24,805 research outputs found
Element Abundance Determination in Hot Evolved Stars
The hydrogen-deficiency in extremely hot post-AGB stars of spectral class
PG1159 is probably caused by a (very) late helium-shell flash or a AGB final
thermal pulse that consumes the hydrogen envelope, exposing the usually-hidden
intershell region. Thus, the photospheric element abundances of these stars
allow us to draw conclusions about details of nuclear burning and mixing
processes in the precursor AGB stars. We compare predicted element abundances
to those determined by quantitative spectral analyses performed with advanced
non-LTE model atmospheres. A good qualitative and quantitative agreement is
found for many species (He, C, N, O, Ne, F, Si, Ar) but discrepancies for
others (P, S, Fe) point at shortcomings in stellar evolution models for AGB
stars. Almost all of the chemical trace elements in these hot stars can only be
identified in the UV spectral range. The Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer
and the Hubble Space Telescope played a crucial role for this research.Comment: To appear in: Recent Advances in Spectroscopy: Theoretical,
Astrophysical, and Experimental Perspectives, Proceedings, Jan 28 - 31, 2009,
Kodaikanal, India (Springer
Quark-Gluon-Plasma Formation at SPS Energies?
By colliding ultrarelativistic ions, one achieves presently energy densities
close to the critical value, concerning the formation of a quark-gluon-plasma.
This indicates the importance of fluctuations and the necessity to go beyond
the investigation of average events. Therefore, we introduce a percolation
approach to model the final stage ( fm/c) of ion-ion collisions, the
initial stage being treated by well-established methods, based on strings and
Pomerons. The percolation approach amounts to finding high density domains, and
treating them as quark-matter droplets. In this way, we have a {\bf realistic,
microscopic, and Monte--Carlo based model which allows for the formation of
quark matter.} We find that even at SPS energies large quark-matter droplets
are formed -- at a low rate though. In other words: large quark-matter droplets
are formed due to geometrical fluctuation, but not in the average event.Comment: 7 Pages, HD-TVP-94-6 (1 uuencoded figure
Proton-proton and deuteron-gold collisions at RHIC
We try to understand recent data on proton-proton and deuteron-gold
collisions at RHIC, employing a modified parton model approach.Comment: Invited talk, given at the XXth Winter Workshop on Nuclear Dynamics,
Trelawny Beach, Jamaica, March 200
Comment on "Optimum Quantum Error Recovery using Semidefinite Programming"
In a recent paper ([1]=quant-ph/0606035) it is shown how the optimal recovery
operation in an error correction scheme can be considered as a semidefinite
program. As a possible future improvement it is noted that still better error
correction might be obtained by optimizing the encoding as well. In this note
we present the result of such an improvement, specifically for the four-bit
correction of an amplitude damping channel considered in [1]. We get a strict
improvement for almost all values of the damping parameter. The method (and the
computer code) is taken from our earlier study of such correction schemes
(quant-ph/0307138).Comment: 2 pages, 1 figur
A New Approach to Nuclear Collisions at RHIC Energies
We present a new parton model approach for nuclear collisions at RHIC
energies (and beyond). It is a selfconsistent treatment, using the same
formalism for calculating cross sections like the total and the inelastic one
and, on the other hand, particle production. Actually, the latter one is based
on an expression for the total cross section, expanded in terms of cut Feynman
diagrams. Dominant diagrams are assumed to be composed of parton ladders
between any pair of nucleons, with ordered virtualities from both ends of the
ladder.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures (proceedings Quark Matter 99
Fermi-LAT upper limits on gamma-ray emission from colliding wind binaries
Context: Colliding wind binaries (CWBs) are thought to give rise to a
plethora of physical processes including acceleration and interaction of
relativistic particles. Observation of synchrotron radiation in the radio band
confirms there is a relativistic electron population in CWBs. Accordingly, CWBs
have been suspected sources of high-energy gamma-ray emission since the COS-B
era. Theoretical models exist that characterize the underlying physical
processes leading to particle acceleration and quantitatively predict the
non-thermal energy emission observable at Earth. Aims: We strive to find
evidence of gamma-ray emission from a sample of seven CWB systems: WR 11, WR
70, WR 125, WR 137, WR 140, WR 146, and WR 147. Theoretical modelling
identified these systems as the most favourable candidates for emitting
gamma-rays. We make a comparison with existing gamma-ray flux predictions and
investigate possible constraints. Methods: We used 24 months of data from the
Large Area Telescope (LAT) on-board the Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope to
perform a dedicated likelihood analysis of CWBs in the LAT energy range.
Results: We find no evidence of gamma-ray emission from any of the studied CWB
systems and determine corresponding flux upper limits. For some CWBs the
interplay of orbital and stellar parameters renders the Fermi-LAT data not
sensitive enough to constrain the parameter space of the emission models. In
the cases of WR140 and WR147, the Fermi-LAT upper limits appear to rule out
some model predictions entirely and constrain theoretical models over a
significant parameter space. A comparison of our findings to the CWB eta Car is
made.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
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