4,917 research outputs found
Energetics of metal slabs and clusters: the rectangle-box model
An expansion of energy characteristics of wide thin slab of thickness L in
power of 1/L is constructed using the free-electron approximation and the model
of a potential well of finite depth. Accuracy of results in each order of the
expansion is analyzed. Size dependences of the work function and electronic
elastic force for Au and Na slabs are calculated. It is concluded that the work
function of low-dimensional metal structure is always smaller that of
semi-infinite metal sample.
A mechanism for the Coulomb instability of charged metal clusters, different
from Rayleigh's one, is discussed. The two-component model of a metallic
cluster yields the different critical sizes depending on a kind of charging
particles (electrons or ions). For the cuboid clusters, the electronic spectrum
quantization is taken into account. The calculated critical sizes of
Ag_{N}^{2-} and Au_{N}^{3-} clusters are in a good agreement with experimental
data. A qualitative explanation is suggested for the Coulomb explosion of
positively charged Na_{\N}^{n+} clusters at 3<n<5.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl
High-pressure transport properties of CeRu_2Ge_2
The pressure-induced changes in the temperature-dependent thermopower S(T)
and electrical resistivity \rho(T) of CeRu_2Ge_2 are described within the
single-site Anderson model. The Ce-ions are treated as impurities and the
coherent scattering on different Ce-sites is neglected. Changing the
hybridisation \Gamma between the 4f-states and the conduction band accounts for
the pressure effect. The transport coefficients are calculated in the
non-crossing approximation above the phase boundary line. The theoretical S(T)
and \rho(T) curves show many features of the experimental data. The seemingly
complicated temperature dependence of S(T) and \rho(T), and their evolution as
a function of pressure, is related to the crossovers between various fixed
points of the model.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure
Mid-Infrared interferometry of dust around massive evolved stars
We report long-baseline interferometric measurements of circumstellar dust
around massive evolved stars with the MIDI instrument on the Very Large
Telescope Interferometer and provide spectrally dispersed visibilities in the
8-13 micron wavelength band. We also present diffraction-limited observations
at 10.7 micron on the Keck Telescope with baselines up to 8.7 m which explore
larger scale structure. We have resolved the dust shells around the late type
WC stars WR 106 and WR 95, and the enigmatic NaSt1 (formerly WR 122), suspected
to have recently evolved from a Luminous Blue Variable (LBV) stage. For AG Car,
the protoypical LBV in our sample, we marginally resolve structure close to the
star, distinct from the well-studied detached nebula. The dust shells around
the two WC stars show fairly constant size in the 8-13 micron MIDI band, with
gaussian half-widths of ~ 25 to 40 mas. The compact dust we detect around NaSt1
and AG Car favors recent or ongoing dust formation.
Using the measured visibilities, we build spherically symmetric radiative
transfer models of the WC dust shells which enable detailed comparison with
existing SED-based models. Our results indicate that the inner radii of the
shells are within a few tens of AU from the stars. In addition, our models
favor grain size distributions with large (~ 1 micron) dust grains. This
proximity of the inner dust to the hot central star emphasizes the difficulty
faced by current theories in forming dust in the hostile environment around WR
stars. Although we detect no direct evidence for binarity for these objects,
dust production in a colliding-wind interface in a binary system is a feasible
mechanism in WR systems under these conditions.Comment: 21 pages, 4 tables, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in the
Astrophysical Journa
Dust Formation and He II 4686 emission in the Dense Shell of the Peculiar Type Ib Supernova 2006jc
We present evidence for the formation of dust grains in an unusual Type Ib SN
based on late-time spectra of SN 2006jc. The progenitor suffered an LBV-like
outburst just 2 yr earlier, and we propose that the dust formation is a
consequence of the SN blast wave overtaking that LBV-like shell. The key
evidence for dust formation is (a) the appearance of a red/near-IR continuum
source fit by 1600 K graphite grains, and (b) fading of the redshifted sides of
He I emission lines, yielding progressively more asymmetric blueshifted lines
as dust obscures receding material. This provides the strongest case yet for
dust formation in any SN Ib/c. Both developments occurred between 51 and 75 d
after peak, while other SNe observed to form dust did so after a few hundred
days. Geometric considerations indicate that dust formed in the dense swept-up
shell between the forward and reverse shocks, and not in the freely expanding
SN ejecta. Rapid cooling leading to dust formation may have been aided by
extremely high shell densities, as indicated by He I line ratios. The brief
epoch of dust formation is accompanied by He II 4686 emission and enhanced
X-ray emission. These clues suggest that the unusual dust formation in this
object was not due to properties of the SN itself, but instead -- like most
peculiarities of SN 2006jc -- was a consequence of the dense environment
created by an LBV-like eruption 2 yr before the SN.Comment: ApJ, accepted. added some discussion and 2 figures, better title,
conclusions same as previous version. 12 pages, 4 color fig
Quantization of Wilson loops in Wess-Zumino-Witten models
We describe a non-perturbative quantization of classical Wilson loops in the
WZW model. The quantized Wilson loop is an operator acting on the Hilbert space
of closed strings and commuting either with the full Kac-Moody chiral algebra
or with one of its subalgebras. We prove that under open/closed string duality,
it is dual to a boundary perturbation of the open string theory. As an
application, we show that such operators are useful tools for identifying fixed
points of the boundary renormalization group flow.Comment: 24 pages. Version published in JHE
Optical Interferometry of early-type stars with PAVO@CHARA. I. Fundamental stellar properties
We present interferometric observations of 7 main-sequence and 3 giant stars
with spectral types from B2 to F6 using the PAVO beam combiner at the CHARA
array. We have directly determined the angular diameters for these objects with
an average precision of 2.3%. We have also computed bolometric fluxes using
available photometry in the visible and infrared wavelengths, as well as
space-based ultraviolet spectroscopy. Combined with precise \textit{Hipparcos}
parallaxes, we have derived a set of fundamental stellar properties including
linear radius, luminosity and effective temperature. Fitting the latter to
computed isochrone models, we have inferred masses and ages of the stars. The
effective temperatures obtained are in good agreement (at a 3% level) with
nearly-independent temperature estimations from spectroscopy. They validate
recent sixth-order polynomial (B-V)- empirical relations
\citep{Boyajian2012a}, but suggest that a more conservative third-order
solution \citep{vanBelle2009} could adequately describe the
(V-K)- relation for main-sequence stars of spectral type A0 and
later. Finally, we have compared mass values obtained combining surface gravity
with inferred stellar radius (\textit{gravity mass}) and as a result of the
comparison of computed luminosity and temperature values with stellar
evolutionary models (\textit{isochrone mass}). The strong discrepancy between
isochrone and gravity mass obtained for one of the observed stars,
\,Lyr, suggests that determination of the stellar atmosphere parameters
should be revised.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The anomaly line bundle of the self-dual field theory
In this work, we determine explicitly the anomaly line bundle of the abelian
self-dual field theory over the space of metrics modulo diffeomorphisms,
including its torsion part. Inspired by the work of Belov and Moore, we propose
a non-covariant action principle for a pair of Euclidean self-dual fields on a
generic oriented Riemannian manifold. The corresponding path integral allows to
study the global properties of the partition function over the space of metrics
modulo diffeomorphisms. We show that the anomaly bundle for a pair of self-dual
fields differs from the determinant bundle of the Dirac operator coupled to
chiral spinors by a flat bundle that is not trivial if the underlying manifold
has middle-degree cohomology, and whose holonomies are determined explicitly.
We briefly sketch the relevance of this result for the computation of the
global gravitational anomaly of the self-dual field theory, that will appear in
another paper.Comment: 41 pages. v2: A few typos corrected. Version accepted for publication
in CM
On the Interferometric Sizes of Young Stellar Objects
Long-baseline optical interferometers can now detect and resolve hot dust
emission thought to arise at the inner edge of circumstellar disks around young
stellar objects (YSOs). We argue that the near-infrared sizes being measured
are closely related to the radius at which dust is sublimated by the stellar
radiation field. We consider how realistic dust optical properties and gas
opacity dramatically affect the predicted location of this dust destruction
radius, an exercise routinely done in other contexts but so far neglected in
the analysis of near-infrared sizes of YSOs. We also present the accumulated
literature of near-infrared YSO sizes in the form of a ``size-luminosity
diagram'' and compare with theoretical expectations. We find evidence that
large (>~ 1 micron) dust grains predominate in the inner disks of T Tauri and
Herbig Ae/Be stars, under the assumption that the inner-most gaseous disks are
optically-thin at visible wavelengths.Comment: Accepted by Astrophysical Journa
Boosting Biomass Quantity and Quality by Improved Mixotrophic Culture of the Diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum
Diatoms are photoautotrophic unicellular algae and are among the most abundant, adaptable, and diverse marine phytoplankton. They are extremely interesting not only for their ecological role but also as potential feedstocks for sustainable biofuels and high-value commodities such as omega fatty acids, because of their capacity to accumulate lipids. However, the cultivation of microalgae on an industrial scale requires higher cell densities and lipid accumulation than those found in nature to make the process economically viable. One of the known ways to induce lipid accumulation in Phaeodactylum tricornutum is nitrogen deprivation, which comes at the expense of growth inhibition and lower cell density. Thus, alternative ways need to be explored to enhance the lipid production as well as biomass density to make them sustainable at industrial scale. In this study, we have used experimental and metabolic modeling approaches to optimize the media composition, in terms of elemental composition, organic and inorganic carbon sources, and light intensity, that boost both biomass quality and quantity of P. tricornutum. Eventually, the optimized conditions were scaled-up to 2 L photobioreactors, where a better system control (temperature, pH, light, aeration/mixing) allowed a further improvement of the biomass capacity of P. tricornutum to 12 g/L
Physical processes leading to surface inhomogeneities: the case of rotation
In this lecture I discuss the bulk surface heterogeneity of rotating stars,
namely gravity darkening. I especially detail the derivation of the omega-model
of Espinosa Lara & Rieutord (2011), which gives the gravity darkening in
early-type stars. I also discuss the problem of deriving gravity darkening in
stars owning a convective envelope and in those that are members of a binary
system.Comment: 23 pages, 11 figure, Lecture given to the school on the cartography
of the Sun and the stars (May 2014 in Besan\c{c}on), to appear in LNP, Neiner
and Rozelot edts V2: typos correcte
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