4,259 research outputs found
Coalescing binary systems of compact objects: Dynamics of angular momenta
The end state of a coalescing binary of compact objects depends strongly on
the final total mass M and angular momentum J. Since gravitational radiation
emission causes a slow evolution of the binary system through quasi-circular
orbits down to the innermost stable one, in this paper we examine the
corresponding behavior of the ratio J/M^2 which must be less than 1(G/c) or
about 0.7(G/c) for the formation of a black hole or a neutron star
respectively. The results show cases for which, at the end of the inspiral
phase, the conditions for black hole or neutron star formation are not
satisfied. The inclusion of spin effects leads us to a study of precession
equations valid also for the calculation of gravitational waveforms.Comment: 22 pages, AASTeX and 13 figures in PostScrip
Testing the Color Charge and Mass Dependence of Parton Energy Loss with Heavy-to-light Ratios at RHIC and LHC
The ratio of nuclear modification factors of high-pT heavy-flavored mesons to
light-flavored hadrons (``heavy-to-light ratio'') in nucleus-nucleus collisions
tests the partonic mechanism expected to underlie jet quenching. Heavy-to-light
ratios are mainly sensitive to the mass and color-charge dependences of
medium-induced parton energy loss. Here, we assess the potential for
identifying these two effects in D and B meson production at RHIC and at the
LHC. To this end, we supplement the perturbative QCD factorized formalism for
leading hadron production with radiative parton energy loss. For D meson
spectra at high but experimentally accessible transverse momentum (10 < pT < 20
GeV) in Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC, we find that charm quarks behave
essentially like light quarks. However, since light-flavored hadron yields are
dominated by gluon parents, the heavy-to-light ratio of D mesons is a sensitive
probe of the color charge dependence of parton energy loss. In contrast, due to
the larger b quark mass, the medium modification of B mesons in the same
kinematical regime provides a sensitive test of the mass dependence of parton
energy loss. At RHIC energies, the strategies for identifying and disentangling
the color charge and mass dependence of parton energy loss are more involved
because of the smaller kinematical range accessible. We argue that at RHIC, the
kinematical regime best suited for such an analysis of D mesons is 7 < pT < 12
GeV, whereas the study of lower transverse momenta is further complicated due
to the known dominant contribution of additional, particle species dependent,
non-perturbative effects.Comment: 21 pages RevTex, 9 Figure
Weak boson production measured in PbPb and pp collisions by CMS
The unprecedented center-of-mass energy available at the LHC offers unique
opportunities for studying the properties of the strongly-interacting QCD
matter created in PbPb collisions at extreme temperatures and very low parton
momentum fractions. Electroweak boson production is an important benchmark
process at hadron colliders. Precise measurements of Z production in heavy-ion
collisions can help to constrain nuclear PDFs as well as serve as a standard
candle of the initial state in PbPb collisions at the LHC energies. The
inclusive and differential measurements of the Z boson yield in the muon decay
channel will be presented, establishing that no modification is observed with
respect to next-to-leading order pQCD calculations, scaled by the number of
incoherent nucleon-nucleon collisions. The status of the Z measurement in the
electron decay channel, as well as the first observation of W \rightarrow \mu
{\nu} in heavy ion collisions will be given. The heavy-ion results will be
presented in the context of those obtained in pp collisions with the CMS
detector.Comment: Quark Matter 2011 conference proceeding
Precursor Plerionic Activity and High Energy Gamma-Ray Emission in the Supranova Model of Gamma-Ray Bursts
The supranova model of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), in which the GRB event is
preceded by a supernova (SN) explosion by a few months to years, has recently
gained support from Fe line detections in X-ray afterglows. A crucial
ingredient of this model yet to be studied is the fast-rotating pulsar that
should be active during the time interval between the SN and the GRB, driving a
powerful wind and a luminous plerionic nebula. We discuss some observational
consequences of this precursor plerion, which should provide important tests
for the supranova model: 1) the fragmentation of the outlying SN ejecta
material by the plerion and its implications for Fe line emission; and 2) the
effect of inverse Compton cooling and emission in the GRB external shock due to
the plerion radiation field. The plerion-induced inverse Compton emission can
dominate in the GeV-TeV energy range during the afterglow, being detectable by
GLAST from redshifts and distinguishable from self-Compton
emission by its spectrum and light curve. The prospects for direct detection
and identification of the precursor plerion emission are also briefly
considered.Comment: ApJ vol.583, in pres
Laboratory Study on the Use of Tire Shreds and Rubber-Sand in Backfilled and Reinforced Soil Applications
Millions of scrap tires are discarded annually in the United States, the bulk of which are currently landfilled or stockpiled. This consumes valuable landfill space, or, if improperly disposed, creates a fire hazard and provides a prolific breeding ground for rats and mosquitoes. The use of tire shreds as lightweight fill material can sharply reduce the tire disposal problem. The present study, based on laboratory testing and numerical modeling examines the feasibility of incorporating tire shreds and rubber-sand mixtures as lightweight geomaterial in embankments and backfills. The growing interest in utilizing waste materials in civil engineering applications has opened the possibility of using reinforced soil structures wit non-conventional backfills. The laboratory testing program of the present study includes the determination of volumetric behavior of rubber-sand mixtures with geogrids and geotextiles through pull-out and direct shear tests. The test results have been used to perform numerical modeling of tire shred and rubber-sand backfills in walls. It has been found that the use of tire shreds and rubber-sand (with a tire shred to mix ratio about 40%) in highway construction offers technical, economic, and environmental benefits. The salient benefits of using tire shreds and rubber-sand include reduced weight of fill, adequate stability, low settlements, good drainage (avoiding the development of pore water pressure during loading), separation of underlying weak or problem soils from subbase or base materials conservation of energy and natural resources, and usage of large quantities of local waste tires, which would have a positive impact on the environment
Induced scalarization in boson stars and scalar gravitational radiation
The dynamical evolution of boson stars in scalar-tensor theories of gravity
is considered in the physical (Jordan) frame. We focus on the study of
spontaneous and induced scalarization, for which we take as initial data
configurations on the well-known S-branch of a single boson star in general
relativity. We show that during the scalarization process a strong emission of
scalar radiation occurs. The new stable configurations (S-branch) of a single
boson star within a particular scalar-tensor theory are also presented.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures. Minor changes to match the published versio
Dynamical evolution of unstable self-gravitating scalar solitons
Recently, static and spherically symmetric configurations of globally regular
self-gravitating scalar solitons were found. These configurations are unstable
with respect to radial linear perturbations. In this paper we study the
dynamical evolution of such configurations and show that, depending on the sign
of the initial perturbation, the solitons either collapse to a Schwarzschild
black hole or else ``explode'' into an outward moving domain wall.Comment: 11 pages, 16 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
PyPWA: A Software Toolkit for Parameter Optimization and Amplitude Analysis
PyPWA is a toolkit designed to optimize parametric models describing data and
generate simulated distributions according to a model. Its software has been
written within the python ecosystem with the goal of performing Amplitude or
Partial Wave Analysis (PWA) in nuclear and particle physics experiments. We
briefly describe the general features of amplitude analysis and the PyPWA
software design and usage. We provide benchmarks of the scaling and an example
of its application
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