98 research outputs found
Reconstruction of Source and Cosmic Magnetic Field Characteristics from Clusters of Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays
We present a detailed Monte Carlo study coupled to a likelihood analysis of
the potential of next generation ultra-high energy cosmic ray experiments to
reconstruct properties of the sources and the extra-galactic magnetic field.
Such characteristics are encoded in the distributions of arrival time,
direction, and energy of clusters of charged cosmic rays above a few 10**(19)
eV. The parameters we consider for reconstruction are the emission timescale,
total fluence (or power), injection spectrum, and distance of the source, as
well as the r.m.s. field strength, power spectrum, and coherence length of the
magnetic field. We discuss five generic situations which can be identified
relatively easily and allow a reasonable reconstruction of at least part of
these parameters. Our numerical code is set up such that it can easily be
applied to the data from future experiments.Comment: 23 latex pages, 11 postscript figures included, uses (and includes)
elsart.sty and epsf.sty. Submitted to Astroparticle Physic
Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Ray Propagation in the Local Supercluster
We present detailed numerical simulations and analytical approximations of
the propagation of nucleons above 10**(19) eV in the Local Supercluster,
assuming that the ambient magnetic field is turbulent, and its strength 0.01 <
B_rms < 1 micro-Gauss. In such strong magnetic fields, protons in the low
energy part of the spectrum, 10**(19) eV < E < E_C diffuse, while the higher
energy particles, with E > E_C propagate along nearly straight lines. The
magnitude of the transition energy E_C depends mainly on the strength of the
magnetic field, the coherence length, and the distance to the source; for
B_rms=0.1 micro-Gauss, a largest eddy of length 10 Mpc, and a distance to the
source of 10 Mpc, E_C=100 EeV. Our numerical treatment substantially improves
on previous analytical approximations, as it allows to treat carefully the
transition between the two propagation regimes, as well as the effects due to
inhomogeneities expected on scales of a few Mpc. We show that a turbulent
magnetic field B_rms=0.1 micro-Gauss, close to equipartition, would allow to
reproduce exactly the observed spectrum of ultra high energy cosmic rays, up to
the highest energy observed, for a distance to the source below 10 Mpc, for the
geometry of the Local Supercluster, i.e. a sheet of thickness 10 Mpc.
Diffusion, in this case, allows to reproduce the high flux beyond the Greisen
Zatsepin Kuzmin cut-off, with a soft injection spectrum proportional to
E**(-2.4). Moreover, the large deflection angles at the highest energies
observed, typically 10 degrees for the above values, would explain why no
close-by astrophysical counterpart could be associated with these events.Comment: 17 latex pages (tightened format), 9 updated postscript figures, uses
revtex.sty and epsf.sty, extended discussion of numerical results, to appear
in Astroparticle Physic
Probing Grand Unified Theories with Cosmic Ray, Gamma-Ray and Neutrino Astrophysics
We explore scenarios where the highest energy cosmic rays are produced by new
particle physics near the grand unification scale. Using detailed numerical
simulations of extragalactic nucleon, gamma-ray, and neutrino propagation, we
show the existence of an interesting parameter range for which such scenarios
may explain part of the data and are consistent with all observational
constraints. A combination of proposed observatories for ultra-high energy
cosmic rays, neutrino telescopes of a few kilometer scale, and gamma-ray
astrophysics instruments should be able to test these scenarios. In particular,
for neutrino masses in the eV range, exclusive neutrino decay modes of
superheavy particles can give rise to neutrino fluxes comparable to those
predicted in models of active galactic nuclei.Comment: 15 latex pages, 5 postscript figures included, uses revtex.sty and
psfig.sty. Submitted to Physical Review
Gamma-Ray Bursts: The Underlying Model
A pedagogical derivation is presented of the ``fireball'' model of gamma-ray
bursts, according to which the observable effects are due to the dissipation of
the kinetic energy of a relativistically expanding wind, a ``fireball.'' The
main open questions are emphasized, and key afterglow observations, that
provide support for this model, are briefly discussed. The relativistic outflow
is, most likely, driven by the accretion of a fraction of a solar mass onto a
newly born (few) solar mass black hole. The observed radiation is produced once
the plasma has expanded to a scale much larger than that of the underlying
``engine,'' and is therefore largely independent of the details of the
progenitor, whose gravitational collapse leads to fireball formation. Several
progenitor scenarios, and the prospects for discrimination among them using
future observations, are discussed. The production in gamma- ray burst
fireballs of high energy protons and neutrinos, and the implications of burst
neutrino detection by kilometer-scale telescopes under construction, are
briefly discussed.Comment: In "Supernovae and Gamma Ray Bursters", ed. K. W. Weiler, Lecture
Notes in Physics, Springer-Verlag (in press); 26 pages, 2 figure
Results from the fly’s eye experiment
We report recently analyzed results on the energy spectrum, and composition of cosmic rays above 0.3 EeV. We observe a break in the spectrum at 3 EeV and a changing composition. The results can be explained by a simple two component model: galactic cosmic rays dominated by heavy primaries and an extragalactic component dominated by light primaries. The observed isotropic arrival direction distribution is consistent with the predictions of this model. A 320 EeV event was also recorded. © 1995 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87516/2/839_1.pd
Oral history interview with Fernando J. Corbato
Transcript, 97 pp. Audio file available at http://purl.umn.edu/95580Corbató discusses computer science research, especially time-sharing, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Topics in the first session include: Phil Morse and the establishment of the Computation Center, Corbató's management of the Computation Center, the development of the WHIRLWIND computer, John McCarthy and research on time-sharing, cooperation between International Business Machines (IBM) and MIT, and J. C. R. Licklider and the development of Project MAC. Topics in the second session include: time-sharing, the development of MULTICS by the General Electric (GE) Computer Division, IBM's reaction to MIT working with GE, the development of CTSS, the development of UNIX in cooperation with Bell Labs, interaction with the Information Processing Techniques Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, interaction with Honeywell after they purchased GE's Computer Division, and the transformation of Project MAC into the Laboratory for Computer Science
A calculation of the energy bands of the graphite crystal by means of the tight-binding method
Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Physics, 1956Vita. Appendix contains numerous pamphlets.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 109-110).by Fernando José Corbató.Ph. D.Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Physic
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