10,379 research outputs found
High-Energy emissions from the Pulsar/Be binary system PSR J2032+4127/MT91 213
PSR J2032+4127 is a radio-loud gamma-ray-emitting pulsar; it is orbiting
around a high-mass Be type star with a very long orbital period of 25-50years,
and is approaching periastron, which will occur in late 2017/early 2018. This
system comprises with a young pulsar and a Be type star, which is similar to
the so-called gamma-ray binary PSR~B1259-63/LS2883. It is expected therefore
that PSR J2032+4127 shows an enhancement of high-energy emission caused by the
interaction between the pulsar wind and Be wind/disk around periastron. Ho et
al. recently reported a rapid increase in the X-ray flux from this system. In
this paper, we also confirm a rapid increase in the X-ray flux along the orbit,
while the GeV flux shows no significant change. We discuss the high-energy
emissions from the shock caused by the pulsar wind and stellar wind interaction
and examine the properties of the pulsar wind in this binary system. We argue
that the rate of increase of the X-ray flux observed by Swift indicates (1) a
variation of the momentum ratio of the two-wind interaction region along the
orbit, or (2) an evolution of the magnetization parameter of the pulsar wind
with the radial distance from the pulsar. We also discuss the pulsar wind/Be
disk interaction at the periastron passage, and propose the possibility of
formation of an accretion disk around the pulsar. We model high-energy
emissions through the inverse-Compton scattering process of the
cold-relativistic pulsar wind off soft photons from the accretion disk.Comment: 18 pages, 23 figures, 1 Table, accepted for publication in Ap
Short-range cluster spin glass near optimal superconductivity in BaFeNiAs
High-temperature superconductivity in iron pnictides occurs when electrons
are doped into their antiferromagnetic (AF) parent compounds. In addition to
inducing superconductivity, electron-doping also changes the static
commensurate AF order in the undoped parent compounds into short-range
incommensurate AF order near optimal superconductivity. Here we use neutron
scattering to demonstrate that the incommensurate AF order in
BaFeNiAs is not a spin-density-wave arising from the
itinerant electrons in nested Fermi surfaces, but consistent with a cluster
spin glass in the matrix of the superconducting phase. Therefore, optimal
superconductivity in iron pnictides coexists and competes with a mesoscopically
separated cluster spin glass phase, much different from the homogeneous
coexisting AF and superconducting phases in the underdoped regime.Comment: 4 figure
The X-ray modulation of PSR J2032+4127/MT91 213 during the Periastron Passage in 2017
We present the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory (Swift), Fermi Large Area
Telescope (Fermi-LAT), and Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) observations
of the gamma-ray binary PSR J2032+4127/MT91 213, of which the periastron
passage has just occurred in November 2017. In the Swift X-ray light curve, the
flux was steadily increasing before mid-October 2017, however, a sharp X-ray
dip on a weekly time-scale is seen during the periastron passage, followed by a
post-periastron X-ray flare lasting for ~20 days. We suggest that the X-ray dip
is caused by (i) an increase of the magnetization parameter at the shock, and
(ii) the suppression due to the Doppler boosting effect. The 20-day
post-periastron flare could be a consequence of the Be stellar disk passage by
the pulsar. An orbital GeV modulation is also expected in our model, however,
no significant variability is seen in the Fermi-LAT light curve. We suspect
that the GeV emission resulted from the interaction between the binary's
members is hidden behind the bright magnetospheric emission of the pulsar.
Pulsar gating technique would be useful to remove the magnetospheric emission
and recover the predicted GeV modulation, if an accurate radio timing solution
over the periastron passage is provided in the future.Comment: 6 pages, including 2 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap
Division of labour and the evolution of multicellularity
Understanding the emergence and evolution of multicellularity and cellular
differentiation is a core problem in biology. We develop a quantitative model
that shows that a multicellular form emerges from genetically identical
unicellular ancestors when the compartmentalization of poorly compatible
physiological processes into component cells of an aggregate produces a fitness
advantage. This division of labour between the cells in the aggregate occurs
spontaneously at the regulatory level due to mechanisms present in unicellular
ancestors and does not require any genetic pre-disposition for a particular
role in the aggregate or any orchestrated cooperative behaviour of aggregate
cells. Mathematically, aggregation implies an increase in the dimensionality of
phenotype space that generates a fitness landscape with new fitness maxima, and
in which the unicellular states of optimized metabolism become fitness saddle
points. Evolution of multicellularity is modeled as evolution of a hereditary
parameter, the propensity of cells to stick together, which determines the
fraction of time a cell spends in the aggregate form. Stickiness can increase
evolutionarily due to the fitness advantage generated by the division of labour
between cells in an aggregate.Comment: 28 pages, 2 figure
Optimal location of tsunami warning buoys and sea level monitoring stations in the mediterranean sea
The present study determines the optimal location of detection components of a tsunami warning system in the Mediterranean region given the existing and planned infrastructure. Specifically, we examine the locations of existing tsunameters DART buoys and coastal sea-level monitoring stations to see if additional buoys and stations will improve the proportion of the coastal population that may receive a warning ensuring a timely response. A spreadsheet model is used to examine this issue. Based on the historical record of tsunamis and assuming international cooperation in tsunami detection, it is demonstrated that the existing network of sea level stations and tsunameters enable around ninety percent of the coastal population of the Mediterranean Sea to receive a 15 minute warning. Improvement in this result can be achieved through investment in additional real-time, coastal, sea level monitoring stations. This work was undertaken as a final year undergraduate research project
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