Open charm production in deep inelastic scattering at next-to-leading order at HERA

An introduction and overview of charm production in deep inelastic scattering at HERA is given. The existing next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculations are then reviewed, and key results are summarized. Finally, comparisons are made with the most recent HERA data, and unresolved issues are highlighted.Comment: 13 pages, 7 Postscript figures, lecture given at the Ringberg Workshop on ``New Trends in HERA Physics 1999'

A Color-Magnitude Diagram for a Globular Cluster In the Giant Elliptical Galaxy NGC 5128

The Hubble Space Telescope has been used to obtain WFPC2 (V,I) photometry for a large sample of stars in the outer halo of the giant elliptical NGC 5128 (d = 4 Mpc). The globular cluster N5128-C44, at the center of the Planetary Camera field, is well enough resolved to permit the construction of a color-magnitude diagram (CMD) for it which covers the brightest two magnitudes of the giant branch. The CMD is consistent with that of a normal old, moderately low-metallicity ([Fe/H] = -1.30 globular cluster, distinctly more metal-poor than most of the field halo stars at the same projected location (which average [Fe/H] ~ -0.5). This is the most distant globular cluster in which direct color-magnitude photometry has been achieved to date, and the first one belonging to a giant E galaxy.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX, including 5 postscript figures; submitted to Astronomical Journa

Detailed Comparison of Next-to-Leading Order Predictions for Jet Photoproduction at HERA

The precision of new HERA data on jet photoproduction opens up the possibility to discriminate between different models of the photon structure. This requires equally precise theoretical predictions from perturbative QCD calculations. In the past years, next-to-leading order calculations for the photoproduction of jets at HERA have become available. Using the kinematic cuts of recent ZEUS analyses, we compare the predictions of three calculations for different dijet and three-jet distributions. We find that in general all three calculations agree within the statistical accuracy of the Monte Carlo integration yielding reliable theoretical predictions. In certain restricted regions of phase space, the calculations differ by up to 5%.Comment: 10 pages, 7 eps-figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the Workshop on ``Monte Carlo Generators for HERA Physics'', Hamburg 1998/9

Heavy Quark Production in Deep-Inelastic Scattering at HERA

We discuss two topics in the production of heavy quarks in deep-inelastic scattering: the next-to-leading order Monte-Carlo HVQDIS and the next-to-leading logarithmic resummation of soft gluon effects, including estimates of next-to-next-to-leading order corrections therefrom.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, To appear in Proceedings of Monte Carlo Generators for HERA Physics, Hamburg 1998/99 Figures update

Dusty plasma cavities: probe-induced and natural

A comprehensive exploration of regional dust evacuation in complex plasma crystals is presented. Voids created in 3D crystals on the International Space Station have provided a rich foundation for experiments, but cavities in dust crystals formed in ground-based experiments have not received as much attention. Inside a modified GEC RF cell, a powered vertical probe was used to clear the central area of a dust crystal, producing a cavity with high cylindrical symmetry. Cavities generated by three mechanisms are examined. First, repulsion of micrometer-sized particles by a negatively charged probe is investigated. A model of this effect developed for a DC plasma is modified and applied to explain new experimental data in RF plasma. Second, the formation of natural cavities is surveyed; a radial ion drag proposed to occur due to a curved sheath is considered in conjunction with thermophoresis and a flattened confinement potential above the center of the electrode. Finally, cavity formation unexpectedly occurs upon increasing the probe potential above the plasma floating potential. The cavities produced by these methods appear similar, but each are shown to be facilitated by fundamentally different processes.Comment: 10 pages, 12 figure