5,794 research outputs found
Radial Trends in IMF-Sensitive Absorption Features in Two Early-Type Galaxies: Evidence for Abundance-Driven Gradients
Samples of early-type galaxies show a correlation between stellar velocity
dispersion and the stellar initial mass function (IMF) as inferred from
gravity-sensitive absorption lines in the galaxies' central regions. To search
for spatial variations in the IMF, we have observed two early-type galaxies
with Keck/LRIS and measured radial gradients in the strengths of absorption
features from 4000-5500 \AA and 8000-10,000 \AA. We present spatially
resolved measurements of the dwarf-sensitive spectral indices NaI (8190 \AA)
and Wing-Ford FeH (9915 \AA), as well as indices for species of H, C, CN,
Mg, Ca, TiO, and Fe. Our measurements show a metallicity gradient in both
objects, and Mg/Fe consistent with a shallow gradient in \alpha-enhancement,
matching widely observed trends for massive early-type galaxies. The NaI index
and the CN index at 4160 \AA exhibit significantly steeper gradients,
with a break at ( pc). Inside this radius
NaI strength increases sharply toward the galaxy center, consistent with a
rapid central rise in [Na/Fe]. In contrast, the ratio of FeH to Fe index
strength decreases toward the galaxy center. This behavior cannot be reproduced
by a steepening IMF inside if the IMF is a single power law.
While gradients in the mass function above may occur,
exceptional care is required to disentangle these IMF variations from the
extreme variations in individual element abundances near the galaxies' centers.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. Updates from v1 include an expanded
comparison of measured index strengths to SPS models. 20 page body + 7 page
appendix + references. Includes 25 figure
The 2000 Periastron Passage of PSR B1259-63
We report here on a sequence of 28 observations of the binary pulsar system
PSR B1259-63/SS2883 at four radio frequencies made with the Australia Telescope
Compact Array around the time of the 2000 periastron passage. Observations made
on 2000 Sep 1 show that the pulsar's apparent rotation measure (RM) reached a
maximum of rad m, some 700 times the value measured
away from periastron, and is the largest astrophysical RM measured. This value,
combined with the dispersion measure implies a magnetic field in the Be star's
wind of 6 mG. We find that the light curve of the unpulsed emission is similar
to that obtained during the 1997 periastron but that differences in detail
imply that the emission disc of the Be star is thicker and/or of higher
density. The behaviour of the light curve at late times is best modelled by the
adiabatic expansion of a synchrotron bubble formed in the pulsar/disc
interaction. The expansion rate of the bubble km s is
surprisingly low but the derived magnetic field of 1.6 G close to that
expected.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables, LaTeX (mn.sty). Accepted for
publication in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Also
available at http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/staff/tconnors/publications.htm
Development of the NASA VALT digital navigation system
The research to develop and fabricate a terminal area navigation system for use in the NASA VTOL Approach and Landing Technology (VALT) program. The results of that effort are reported. The navigation system developed and fabricated was based on a general purpose airborne digital computer. A set of flight hardware units was fabricated to create the necessary analog, digital and human interface with the computer. A comprehensive package of software was created to implement the control and guidance laws required for automatic and flight director approaches that are curved in two planes. A technique was developed that enables the generation of randomly shaped lateral paths from simple input data. The lateral path concept combines straight line and elliptical-curved segments to fit a continuous curved path to the data points. A simple, fixed base simulation was put together to assist in developing and evaluating the system. The simulation was used to obtain system performance data during simulated curved-path approaches
Solution of two-center time-dependent Dirac equation in spherical coordinates: Application of the multipole expansion of the electron-nuclei interaction
A non-perturbative approach to the solution of the time-dependent, two-center
Dirac equation is presented with a special emphasis on the proper treatment of
the potential of the nuclei. In order to account for the full multipole
expansion of this potential, we express eigenfunctions of the two-center
Hamiltonian in terms of well-known solutions of the "monopole" problem that
employs solely the spherically-symmetric part of the interaction. When combined
with the coupled-channel method, such a wavefunction-expansion technique allows
for an accurate description of the electron dynamics in the field of moving
ions for a wide range of internuclear distances. To illustrate the
applicability of the proposed approach, the probabilities of the K- as well as
L- shell ionization of hydrogen-like ions in the course of nuclear alpha-decay
and slow ion-ion collisions have been calculated
Molecular ferroelectric contributions to anomalous hysteresis in hybrid perovskite solar cells
We report a model describing the molecular orientation disorder in
CH3NH3PbI3, solving a classical Hamiltonian parametrised with electronic
structure calculations, with the nature of the motions informed by ab-initio
molecular dynamics. We investigate the temperature and static electric field
dependence of the equilibrium ferroelectric (molecular) domain structure and
resulting polarisability. A rich domain structure of twinned molecular dipoles
is observed, strongly varying as a function of temperature and applied electric
field. We propose that the internal electrical fields associated with
microscopic polarisation domains contribute to hysteretic anomalies in the
current--voltage response of hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells
due to variations in electron-hole recombination in the bulk.Comment: 10 pages; 4 figures, 2 SI figure
‘‘There’s so much more to it than what I initially thought’’: Stepping into researchers’ shoes with a class activity in a first year psychology survey course
In psychology, it is widely agreed that research methods, although central to the discipline, are particularly challenging to learn and teach, particularly at introductory level. This pilot study explored the potential of embedding a student-conducted research activity in a one-semester undergraduate Introduction to Psychology survey course, with the aims of (a) engaging students with the topic of research methods; (b) developing students’ comprehension and application of research methods concepts; and (c) building students’ ability to link research with theory. The research activity explored shoe ownership, examining gender differences and relationships with age, and linking to theories of gender difference and of consumer identity. The process of carrying out the research and reflecting on it created a contextualized, active learning environment in which students themselves raised many issues that research methods lectures seek to cover. Students also wrote richer assignments than standard first year mid-term essay
COMPTEL observations of the Virgo blazars 3C 273 and 3C 279
We report the main MeV properties (detections, light curves, spectra) of the Virgo blazars 3C 273 and 3C 279 which were derived from a consistent analysis of all COMPTEL Virgo observations between 1991 and 1997
COMPTEL observations of the blazars 3C 454.3 and CTA 102
We have analyzed the two blazars of 3C 454.3 and CTA 102 using all available COMPTEL data from 1991 to 1999. In the 10–30 MeV band, emission from the general direction of the sources is found at the 4σ-level, being consistent with contributions from both sources. Below 10 MeV only 3C 454.3 is significantly detected, with the strongest evidence (5.6 σ) in the 3–10 MeV band. Significant flux variability is not observed for both sources, while a low emission is seen most of the years in the 3–10 MeV light curve for 3C 454.3. Its time-averaged MeV spectrum suggests a power maximum between 3 to 10 MeV
Recent results from COMPTEL observations of Cygnus X‐1
The COMPTEL experiment on the Compton Gamma‐Ray Observatory (CGRO) has now observed Cyg X‐1 on four separate occasions during phase 1 and phase 2 of its orbital mission (April, 1991 to August, 1993). Here we report on the results of the latest analysis of these data, which provide a spectrum extending to energies greater than 2 MeV. A spectral analysis of these data, in the context of a classical Comptonization model, indicates an electron temperature much higher than previous hard X‐ray measurements would suggest (200 keV vs 60–80 keV). This implies either some limitations in the standard Comptonization model and/or the need to incorporate a reflected component in the hard X‐ray spectrum. Although significant variability near 1 MeV has been observed, there is no evidence for any ‘MeV excess.
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