1,963 research outputs found
Theory of "Jitter" Radiation from Small-Scale Random Magnetic Fields and Prompt Emission from Gamma-Ray Burst Shocks
Abridged.-- We demonstrate that the radiation emitted by ultrarelativistic
electrons in highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields is different from
synchrotron radiation if the electron's transverse deflections in these fields
are much smaller than the beaming angle. A quantitative analytical theory of
this radiation, which we refer to as jitter radiation, is developed. It is
shown that the emergent spectrum is determined by statistical properties of the
magnetic field. As an example,we then use the model of a magnetic field in
internal shocks of GRBs. The spectral power distribution of radiation produced
by the power-law electrons is well described by a sharply broken power-law with
indices 1 and -(p-1)/2 and the jitter break frequency is independent of the
field strength but depends on the electron density in the ejecta. Since
large-scale fields may also be present in the ejecta, we construct a
two-component, jitter+synchrotron spectral model of the prompt -ray
emission. Quite surprisingly, this model seems to be readily capable of
explaining several properties of time-resolved spectra of some GRBs, such as
(i) the violation of the constraint on the low-energy spectral index called the
synchrotron ``line of death'', (ii) the sharp spectral break at the peak
frequency, inconsistent with the broad synchrotron bump, (iii) the evidence for
two spectral sub-components, and (iv) possible existence of emission features
called ``GRB lines''. We believe these facts strongly support both the
existence of small-scale magnetic fields and the proposed radiation mechanism
from GRB shocks. As an example, we use the composite model to analyze GRB
910503 which has two spectral peaks.Comment: 12 pages (emulateapj), 11 figures (EPS), ApJ, accepted. For related
work, see http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/~mmedved
Superbroad Component in Emission Lines of SS 433
We have detected new components in stationary emission lines of SS 433; these
are the superbroad components that are low-contrast substrates with a width of
2000--2500 km s-1 in He I and H and 4000--5000 km s-1 in
He II . Based on 44 spectra taken during four years of
observations from 2003 to 2007, we have found that these components in the He
II and He I lines are eclipsed by the donor star; their behavior with
precessional and orbital phases is regular and similar to the behavior of the
optical brightness of SS 433. The same component in H shows neither
eclipses nor precessional variability. We conclude that the superbroad
components in the helium and hydrogen lines are different in origin. Electron
scattering is shown to reproduce well the superbroad component of H at a
gas temperature of 20--35 kK and an optical depth for Thomson scattering 0.25--0.35. The superbroad components of the helium lines are probably
formed in the wind from the supercritical accretion disk. We have computed a
wind model based on the concept of Shakura-Sunyaev supercritical disk
accretion. The main patterns of the He II line profiles are well reproduced in
this model: not only the appearance of the superbroad component but also the
evolution of the central two-component part of the profile of this line during
its eclipse by the donor star can be explained.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, 2 tables, published in Astronomy Letters, 2013,
vol. 39, N 12, pp. 826 - 84
Seasonal Water "Pump" in the Atmosphere of Mars: Vertical Transport to the Thermosphere
We present results of simulations with the Max Planck Institute general
circulation model (MPI-MGCM) implementing a hydrological cycle scheme. The
simulations reveal a seasonal water "pump" mechanism responsible for the upward
transport of water vapor. This mechanism occurs in high latitudes above
60 of the southern hemisphere at perihelion, when the upward branch of
the meridional circulation is particularly strong. A combination of the mean
vertical flux with variations induced by solar tides facilitates penetration of
water across the "bottleneck" at approximately 60 km. The meridional
circulation then transports water across the globe to the northern hemisphere.
Since the intensity of the meridional cell is tightly controlled by airborne
dust, the water abundance in the thermosphere strongly increases during dust
storms.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure
Chaos-Order Transition in Matrix Theory
Classical dynamics in SU(2) Matrix theory is investigated. A classical
chaos-order transition is found. For the angular momentum small enough (even
for small coupling constant) the system exhibits a chaotic behavior, for
angular momentum large enough the system is regular.Comment: 14 pages, Latex, 10 figure
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