Astrophysics and Astronomy Commons^™

Photon Decay At The Schwarzschild Horizon, Brett Altschul, R. Jackiw

Faculty Publications

A recent proposal that gravity theory is an emergent phenomenon also entails the possibility of photon decay near the Schwarzschild event horizon. We present a possible mechanism for such decay, which utilizes a dimensional reduction near the horizon. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V.

Statistics And Supermetallicity: The Metallicity Of Ngc 6791, B. J. Taylor

Faculty Publications

For the old galactic cluster NGC 6791, Peterson & Green (1998a) and Chaboyer et al. (1999) have found that [Fe/H] approximately + 0.4 dex. A second look at that conclusion is taken in this paper. Zero-point problems are reviewed for a high-dispersion analysis done by Peterson & Green, and it is found that accidental errors have not been determined rigorously for the results of that analysis. It is also noted that in a color-magnitude analysis performed by Chaboyer et al., the important metallicity range between 0.0 and + 0.3 dex is not explored and hence is not ruled out. Moreover, …

Measurement And Interpretation Of Deuterium-Line Emission In The Orion Nebula, C. R. O'Dell, Gary J. Ferland, W. J. Henney

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We present new observations of the deuterium and hydrogen Balmer lines in the Orion Nebula. There is a real variation in the deuterium-to-hydrogen line ratios across the nebula, being greatest in the emission from the largest proplyd (Orion 244-440). We also present the results of a detailed model for the emission of these lines, the hydrogen lines being the result of photoionization and recombination while the deuterium lines are produced by fluorescent excitation of the upper energy states by the far-UV radiation from θ¹ Ori C. Comparison of the observations and predictions of the line intensities shows good agreement, …

Formation Of Rydberg Atoms In An Expanding Ultracold Neutral Plasma, Scott D. Bergeson, T. C. Killian, M. J. Lim, S. Kulin, R. Dumke, S. L. Rolston

Faculty Publications

We study the formation of Rydberg atoms in expanding plasmas at temperatures of 1–1000 K and densities from 10^5–10^10 cm^-3. Up to 20% of the initially free charges recombine in about 100 us, and the binding energy of the Rydberg atoms approximately equals the increase in the kinetic energy of the remaining free electrons. Three-body recombination is expected to dominate in this regime, yet most of our results are inconsistent with this mechanism.

What Determines The Emission Peak Energy Of The Blue Luminescence In Highly Mg-Doped P-Gan?, John S. Colton, P. Y. Yu

Faculty Publications

We report a study of the 2.8 eV blue luminescence (BL) in heaviliy Mg-doped p-GaN via resonant excitation with a tunable blue dye laser. The dependence of the BL on the excitation photon energy (Eex) is unlike that of the yellow luminescence found in n-type GaN. An Urbach-type band tail, with Urbach parameter of 33 meV is observed in the vicinity of the BL energy. We propose that the peak energy of the BL marks the transition from localized states to delocalized states within this band tail.

Affinity For Scalar Fields To Dissipate, Arjun Berera, Rudnei O. Ramos

Dartmouth Scholarship

The zero-temperature effective equation of motion is derived for a scalar field interacting with other fields. For a broad range of cases, involving interaction with as few as one or two fields, dissipative regimes are found for the scalar field system. The zero-temperature limit constitutes a baseline effect that will be prevalent in any general statistical state. Thus, the results found here provide strong evidence that dissipation is the norm not the exception for an interacting scalar field system. For application to inflationary cosmology, this provides convincing evidence that warm inflation could be a natural dynamics once proper treatment of …

First-Principles Elastic Constants And Electronic Structure Of Α-Pt2si And Ptsi, Gus L. W. Hart, O. Beckstein, J. E. Klepeis, O. Pankratov

Faculty Publications

We have carried out a first-principles study of the elastic properties and electronic structure for two room-temperature stable Pt silicide phases, tetragonal α-Pt2Si, and orthorhomic PtSi. We have calculated all of the equilibrium structural parameters for both phases; the a and c lattice constants for α-Pt2Si and the a, b, and c lattice constants and four internal structural parameters for PtSi. These results agree closely with experimental data. We have also calculated the zero-pressure elastic constants, confirming prior results for pure Pt and Si and predicting values for the six (nine) independent, nonzero elastic constants of α-Pt2Si (PtSi). These calculations …

Fractal Quasar Clouds, Mark Bottorff, Gary J. Ferland

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

This paper examines whether a fractal cloud geometry can reproduce the emission-line spectra of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). The nature of the emitting clouds is unknown, but many current models invoke various types of magnetohydrodynamic confinement. Recent studies have argued that a fractal distribution of clouds, in which subsets of clouds occur in self-similar hierarchies, is a consequence of such confinement. Whatever the confinement mechanism, fractal cloud geometries are found in nature and may be present in AGNs too. We first outline how a fractal geometry can apply at the center of a luminous quasar. Scaling laws are derived that …

Heating And Ionization Of The Intergalactic Medium By An Early X-Ray Background, Aparna Venkatesan, Mark L. Giroux, J Shull

Physics and Astronomy

Observational studies indicate that the intergalactic medium (IGM) is highly ionized up to redshifts just over 6. A number of models have been developed to describe the process of reionization and the effects of the ionizing photons from the first luminous objects. In this paper we study the impact of an X-ray background, such as high-energy photons from early quasars, on the temperature and ionization of the IGM prior to reionization, before the fully ionized bubbles associated with individual sources have overlapped. X-rays have large mean free paths relative to EUV photons, and their photoelectrons can have significant effects on …

Molecular Simulations Of Sound Wave Propagation In Simple Gases, Alejandro Garcia, N. Hadjiconstantinou

Faculty Publications

Molecular simulations of sound waves propagating in a dilute hard sphere gas have been performed using the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. A wide range of frequencies is investigated, including very high frequencies for which the period is much shorter than the mean collision time. The simulation results are compared to experimental data and approximate solutions of the Boltzmann equation. It is shown that free molecular flow is important at distances smaller than one mean free path from the excitation point.

Chemical Transferability Of Single- And Multiple-Scattering Exafs Debye-Waller Factors, Nicholas Dimakis, Grant Bunker

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Single- and multiple-scattering EXAFS Debye-Waller factors are amplitude reduction parameters that appear in the EXAFS x(k) equation accounting for the structural and thermal disorder of a given sample. These parameters must be known accurately in order to obtain quantitative agreement between theory and experiment. Since experimental data can only support a limited number of fitted parameters these factors must be known from another source. Although various approaches have been considered in the past with a variety of results, the self-consistent ab initio Density functional theory stands for the most accurate and reliable method regardless of molecular symmetry or other specific …

Exclusive Electroproduction Of ᵠ Mesons At 4.2 Gev, M. Bektasoglu, L. Ciciani, G. E. Dodge, T. A. Forest, C. E. Hyde-Wright, S. E. Kuhn, L. M. Qin, F. Sabatié, L. B. Weinstein, Et Al., The Clas Collaboration

Physics Faculty Publications

We studied the exclusive reaction ep → e' p' ᵠ using the ᵠ →K⁺K^- decay mode. The data were collected using a 4.2 GeV incident electron beam and the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. Our experiment covers the range in Q² from 0.7 to 2.2 GeV²and W from 2.0 to 2.6 GeV. Taken together with all previous data, we find a consistent picture of ᵠ production on the proton. Our measurement shows the expected decrease of the t slope with the vector-meson formation time c Δ t …

Mathematical Models Of Quiescent Solar Prominences, Iain Mckaig

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

Magnetic fields in the solar atmosphere suspend and insulate dense regions of cool plasma known as prominences. The convection zone may be the mechanism that both generates and expels this magnetic flux through the photosphere in order to make these formations possible. The connection is examined here by modeling the convection zone as both one-dimensional, then more realistically, two-dimensional.

First a Dirichlet problem on a semi-infinite strip is solved using conformal mapping and the method of images. The base of the strip represents the photosphere where a current distribution can be given as a boundary condition, and the strip extends …

Polymer Depletion Interaction Between Two Parallel Repulsive Walls, F. Schlesener, Andreas Hanke, R. Kimpel, S. Dietrich

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

The depletion interaction between two parallel repulsive walls confining a dilute solution of long and flexible polymer chains is studied by field-theoretic methods. Special attention is paid to self-avoidance between chain monomers relevant for polymers in a good solvent. Our direct approach avoids the mapping of the actual polymer chains on effective hard or soft spheres. We compare our results with recent Monte Carlo simulations [A. Milchev and K. Binder, Eur. Phys. J. B 3, 477 (1998)] and with experimental results for the depletion interaction between a spherical colloidal particle and a planar wall in a dilute solution of nonionic …

Effective Field Theory For The Small-X Evolution, I. Balitsky

Physics Faculty Publications

The small-x behavior of structure functions in the saturation region is determined by the non-linear generalization of the BFKL equation. I suggest the effective field theory for the small-x evolution which solves formally this equation. The result is the 2+1 functional integral for the structure functions at small x.

Corrected Article: Exclusive Electroproduction Of ᵠ Mesons At 4.2 Gev [Physical. Rev. C 63, 065205, (2001)], M. Bektasoglu, L. Ciciani, G. E. Dodge, T. A. Forest, C. E. Hyde-Wright, S. E. Kuhn, L. M. Qin, F. Sabatié, L. B. Weinstein, Et Al., The Clas Collaboration

Physics Faculty Publications

We studied the exclusive reaction ep → e' p' ᵠ using the ᵠ →K⁺K^- decay mode. The data were collected using a 4.2 GeV incident electron beam and the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. Our experiment covers the range in Q² from 0.7 to 2.2 GeV²and W from 2.0 to 2.6 GeV. Taken together with all previous data, we find a consistent picture of ᵠ production on the proton. Our measurement shows the expected decrease of the t slope with the vector-meson formation time c Δ t …

Verification Of A Distortion In The Microstructure Of Gan Detected By Exafs Using Ab Initio Density Functional Theory Calculations, Nicholas Dimakis, Grant Bunker, M. Katsikini, E. C. Paloura

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements on a series of epitaxially grown GaN samples have shown a distortion in the microstructure of GaN. More specifically the central N atom is 4-fold coordinated but the four Ga atoms are not equidistant. It has been shown that 2.9 to 3.5 of them (depending on the growth conditions) are found in the expected from XRD distance of 1.94 A and the remaining are at a distance longer by approximately 15%. Second derivative calculation of the conformation energy using the Density Functional Theory (DFT) is used to investigate if the symmetric GaN cluster as …

Probing The Strong Boundary Shape Dependence Of The Casimir Force, Thorsten Emig, Andreas Hanke, Ramin Golestanian, Mehran Kardar

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

We study the geometry dependence of the Casimir energy for deformed metal plates by a path integral quantization of the electromagnetic field. For the first time, we give a complete analytical result for the deformation induced change in Casimir energy δE in an experimentally testable, nontrivial geometry, consisting of a flat and a corrugated plate. Our results show an interesting crossover for δE as a function of the ratio of the mean plate distance H, to the corrugation length λ: For λ≪H we find a slower decay ∼H−4, compared to the H−5 behavior predicted by the commonly used pairwise summation …

Modified Critical Correlations Close To Modulated And Rough Surfaces, Andreas Hanke, Mehran Kardar

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Correlation functions are sensitive to the presence of a boundary. Surface modulations give rise to modified near surface correlations, which can be measured by scattering probes. To determine these correlations, we develop a perturbative calculation in deformations in height from a flat surface. The results, combined with a renormalization group around four dimensions, are also used to predict critical behavior near a self-affine rough surface. We find that a large enough roughness exponent can modify surface critical behavior.

Apex Version 2.0: Latest Version Of The Cross-Platform Analysis Program For Exafs, Nicholas Dimakis, Grant Bunker

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

This report describes recent progress on APEX, a free, open source, cross platform set of EXAFS data analysis software. In a previous report we described APEX 1.0 (Dimakis, N. and Bunker, G., 1999), a free and open source code suite of basic X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure (XAFS) data analysis programs for classical data reduction and single scattering analysis. The first version of APEX was the only cross platform (linux/irix/windows/MacOS) EXAFS analysis program to our knowledge, but it lacked important features like multiple scattering fitting, generic format conversion from ASCII to University of Washington (UW) binary-type files, and user friendly interactive …

Continuum Pumping Of [Fe Ii] In The Orion Nebula, E. M. Verner, D. A. Verner, J. A. Baldwin, Gary J. Ferland, P. G. Martin

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

This paper presents detailed comparisons between numerical simulations of Fe II emission spectra and recent high-resolution and signal-to-noise spectra of the Orion Nebula. We have identified 40 [Fe II] lines in the spectrum, allowing extensive comparisons between theory and observations. The identifications are based on predictions of a realistic model of the Fe II atom, which includes the lowest 371 levels (all levels up to 11.6 eV). We investigate the dependence of the spectrum on electron density and on pumping by the stellar continuum. Orion is important because it provides a relatively simple environment in which to test complex simulations. …

Metallic Nanoscale Fibers From Stable Iodine-Doped Carbon Nanotubes, Peter C. Eklund, Leonid Grigorian, Keith A. Williams, Gamini U. Sumanasekera, Shaoli Fang

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Patents

A method of doping involves soaking single-walled carbon nanotubes in molten iodine. Excess physisorbed iodine may then be removed by annealing.

Observational Constraints On The Internal Velocity Field Of Quasar Emission-Line Clouds, Mark Bottorff, Gary J. Ferland, Jack Baldwin, Kirk Korista

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

This paper addresses the question, what does the spectrum of a typical quasar reveal about the velocity structure within its broad emission line region clouds? Turbulent (i.e., nonthermal) broadening of spectral lines can be due to macroturbulence or microturbulence. Microturbulence affects line formation and the emitted spectrum and may be required to account for the observed smoothness of the line profiles. The velocity field is crucial since it addresses the fundamental nature of the individual clouds and the global structure of the active galactic nuclei (AGNs) environment. For example, stellar winds or magnetically confined blobs might be highly microturbulent, requiring …

Some Applications Of The Lambert W Function To Physics, Sree R. Valluri, David J. Jeffrey, Robert M. Corless

Physics and Astronomy Publications

Two standard physics problems are solved in terms of the Lambert W function, in order to show the applicability of this recently defined function to physics. Other applications of the function are cited, but not described. The problems solved concern Wien’s displacement law and the fringing fields of a capacitor, the latter problem being representative of some problems solved using conformal transformations. The physical content of the solutions remains unchanged, but they gain a new elegance and convenience.

Clathrate Structure For Electronic And Electro-Optic Applications, Leonid Grigorian, Peter C. Eklund, Shaoli Fang

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Patents

A method including the steps of (a) depositing a metal layer on a selected portion of a silicon substrate under a first set of predetermined conditions to form an metal silicide layer and an intermediate n-type silicon layer; and (b) exposing the metal silicide layer and the n-type silicon layer to a second set of predetermined conditions to form a silicon clathrate film on the selected portion of the silicon substrate, where the intermediate n-type silicon layer acts to bond the silicon clathrate to the silicon substrate to form a silicon clathrate structure.

The Narrow-Line Region In The Seyfert 2 Galaxy Ngc 3393, Andrew J. Cooke, J. A. Baldwin, Gary J. Ferland, Hagai Netzer, Andrew S. Wilson

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

The narrow-line region (NLR) of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 3393 is dominated by a symmetric structure which appears as S-shaped arms in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images. These arms, which occupy the central few arcseconds of the nucleus, border a linear, triple-lobed radio source. We use HST imaging and spectra, ground-based optical images, long-slit spectra, Fabry-Perot imaging spectroscopy, and VLA radio data to perform a detailed investigation of the kinematics and ionization of the line-emitting gas in NGC 3393 and of its relationship with the relativistic gas responsible for the radio emission. The excitation map [O III] …

Thermolectric Materials Based On Intercalated Layered Metallic Systems, Peter C. Eklund, Leonid Grigorian, Keith A. Williams, Gamini U. Sumanasekera

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Patents

A novel thermoelectric material in the form of a unit cell including a first reagent intercalated as a semiconducting layer into a metallic layered host and a method for producing the thermoelectric material are disclosed. The unit cell is characterized by a Seebeck coefficient S of 80-140 μV/K° and an electrical conductivity σ of 10³ -10⁴ (Ωcm)^-1, as well as a figure of merit Z of about 2×10^-3 K^-1 at 100° K.

Plasma Oscillations And Expansion Of An Ultracold Neutral Plasma, Scott D. Bergeson, S. Kulin, T. C. Killian, S. L. Rolston

Faculty Publications

We report the observation of plasma oscillations in an ultracold neutral plasma. With this collective mode we probe the electron density distribution and study the expansion of the plasma as a function of time. For classical plasma conditions, i.e., weak Coulomb coupling, the expansion is dominated by the pressure of the electron gas and is described by a hydrodynamic model. Discrepancies between the model and observations at low temperature and high density may be due to strong coupling of the electrons.

The Primordial Helium Abundance: Toward Understanding And Removing The Cosmic Scatter In The Dy/Dz Relation, D. R. Ballantyne, Gary J. Ferland, P. G. Martin

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We present results from photoionization models of low-metallicity H II regions. These nebulae form the basis for measuring the primordial helium abundance. Our models show that the helium ionization correction factor (ICF) can be nonnegligible for nebulae excited by stars with effective temperatures larger than 40,000 K. Furthermore, we find that when the effective temperature rises to above 45,000 K, the ICF can be significantly negative. This result is independent of the choice of stellar atmosphere. However, if an H II region has an [O III] λ5007/[O I] λ6300 ratio greater than 300, then our models show that, regardless of …

Electronic Structure Of Bas And Boride Iii-V Alloys, Gus L. W. Hart, Alex Zunger

Faculty Publications

Boron arsenide, the typically ignored member of the Group-III–V arsenide series BAs-AlAs-GaAs-InAs is found to resemble silicon electronically: its Γ conduction-band minimum is p-like (Γ15), not s-like (Γ1c), it has an X1c-like indirect band gap, and its bond charge is distributed almost equally on the two atoms in the unit cell, exhibiting nearly perfect covalency. The reasons for these are tracked down to the anomalously low atomic p orbital energy in the boron and to the unusually strong s–s repulsion in BAs relative to most other Group-III–V compounds. We find unexpected valence-band offsets of BAs with respect to GaAs and …