Neutrino emission, Equation of State and the role of strong gravity

Neutron-star mergers are interesting for several reasons: they are proposed as the progenitors of short gamma-ray bursts, they have been speculated to be a site for the synthesis of heavy elements, and they emit gravitational waves possibly detectable at terrestrial facilities. The understanding of the merger process, from the pre-merger stage to the final compact object-accreting system involves detailed knowledge of numerical relativity and nuclear physics. In particular, key ingredients for the evolution of the merger are neutrino physics and the matter equation of state. We present some aspects of neutrino emission from binary neutron star mergers showing the impact that the equation of state has on neutrinos and discuss some spectral quantities relevant to their detection such as energies and luminosities far from the source.Comment: 7 pages , 3 figures. XI LASNPA conference proceeding

Quasi-Periodic Oscillations and energy spectra from the two brightest Ultra-Luminous X-ray sources in M82

Ultra-Luminous X-ray sources are thought to be accreting black holes that might host Intermediate Mass Black Holes (IMBH), proposed to exist by theoretical studies, even though a firm detection (as a class) is still missing. The brightest ULX in M82 (M82 X-1) is probably one of the best candidates to host an IMBH. In this work we analyzed the data of the recent release of observations obtained from M82 X-1 taken by XMM-Newton. We performed a study of the timing and spectral properties of the source. We report on the detection of (46+-2) mHz Quasi-Periodic Oscillations (QPOs) in the power density spectra of two observations. A comparison of the frequency of these high-frequency QPOs with previous detections supports the 1:2:3 frequency distribution as suggested in other studies. We discuss the implications if the (46+-2) mHz QPO detected in M82 X-1 is the fundamental harmonic, in analogy with the High-Frequency QPOs observed in black hole binaries. For one of the observations we have detected for the first time a QPO at 8 mHz (albeit at a low significance), that coincides with a hardening of the spectrum. We suggest that the QPO is a milli-hertz QPO originating from the close-by transient ULX M82 X-2, with analogies to the Low-Frequency QPOs observed in black hole binaries.Comment: 9 pages (with 4 figures and 4 tables). Accepted for publication in MNRAS (26/09/13

Neutrinos and the synthesis of heavy elements: the role of gravity

The synthesis of heavy elements in the Universe presents several challenges. From one side the astrophysical site is still undetermined and on other hand the input from nuclear physics requires the knowledge of properties of exotic nuclei, some of them perhaps accessible in ion beam facilities. Black hole accretion disks have been proposed as possible r-process sites. Analogously to Supernovae these objects emit huge amounts of neutrinos. We discuss the neutrino emission from black hole accretion disks. In particular we show the influence that the black hole strong gravitational field has on changing the electron fraction relevant to the synthesis of elements.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, Invited talk at the 15th International Symposium on Capture Gamma-Ray Spectroscopy and Related Topics (CGS15), to appear in EPJ Web of Conference

On the Timing and Efficiency of Creative Destruction

This paper analyzes the timing, pace and efficiency of the on- going job reallocation that results from product and process innovation. There are strong reasons why an efficient economy ought to concentrate both job creation and destruction during cyclical downturns, when the opportunity cost of reallocation is lowest. Malfunctioning labor markets can disrupt this synchronized pattern and decouple creation and destruction. Moreover, irrespective of whether workers are too strong or too weak, labor market inefficiencies generally lead to technological 'sclerosis,' characterized by excessively slow renovation. Government incentives to production may alleviate high unemployment in this economy, but at the cost of exacerbating sclerosis. Creation incentives, on the contrary, increase the pace of reallocation. We show how an optimal combination of both types of policies can restore economic efficiency.

Speculative Growth

We propose a framework for understanding recurrent historical episodes of vigorous economic expansion accompanied by extreme asset valuations, as exhibited by Japan in the 1980's and the U.S. in the 1990's. We interpret this phenomenon as a high-valuation equilibrium with a low effective cost of capital based on optimism about the future availability of funds for investment. The key to the sustainability of such equilibrium is feedback from increased growth to an increase in the supply of funding. We show that such feedback arises naturally when the expansion is concentrated in a new economy' sector and when it is supported by sustained financial surpluses-both of which would constitute an integral part, as cause and consequence, of a speculative growth' equilibrium. The high-valuation equilibrium we analyze may take the form of a stock market bubble. In contrast to classic bubbles on non-productive assets, the bubbles in our model encourage real investments, boost long run savings, and may appear in dynamically efficient economies.

Creative Destruction and Development: Institutions, Crises, and Restructuring

There is increasing empirical evidence that creative destruction, driven by experimentation and the adoption of new products and processes when investment is sunk, is a core mechanism of development. Obstacles to this process are likely to be obstacles to the progress in standards of living. Generically, underdeveloped and politicized institutions are a major impediment to a well-functioning creative destruction process, and result in sluggish creation, technological sclerosis,' and spurious reallocation. Those ills reflect the macroeconomic consequences of contracting failures in the presence of sunk investments. Recurrent crises are another major obstacle to creative destruction. The common inference that increased liquidations during crises result in increased restructuring is unwarranted. Indications are, to the contrary, that crises freeze the restructuring process and that this is associated with the tight financial-market conditions that follow. This productivity cost of recessions adds to the traditional costs of resource under-utilization.