528 research outputs found
In silico estimates of the free energy rates in growing tumor spheroids
The physics of solid tumor growth can be considered at three distinct size
scales: the tumor scale, the cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) scale and the
sub-cellular scale. In this paper we consider the tumor scale in the interest
of eventually developing a system-level understanding of the progression of
cancer. At this scale, cell populations and chemical species are best treated
as concentration fields that vary with time and space. The cells have
chemo-mechanical interactions with each other and with the ECM, consume glucose
and oxygen that are transported through the tumor, and create chemical
byproducts. We present a continuum mathematical model for the biochemical
dynamics and mechanics that govern tumor growth. The biochemical dynamics and
mechanics also engender free energy changes that serve as universal measures
for comparison of these processes. Within our mathematical framework we
therefore consider the free energy inequality, which arises from the first and
second laws of thermodynamics. With the model we compute preliminary estimates
of the free energy rates of a growing tumor in its pre-vascular stage by using
currently available data from single cells and multicellular tumor spheroids.Comment: 27 pages with 5 figures and 2 tables. Figures and tables appear at
the end of the pape
X-ray Light Curves and Accretion Disk Structure of EX Hydrae
We present X-ray light curves for the cataclysmic variable EX Hydrae obtained
with the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer and the Extreme
Ultraviolet Explorer Deep Survey photometer. We confirm earlier results on the
shape and amplitude of the binary light curve and discuss a new feature: the
phase of the minimum in the binary light curve, associated with absorption by
the bulge on the accretion disk, increases with wavelength. We discuss several
scenarios that could account for this trend and conclude that, most likely, the
ionization state of the bulge gas is not constant, but rather decreases with
binary phase. We also conclude that photoionization of the bulge by radiation
originating from the white dwarf is not the main source of ionization, but that
it is heated by shocks originating from the interaction between the inflowing
material from the companion and the accretion disk. The findings in this paper
provide a strong test for accretion disk models in close binary systems.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in the Ap
Identification of Emission Lines in the Low-Ionization Strontium Filament Near Eta Carinae
We have obtained deep spectra from 1640 to 10100A with the Space Telescope
Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) of the Strontium Filament, a largely neutral
emission nebulosity lying close to the very luminous star Eta Carinae and
showing an uncommon spectrum. Over 600 emission lines, both permitted and
forbidden, have been identified. The majority originates from neutral or
singly-ionized iron group elements (Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni). Sr is the
only neutron capture element detected. The presence of Sr II, numerous strong
Ti II and V II lines and the dominance of Fe I over Fe II are notable
discoveries. While emission lines of hydrogen, helium, and nitrogen are
associable with other spatial structures at other velocities within the
Homunculus, no emission lines from these elements correspond to the spatial
structure or velocity of the Sr Filament. Moreover, no identified Sr Filament
emission line requires an ionization or excitation energy above approximately 8
eV. Ionized gas extends spatially along the aperture, oriented along the polar
axis of the Homunculus, and in velocity around the Strontium Filament. We
suggest that the Strontium Filament is shielded from ultraviolet radiation at
energies above 8 eV, but is intensely irradiated by the central star at
wavelengths longward of 1500A.Comment: 28 pages, 5 figures, 4 tables. Accepted by A&A. High resolution
pictures can be found at http://www.astro.lu.se/~henrikh/srpaper/srpaper.pd
Discovery of an ionized Fe-K edge in the z=3.91 Broad Absorption Line Quasar APM 08279+5255 with XMM-Newton
Recent XMM-Newton observations of the high-redshift, lensed, broad absorption
line (BAL) quasi-stellar object APM 08279+5255, one of the most luminous
objects in the universe, allowed the detection of a high column density
absorber ( cm) in the form of a K-shell absorption
edge of significantly ionized iron (Fe XV - XVIII) and corresponding ionized
lower-energy absorption. Our findings confirm a basic prediction of
phenomenological geometry models for the BAL outflow and can constrain the size
of the absorbing region. The Fe/O abundance of the absorbing material is
significantly higher than solar (Fe/O = 2-5), giving interesting constraints on
the gas enrichment history in the early Universe.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, ApJ (Letters), in pres
Radiative recombination data for modeling dynamic finite-density plasmas
We have calculated partial final-state resolved radiative recombination (RR) rate coefficients from the initial ground and metastable levels of all elements up to and including Zn, plus Kr, Mo, and Xe, for all isoelectronic sequences up to Na-like forming Mg-like. The data are archived according to the Atomic Data and Analysis Structure (ADAS) data class adf48, which spans a temperature range of z2(101-107) K, where z is the initial ion charge. Fits to total rate coefficients have been determined, for both the ground and metastable levels, and those for the ground are presented here. Comparison is made both with previous RR rate coefficients and with (background) R-matrix photoionization cross sections. This RR database complements a dielectronic recombination (DR) database already produced, and both are being used to produce updated ionization balances for both (electron) collisionally ionized and photoionized plasmas
The Very Highly Ionized Broad Absorption Line System of the QSO SBS1542+541
We have analyzed the broad absorption line system of the bright (V=16.5)
high-redshift (z=2.361) QSO SBS1542+541 using UV spectra from the HST FOS along
with optical data from the MMT and the Steward Observatory 2.3m telescope.
These spectra give continuous wavelength coverage from 1200 to 8000 Angstroms,
corresponding to 340 to 2480 Angstroms in the QSO rest frame. This object
therefore offers a rare opportunity to study broad absorption lines in the
rest-frame extreme UV. We find that the absorption system is dominated by very
high-ionization species, including O VI, NeVIII, and SiXII. We also identify
apparently saturated broad Lyman-series lines of order Ly-gamma and higher.
There is strong evidence for partial occultation of the QSO emission source,
particularly from the higher-order Lyman lines which indicate a covered
fraction less than 0.2. Overall, the data suggest a correlation between a
larger covered fraction and a higher state of ionization. We suggest that the
different covered fractions can be explained by either a special line of sight
through a disk-like geometry or by the existence of density fluctuations of a
factor >2 in the BAL gas. Our photoionization models of the system indicate a
large column density and high ionization state similar to that found in X-ray
``warm absorbers''.Comment: 31 pages, 13 figures, to be published in Ap
Broad P V Absorption in the BALQSO, PG 1254+047: Column Densities, Ionizations and Metal Abundances in BAL Winds
This paper discusses the detection of P V 1118,1128 and other broad
absorption lines (BALs) in archival HST spectra of the low-redshift BALQSO, PG
1254+047. The P V identification is secured by excellent redshift and profile
coincidences with the other BALs, such as C IV 1548,1550 and Si IV 1393,1403,
and by photoionization calculations showing that other lines near this
wavelength, e.g. Fe III 1123, should be much weaker than P V. The observed BAL
strengths imply that either 1) there are extreme abundance ratios such as [C/H]
>~ +1.0, [Si/H] >~ +1.8 and [P/C] >~ +2.2, or 2) at least some of the lines are
much more optically thick than they appear. I argue that the significant
presence of P V absorption indicates severe line saturation, which is disguised
in the observed (moderate-strength) BALs because the absorber does not fully
cover the continuum source(s) along our line(s) of sight. Computed optical
depths for all UV resonance lines show that the observed BALs are consistent
with solar abundances if 1) the ionization parameter is at least moderately
high, log U >~ -0.6, 2) the total hydrogen column density is log N_H(cm-2) >~
22.0, and 3) the optical depths in strong lines like C IV and O VI 1032,1038
are >~25 and >~80, respectively. These optical depths and column densities are
at least an order of magnitude larger than expected from the residual
intensities in the BAL troughs, but they are consistent with the large
absorbing columns derived from X-ray observations of BALQSOs. The outflowing
BALR, at velocities from -15,000 to -27,000 km/s in PG 1254+047, is therefore a
strong candidate for the X-ray absorber in BALQSOs.Comment: 16 pages (LaTeX) plus 8 pages of figures in one file
(pg1254_figs.ps.gz), in press with Ap
Eta Carinae -- Physics of the Inner Ejecta
Eta Carinae's inner ejecta are dominated observationally by the bright
Weigelt blobs and their famously rich spectra of nebular emission and
absorption lines. They are dense (n_e ~ 10^7 to 10^8 cm^-3), warm (T_e ~ 6000
to 7000 K) and slow moving (~40 km/s) condensations of mostly neutral (H^0)
gas. Located within 1000 AU of the central star, they contain heavily
CNO-processed material that was ejected from the star about a century ago.
Outside the blobs, the inner ejecta include absorption-line clouds with similar
conditions, plus emission-line gas that has generally lower densities and a
wider range of speeds (reaching a few hundred km/s) compared to the blobs. The
blobs appear to contain a negligible amount of dust and have a nearly dust-free
view of the central source, but our view across the inner ejecta is severely
affected by uncertain amounts of dust having a patchy distribution in the
foreground. Emission lines from the inner ejecta are powered by photoionization
and fluorescent processes. The variable nature of this emission, occurring in a
5.54 yr event cycle, requires specific changes to the incident flux that hold
important clues to the nature of the central object.Comment: This is Chapter 5 in a book entitled: Eta Carinae and the Supernova
Impostors, Kris Davidson and Roberta M. Humphreys, editors Springe
Physical conditions in the ISM towards HD185418
We have developed a complete model of the hydrogen molecule as part of the
spectral simulation code Cloudy. Our goal is to apply this to spectra of
high-redshift star-forming regions where H2 absorption is seen, but where few
other details are known, to understand its implication for star formation. The
microphysics of H2 is intricate, and it is important to validate these
numerical simulations in better-understood environments. This paper studies a
well-defined line-of-sight through the Galactic interstellar medium (ISM) as a
test of the microphysics and methods we use. We present a self-consistent
calculation of the observed absorption-line spectrum to derive the physical
conditions in the ISM towards HD185418, a line-of-sight with many observables.
We deduce density, temperature, local radiation field, cosmic ray ionization
rate, chemical composition and compare these conclusions with conditions
deduced from analytical calculations. We find a higher density, similar
abundances, and require a cosmic ray flux enhanced over the Galactic background
value, consistent with enhancements predicted by MHD simulations.Comment: 31 pages, accepted for publication in Ap
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