26,618 research outputs found
Fast radio bursts and their gamma-ray or radio afterglows as Kerr-Newman black hole binaries
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are radio transients lasting only about a few
milliseconds. They seem to occur at cosmological distances. We propose that
these events can be originated in the collapse of the magnetosphere of
Kerr-Newman black holes (KNBHs). We show that the closed orbits of charged
particles in the magnetosphere of these objects are unstable. After examining
the dependencies on the specific charge of the particle and the spin and charge
of the KNBH, we conclude that the resulting timescale and radiation mechanism
fit well with the extant observations of FRBs. Furthermore, we argue that the
merger of a KNBH binary is one of the plausible central engines for potential
gamma-ray or radio afterglow following a certain FRBs, and can also account for
gravitational wave (GW) events like GW 150914. Our model leads to predictions
that can be tested by combined multi-wavelength electromagnetic and GW
observations.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Studying the thermal conductivity of a deep Eocene clay formation: direct measurements vs back-analysis results
An experimental study on Ypresian claysâone of the potential deep and sedimentary clay formations in Belgium for the geological disposal of heat-emitting radioactive wasteâhas been undertaken to systematically study its thermal conductivity using different experimental techniques. As a first step, a new experimental setup with heat flux measurement has been used and careful pre-conditioning protocols have been followed to directly measure this thermal property. The aim of these pre-conditioning tests has been ensuring a very high degree of saturation and the closure of fissures / gaps along bedding planes before the thermal tests are run under low stress conditions. Thermal tests have shown to be particularly sensitive when the thermal conductivity is determined along a direction orthogonal to these bedding planes. The study is then complemented by using a constant volume heating cell, in which heating pulse tests have been carried out under fully saturated conditions that have been ensured with a high water back-pressure. Numerical models have been used to interpret this pulse test, to exploit all the information provided by temperature measurements and to back-analyse the thermal conductivity. Direct thermal conductivity data with the improved pre-conditioning protocol allowed obtaining results consistent with the values reported when using back-analysis in the constant volume cell. The article discusses the importance of restoring full saturation conditions, particularly on retrieval of deep sedimentary clays, which may undergo opening of fissures along bedding planes that may affect the correct determination of the thermal conductivity.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft
Recent progress in the development of a solar neutron tracking device (SONTRAC)
We report the results of recent calibration data analysis of a prototype scintillating fiber tracking detector system designed to perform imaging, spectroscopy and particle identification on 20 to 250 MeV neutrons and protons. We present the neutron imaging concept and briefly review the detection principle and the prototype description. The prototype detector system records ionization track data on an event-by-event basis allowing event selection criteria to be used in the off-line analysis. Images of acrylic phantoms from the analysis of recent proton beam calibrations are presented as demonstrations of the particle identification, imaging and energy measurement capabilities. The measured position resolution is \u3c 500 micrometers . The measured energy resolution is 14.2 percent at 35 MeV. The detection techniques employed can be applied to measurements in a variety of disciplines including solar and atmospheric physics, radiation therapy and nuclear materials monitoring. These applications are discussed briefly as are alternative detector configurations and future development plans
An algebraic SU(1,1) solution for the relativistic hydrogen atom
The bound eigenfunctions and spectrum of a Dirac hydrogen atom are found
taking advantage of the Lie algebra in which the radial part of the
problem can be expressed. For defining the algebra we need to add to the
description an additional angular variable playing essentially the role of a
phase. The operators spanning the algebra are used for defining ladder
operators for the radial eigenfunctions of the relativistic hydrogen atom and
for evaluating its energy spectrum. The status of the Johnson-Lippman operator
in this algebra is also investigated.Comment: to appear in Physics Letters A (2005). We corrected a misprint in
page 7, in the paragraph baggining with "With the value of ..." the ground
state should be |\lambda, \lambda>, not |\lambda, \lambda+1
On optical forces in spherical whispering gallery mode resonators
In this paper we discuss the force exerted by the field of an optical cavity
on a polarizable dipole. We show that the modification of the cavity modes due
to interaction with the dipole significantly alters the properties of the
force. In particular, all components of the force are found to be
non-conservative, and cannot, therefore, be derived from a potential energy. We
also suggest a simple generalization of the standard formulas for the optical
force on the dipole, which reproduces the results of calculations based on the
Maxwell stress tensor.Comment: To pe published in Optics Express Focus Issue: "Collective phenomena
in photonic, plasmonic and hybrid structures
Line-concentrating Flux Analysis of 42kWe High-flux Solar Simulator
AbstractHigh-flux solar simulatorscan provide controlled conditions and allow conducting high-temperature solar-driven thermal and thermochemical research without perturbations due to solar resource intermittency. A 42-kWe high-flux solar simulator, KIRAN-42, with seven hexagonal symmetry reflectors has been built at IMDEA Energy Institute, Spain. The reflectors layout of KIRAN-42 provides sufficient separation of units and it is conceived flexible enough to adjust the flux distribution onto the focal plane, which has expanded the application field of the high-flux solar simulator significantly. A model was built with Tracepro© to analyze the optical characterization of line-concentrating flux distribution of KIRAN-42, and the results show that, in spite of the spreading of lamps foci onto a line, thepeak flux is still reaching 1.4 MW/m2. Experimental characterizations were also conducted to study the real flux distribution of KIRAN-42 with line-concentrating, of which the peak flux is about 1 MW/m2. Divergence between experimental results and Tracepro©model should still be improved though the optical characterization of KIRAN-42 confirms the potential use of the solar simulator in a flexible way for different aiming strategies
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