437 research outputs found
Accurate, rapid identification of dislocation lines in coherent diffractive imaging via a min-max optimization formulation
Defects such as dislocations impact materials properties and their response
during external stimuli. Defect engineering has emerged as a possible route to
improving the performance of materials over a wide range of applications,
including batteries, solar cells, and semiconductors. Imaging these defects in
their native operating conditions to establish the structure-function
relationship and, ultimately, to improve performance has remained a
considerable challenge for both electron-based and x-ray-based imaging
techniques. However, the advent of Bragg coherent x-ray diffractive imaging
(BCDI) has made possible the 3D imaging of multiple dislocations in
nanoparticles ranging in size from 100 nm to1000 nm. While the imaging process
succeeds in many cases, nuances in identifying the dislocations has left manual
identification as the preferred method. Derivative-based methods are also used,
but they can be inaccurate and are computationally inefficient. Here we
demonstrate a derivative-free method that is both more accurate and more
computationally efficient than either derivative- or human-based methods for
identifying 3D dislocation lines in nanocrystal images produced by BCDI. We
formulate the problem as a min-max optimization problem and show exceptional
accuracy for experimental images. We demonstrate a 260x speedup for a typical
experimental dataset with higher accuracy over current methods. We discuss the
possibility of using this algorithm as part of a sparsity-based phase retrieval
process. We also provide the MATLAB code for use by other researchers
Radio structures of the nuclei of nearby Seyfert galaxies and the nature of the missing diffuse emission
We present archival high spatial resolution VLA and VLBA data of the nuclei
of seven of the nearest and brightest Seyfert galaxies in the Southern
Hemisphere. At VLA resolution (~0.1 arcsec), the nucleus of the Seyfert
galaxies is unresolved, with the exception of MCG-5-23-16 and NGC 7469 showing
a core-jet structure. Three Seyfert nuclei are surrounded by diffuse radio
emission related to star-forming regions. VLBA observations with parsec-scale
resolution pointed out that in MRK 1239 the nucleus is clearly resolved into
two components separated by ~30 pc, while the nucleus of NGC 3783 is
unresolved. Further comparison between VLA and VLBA data of these two sources
shows that the flux density at parsec scales is only 20% of that measured by
the VLA. This suggests that the radio emission is not concentrated in a single
central component, as in elliptical radio galaxies, and an additional
low-surface brightness component must be present. A comparison of Seyfert
nuclei with different radio spectra points out that the ``presence'' of
undetected flux on milli-arcsecond scale is common in steep-spectrum objects,
while in flat-spectrum objects essentially all the radio emission is recovered.
In the steep-spectrum objects, the nature of this ``missing'' flux is likely
due to non-thermal AGN-related radiation, perhaps from a jet that gets
disrupted in Seyfert galaxies because of the denser environment of their spiral
hosts.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures; paper accepted for publication in MNRA
EVLA Observations of OH Masers in ON 1
This Letter reports on initial Expanded Very Large Array (EVLA) observations
of the 6035 MHz masers in ON 1. The EVLA data are of good quality, lending
confidence in the new receiver system. Nineteen maser features, including six
Zeeman pairs, are detected. The overall distribution of 6035 MHz OH masers is
similar to that of the 1665 MHz OH masers. The spatial resolution is sufficient
to unambiguously determine that the magnetic field is strong (~ -10 mG) at the
location of the blueshifted masers in the north, consistent with Zeeman
splitting detected in 13441 MHz OH masers in the same velocity range. Left and
right circularly polarized ground-state features dominate in different regions
in the north of the source, which may be due to a combination of magnetic field
and velocity gradients. The combined distribution of all OH masers toward the
south is suggestive of a shock structure of the sort previously seen in W3(OH).Comment: 4 pages using emulateapj.cls including 2 tables and 2 color figure
Gigahertz-Peaked Spectrum Radio Sources in Nearby Galaxies
There is now strong evidence that many low-luminosity AGNs (LLAGNs) contain
accreting massive black holes and that the nuclear radio emission is dominated
by parsec-scale jets launched by these black holes. Here, we present
preliminary results on the 1.4 GHz to 667 GHz spectral shape of a well-defined
sample of 16 LLAGNs. The LLAGNs have a falling spectrum at high GHz
frequencies. Several also show a low-frequency turnover with a peak in the 1-20
GHz range. The results provide further support for jet dominance of the core
radio emission. The LLAGNs show intriguing similarities with gigahertz-peaked
spectrum (GPS) sources.Comment: 6 pages, to appear in ASP Conference series, 2002, Vol. 25
The Origin of Radio Emission in Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei: Jets, Accretion Flows, or Both?
The low-luminosity active galactic nuclei in NGC 3147, NGC 4203, and NGC 4579
have been imaged at four frequencies with the Very Long Baseline Array. The
galaxies are unresolved at all frequencies, with size upper limits of
times the Schwarzschild radii of their central massive black holes.
The spectral indices between 1.7 and 5.0 GHz range from 0.2 to 0.4; one and
possibly two of the galaxies show spectral turnovers between 5.0 and 8.4 GHz.
The high brightness temperatures ( K) and relatively straight spectra
imply that free-free emission and/or absorption cannot account for the slightly
inverted spectra. Although the radio properties of the cores superficially
resemble predictions for advection-dominated accretion flows, the radio
luminosities are too high compared to the X-ray luminosities. We suggest that
the bulk of the radio emission is generated by a compact radio jet, which may
coexist with a low radiative efficiency accretion flow.Comment: To appear in ApJ (Letters). 4 page
- …