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Articles 1 - 16 of 16
Full-Text Articles in Cosmology, Relativity, and Gravity
Calibration Of The Lux-Zeplin Dual-Phase Xenon Time Projection Chamber With Internally Injected Radioisotopes, Christopher D. Nedlik
Calibration Of The Lux-Zeplin Dual-Phase Xenon Time Projection Chamber With Internally Injected Radioisotopes, Christopher D. Nedlik
Doctoral Dissertations
Self-shielding in ton-scale liquid xenon (LXe) detectors presents a unique challenge for calibrating detector response to interactions in the detector's innermost volume. Calibration radioisotopes must be injected directly into the LXe to reach the central volume, where they must either decay away with a short half life or be purified out. We present an overview of, and results from, the prototype source injection system (SIS) developed at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment (LZ). The SIS is designed to refine techniques for the injection and removal of precise activities of various calibration radioisotopes that are useful in …
Phenomenology Of Fermion Production During Axion Inflation, Michael Roberts
Phenomenology Of Fermion Production During Axion Inflation, Michael Roberts
Doctoral Dissertations
We study the production of fermions through a derivative coupling to an axion inflaton and the effects of the produced fermions on the scalar and tensor metric perturbations. We show how such a coupling can arise naturally from supergravity with an axion-like field driving large-field inflation and small instanton-like corrections. We present analytic results for the scalar and tensor power spectra, and estimate the amplitude of the non-Gaussianties in the equilateral regime. The scalar spectrum is found to have a red-tilted spectral index, small non-Gaussianities, and can be dominant over the vacuum contribution. In contrast, the tensor power spectrum from …
Alpha Radiation Studies And Related Backgrounds In The Darkside-50 Detector, Alissa Monte
Alpha Radiation Studies And Related Backgrounds In The Darkside-50 Detector, Alissa Monte
Doctoral Dissertations
DarkSide-50 is the current phase of the DarkSide direct dark matter search program, operating underground at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. The detector is a dual-phase argon Time Projection Chamber (TPC), designed for direct detection of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs), and housed within a veto system of liquid scintillator and water Cherenkov detectors. Since switching to a target of low radioactivity argon extracted from underground sources in April 2015, the background is no longer dominated by naturally occurring 39Ar. However, alpha backgrounds from radon and its daughters remain, both from the liquid argon bulk and internal …
Production Of Cosmological Observables During The Inflationary Epoch, Cody Goolsby-Cole
Production Of Cosmological Observables During The Inflationary Epoch, Cody Goolsby-Cole
Doctoral Dissertations
This dissertation proposal explores the production of present day cosmological observables which might have been produced during the inflationary era. The first observable is the current net electric charge of our observable universe produced by charge fluctuations during inflation. Next, we examine the possibility of a signal in the primordial gravitational wave power spectrum produced by a scalar field with a time dependent mass. Finally, we examine primordial magnetic fields produced during inflation through the Ratra model coupling with the Schwinger effect.
Environmentally Driven Galaxy Evolution And Quenching: Insights From The Low-Redshift Circumgalactic Medium, Joseph Burchett
Environmentally Driven Galaxy Evolution And Quenching: Insights From The Low-Redshift Circumgalactic Medium, Joseph Burchett
Doctoral Dissertations
The gaseous halos of galaxies -- the circumgalactic medium (CGM) -- serve as interfaces playing host to the fueling and feedback processes that sustain and regulate star formation. Furthermore, interactions between galaxies one with another and with larger scale structure, such as galaxy cluster halos, must necessarily act through the CGM. This dissertation examines the CGM as traced by H I, C IV, and O VI absorption lines across wide range of halo environments, from isolated dwarf galaxies with M* < 108 Msun to galaxy clusters with Mhalo > 1014 Msun. By first conducting a blind …
The Impact Of Terrestrial Noise On The Detectability And Reconstruction Of Gravitational Wave Signals From Core-Collapse Supernovae, Jessica Mciver
The Impact Of Terrestrial Noise On The Detectability And Reconstruction Of Gravitational Wave Signals From Core-Collapse Supernovae, Jessica Mciver
Doctoral Dissertations
Among of the wide range of potentially interesting astrophysical sources for gravitational wave detectors Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo are galactic core-collapse supernovae. Although detectable core-collapse supernovae have a low expected rate (a few per century, or less) these signals would yield a wealth of new physics. Of particular interest is the insight into the explosion mechanism driving core-collapse supernovae that can be gleaned from the reconstructed gravitational wave signal. A well-reconstructed waveform will allow us to assess the likelihood of different explosion models, perform model selection, and potentially map unexpected features to new physics. This dissertation presents a series …
Gravitational Wave Astrophysics: Instrumentation, Detector Characterization, And A Search For Gravitational Signals From Gamma-Ray Bursts, Daniel Hoak
Doctoral Dissertations
In the coming years, the second generation of interferometric gravitational wave detectors are widely expected to observe the gravitational radiation emitted by compact, energetic events in the nearby universe. The field of gravitational wave astrophysics has grown into a large international endeavor with a global network of kilometer-scale observatories. The work presented in this thesis spans the field, from optical metrology, to instrument commissioning, to detector characterization and data analysis. The principal results are a method for the precise characterization of optical cavities, the commissioning of the advanced LIGO Output Mode Cleaner at the Hanford observatory, and a search for …
Exact Solutions In Gravity: A Journey Through Spacetime With The Kerr-Schild Ansatz, Benjamin Ett
Exact Solutions In Gravity: A Journey Through Spacetime With The Kerr-Schild Ansatz, Benjamin Ett
Doctoral Dissertations
The Kerr-Schild metric ansatz can be expressed in the form $g_{ab} = \gbar_{ab}+\lambda k_ak_b$, where $\gbar_{ab}$ is a background metric satisfying Einstein's equations, $k_a$ is a null-vector, and $\lambda$ is a free parameter. It was discovered in 1963 while searching for the elusive rotating black hole solutions to Einstein's equations, fifty years after the static solution was found and Einstein first formulated his theory of general relativity. While the ansatz has proved an excellent tool in the search for new exact solutions since then, its scope is limited, particularly with respect to higher dimensional theories. In this thesis, we present …
Chemical Potential In The First Law For Holographic Entanglement Entropy, David Kastor, Sourya Ray, Jennie Traschen
Chemical Potential In The First Law For Holographic Entanglement Entropy, David Kastor, Sourya Ray, Jennie Traschen
David Kastor
Entanglement entropy in conformal field theories is known to satisfy a first law. For spherical entangling surfaces, this has been shown to follow via the AdS/CFT correspondence and the holographic prescription for entanglement entropy from the bulk first law for Killing horizons. The bulk first law can be extended to include variations in the cosmological constant Λ, which we established in earlier work. Here we show that this implies an extension of the boundary first law to include varying the number of degrees of freedom of the boundary CFT. The thermodynamic potential conjugate to Λ in the bulk is called …
Non-Vacuum Ads Cosmologies And The Approach To Equilibrium Of Entanglement Entropy, Sebastian Fischetti, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
Non-Vacuum Ads Cosmologies And The Approach To Equilibrium Of Entanglement Entropy, Sebastian Fischetti, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
David Kastor
We extend standard results for vacuum asymptotically locally AdS (AlAdS) spacetimes, showing that such spacetimes can be constructed as foliations where the induced metric on each hypersurface satisfies Einstein's equation with stress-energy. By an appropriate choice of stress-energy on the hypersurfaces, the resulting AlAdS spacetime satisfies Einstein's equation with a negative cosmological constant and physical stress tensor. We use this construction to obtain AlAdS solutions whose boundaries are FRW cosmologies sourced by a massless scalar field or by a perfect fluid obeying the strong energy condition. We focus on FRW universes that approach Minkowski spacetime at late times, yielding AlAdS …
Magnetic Fields In An Expanding Universe, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
Magnetic Fields In An Expanding Universe, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
David Kastor
We find a solution to 4D Einstein-Maxwell theory coupled to a massless dilaton field describing a Melvin magnetic field in an expanding universe with 'stiff matter' equation of state parameter w=+1. As the universe expands, magnetic flux becomes more concentrated around the symmetry axis for dilaton coupling a<1/3√ and more dispersed for a>1/3√. An electric field circulates around the symmetry axis in the direction determined by Lenz's law. For a=0 the magnetic flux through a disk of fixed comoving radius is proportional to the proper area of the disk. This result disagrees with the usual expectation based on a test magnetic field that this …
Conformal Tensors Via Lovelock Gravity, David Kastor
Conformal Tensors Via Lovelock Gravity, David Kastor
David Kastor
Constructs from conformal geometry are important in low dimensional gravity models, while in higher dimensions the higher curvature interactions of Lovelock gravity are similarly prominent. Considering conformal invariance in the context of Lovelock gravity leads to natural, higher-curvature generalizations of the Weyl, Schouten, Cotton and Bach tensors, with properties that straightforwardly extend those of their familiar counterparts. As a first application, we introduce a new set of conformally invariant gravity theories in D=4k dimensions, based on the squares of the higher curvature Weyl tensors.
On The Universality Of Inner Black Hole Mechanics And Higher Curvature Gravity, Alejandra Castro, Nima Dehmami, Gaston Giribet, David Kastor
On The Universality Of Inner Black Hole Mechanics And Higher Curvature Gravity, Alejandra Castro, Nima Dehmami, Gaston Giribet, David Kastor
David Kastor
Black holes are famous for their universal behavior. New thermodynamic relations have been found recently for the product of gravitational entropies over all the horizons of a given stationary black hole. This product has been found to be independent of the mass for all such solutions of Einstein-Maxwell theory in d=4,5. We study the universality of this mass independence by introducing a number of possible higher curvature corrections to the gravitational action. We consider finite temperature black holes with both asymptotically flat and (A)dS boundary conditions. Although we find examples for which mass independence of the horizon entropy product continues …
Gravitational Tension And Thermodynamics Of Planar Ads Spacetimes, Basem M. El-Menoufi, Benjamin Ett, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
Gravitational Tension And Thermodynamics Of Planar Ads Spacetimes, Basem M. El-Menoufi, Benjamin Ett, David Kastor, Jennie Traschen
David Kastor
We derive new thermodynamic relations for asymptotically planar AdS black hole and soliton solutions. In addition to the ADM mass, these spacetimes are characterized by gravitational tensions in each of the planar spatial directions. We show that with planar AdS asymptotics, the sum of the ADM mass and tensions necessarily vanishes, as one would expect from the AdS /CFT correspondence. Each Killing vector of such a spacetime leads to a Smarr formula relating the ADM mass and tensions, the black hole horizon and soliton bubble areas, and a set of thermodynamic volumes that arise due to the non-vanishing cosmological constant. …
Thermodynamic Volumes And Isoperimetric Inequalities For De Sitter Black Holes, Brian P. Dolan, David Kastor, David KubiznˇA´K, Robert B. Mann, Jennie Traschen
Thermodynamic Volumes And Isoperimetric Inequalities For De Sitter Black Holes, Brian P. Dolan, David Kastor, David KubiznˇA´K, Robert B. Mann, Jennie Traschen
David Kastor
We consider the thermodynamics of rotating and charged asymptotically de Sitter black holes. Using Hamiltonian perturbation theory techniques, we derive three different first law relations including variations in the cosmological constant, and associated Smarr formulas that are satisfied by such spacetimes. Each first law introduces a different thermodynamic volume conjugate to the cosmological constant. We examine the relation between these thermodynamic volumes and associated geometric volumes in a number of examples, including Kerr-dS black holes in all dimensions and Kerr-Newman-dS black holes in D=4. We also show that the Chong-Cvetic-Lu-Pope solution of D=5 minimal supergravity, analytically continued to positive cosmological …
Star Formation In M33 (Herm33es), C. Kramer, M. Boquien, J. Braine, C. Buchbender, Daniela Calzetti, P. Gratier, B. Mookerjea, M. Relaño, S. Verley
Star Formation In M33 (Herm33es), C. Kramer, M. Boquien, J. Braine, C. Buchbender, Daniela Calzetti, P. Gratier, B. Mookerjea, M. Relaño, S. Verley
Daniela Calzetti
Within the key project "Herschel M33 extended survey" (HerM33es), we are studying the physical and chemical processes driving star formation and galactic evolution in the nearby galaxy M33, combining the study of local conditions affecting individual star formation with properties only becoming apparent on global scales. Here, we present recent results obtained by the HerM33es team. Combining Spitzer and Herschel data ranging from 3.6um to 500um, along with HI, Halpha, and GALEX UV data, we have studied the dust at high spatial resolutions of 150pc, providing estimators of the total infrared (TIR) brightness and of the star formation rate. While …