, magnetic
fields in either an early generation of stars or active galactic nuclei can be
dispersed into the intergalactic medium.Comment: Accepted for publication in Space Science Reviews. Pdf can be also
downloaded from http://canopus.cnu.ac.kr/ryu/cosmic-mag1.pd
Relic Neutrino Absorption Spectroscopy
Resonant annihilation of extremely high-energy cosmic neutrinos on big-bang
relic anti-neutrinos (and vice versa) into Z-bosons leads to sizable absorption
dips in the neutrino flux to be observed at Earth. The high-energy edges of
these dips are fixed, via the resonance energies, by the neutrino masses alone.
Their depths are determined by the cosmic neutrino background density, by the
cosmological parameters determining the expansion rate of the universe, and by
the large redshift history of the cosmic neutrino sources. We investigate the
possibility of determining the existence of the cosmic neutrino background
within the next decade from a measurement of these absorption dips in the
neutrino flux. As a by-product, we study the prospects to infer the absolute
neutrino mass scale. We find that, with the presently planned neutrino
detectors (ANITA, Auger, EUSO, OWL, RICE, and SalSA) operating in the relevant
energy regime above 10^{21} eV, relic neutrino absorption spectroscopy becomes
a realistic possibility. It requires, however, the existence of extremely
powerful neutrino sources, which should be opaque to nucleons and high-energy
photons to evade present constraints. Furthermore, the neutrino mass spectrum
must be quasi-degenerate to optimize the dip, which implies m_{nu} >~ 0.1 eV
for the lightest neutrino. With a second generation of neutrino detectors,
these demanding requirements can be relaxed considerably.Comment: 19 pages, 26 figures, REVTeX
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