On the lack of stellar bars in Coma dwarf galaxies

We present a study of the bar fraction in the Coma cluster galaxies based on a sample of ~190 galaxies selected from the SDSS-DR6 and observed with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Advanced Camera for Survey (ACS). The unprecedented resolution of the HST-ACS images allows us to explore the presence of bars, detected by visual classification, throughout a luminosity range of 9 mag (-23 < M_r < -14), permitting us to study the poor known region of dwarf galaxies. We find that bars are hosted by galaxies in a tight range of both luminosities (-22 < M_r < -17) and masses (10^9 < M*/Msun < 10^11). In addition, we find that the bar fraction does not vary significantly when going from the center to the cluster outskirts, implying that cluster environment plays a second-order role in bar formation/evolution. The shape of the bar fraction distribution with respect to both luminosity and mass is well matched by the luminosity distribution of disk galaxies in Coma, indicating that bars are good tracers of cold stellar disks.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, to appear in the proceedings of the conference "A Universe of Dwarf Galaxies" (Lyon, June 14-18, 2010

A photometric analysis of Abell 1689: two-dimensional multi-structure decomposition, morphological classification, and the Fundamental Plane

We present a photometric analysis of 65 galaxies in the rich cluster Abell 1689 at $z=0.183$, using the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys archive images in the rest-frame $V$-band. We perform two-dimensional multi-component photometric decomposition of each galaxy adopting different models of the surface-brightness distribution. We present an accurate morphological classification for each of the sample galaxies. For 50 early-type galaxies, we fit both a de Vaucouleurs and S\'ersic law; S0s are modelled by also including a disc component described by an exponential law. Bars of SB0s are described by the profile of a Ferrers ellipsoid. For the 15 spirals, we model a S\'ersic bulge, exponential disc, and, when required, a Ferrers bar component. We derive the Fundamental Plane by fitting 40 early-type galaxies in the sample, using different surface-brightness distributions. We find that the tightest plane is that derived by S\'ersic bulges. We find that bulges of spirals lie on the same relation. The Fundamental Plane is better defined by the bulges alone rather than the entire galaxies. Comparison with local samples shows both an offset and rotation in the Fundamental Plane of Abell 1689.Comment: 53 pages, 71 figures, MNRAS in pres

Non Perturbative Renormalization Group, momentum dependence of nn-point functions and the transition temperature of the weakly interacting Bose gas

We propose a new approximation scheme to solve the Non Perturbative Renormalization Group equations and obtain the full momentum dependence of $n$-point functions. This scheme involves an iteration procedure built on an extension of the Local Potential Approximation commonly used within the Non Perturbative Renormalization Group. Perturbative and scaling regimes are accurately reproduced. The method is applied to the calculation of the shift $\Delta T_c$ in the transition temperature of the weakly repulsive Bose gas, a quantity which is very sensitive to all momenta intermediate between these two regions. The leading order result is in agreement with lattice calculations, albeit with a theoretical uncertainty of about 25%. The next-to-leading order differs by about 10% from the best accepted result

Deep spectroscopic luminosity function of Abell 85: no evidence for a steep upturn of the faint-end slope

We present a new deep determination of the spectroscopic LF within the virial radius of the nearby and massive Abell\,85 (A85) cluster down to the dwarf regime (M* + 6) using VLT/VIMOS spectra for $\sim 2000$ galaxies with m$_r \leq 21$ mag and $\langle \mu_{e,r} \rangle \leq 24$ mag arcsec$^{-2}$. The resulting LF from 438 cluster members is best modelled by a double Schechter function due to the presence of a statistically significant upturn at the faint-end. The amplitude of this upturn ($\alpha_{f} = -1.58^{+0.19}_{-0.15}$), however, is much smaller than that of the SDSS composite photometric cluster LF by Popesso et al. 2006, $\alpha_{f} \sim$ -2. The faint-end slope of the LF in A85 is consistent, within the uncertainties, with that of the field. The red galaxy population dominates the LF at low luminosities, and is the main responsible for the upturn. The fact that the slopes of the spectroscopic LFs in the field and in a cluster as massive as A85 are similar suggests that the cluster environment does not play a major role in determining the abundance of low-mass galaxies.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, accepted at MNRAS lette

Doorway States and Billiards

Whenever a distinct state is immersed in a sea of complicated and dense states, the strength of the distinct state, which we refer to as a doorway, is distributed in their neighboring states. We analyze this mechanism for 2-D billiards with different geometries. One of them is symmetric and integrable, another is symmetric but chaotic, and the third has a capricious form. The fact that the doorway-state mechanism is valid for such highly diverse cases, proves that it is robust.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, Accepted in Proceedings of "Symmetries in Nature", Symposium in Memoriam Marcos Moshinsk

Mesoscopic non-equilibrium thermodynamics approach to non-Debye dielectric relaxation

Mesoscopic non-equilibrium thermodynamics is used to formulate a model describing non-homogeneous and non-Debye dielectric relaxation. The model is presented in terms of a Fokker-Planck equation for the probability distribution of non-interacting polar molecules in contact with a heat bath and in the presence of an external time-dependent electric field. Memory effects are introduced in the Fokker-Planck description through integral relations containing memory kernels, which in turn are used to establish a connection with fractional Fokker-Planck descriptions. The model is developed in terms of the evolution equations for the first two moments of the distribution function. These equations are solved by following a perturbative method from which the expressions for the complex susceptibilities are obtained as a functions of the frequency and the wave number. Different memory kernels are considered and used to compare with experiments of dielectric relaxation in glassy systems. For the case of Cole-Cole relaxation, we infer the distribution of relaxation times and its relation with an effective distribution of dipolar moments that can be attributed to different segmental motions of the polymer chains in a melt.Comment: 33 pages, 6 figure