119250843
Top Polarization in Sbottom Decays at the LHC
We perform a comprehensive analysis of the polarization of the top quarks originating from sbottom-pair production at the LHC, followed by sbottom decays to top+chargino. We study moreover the expected net polarization of top quarks produced in sbottom-to-chargino and stop-to-neutralino decays in scenarios with small chargino - neutralino mass difference, where these decays may be hard to distinguish. We show that, in contrast to top quarks produced via the Standard Model processes, the average polarization of top quarks originating from these SUSY decays can obtain any value between +1 and -1. We further study the effect of this polarization on the top quark decay kinematics. On the one hand this may be used to construct measures of this polarization, on the other hand it may be used to enhance the search reach in certain scenarios. Exploiting top polarization may also prove useful for searches for "natural" SUSY with light higgsinos, which is typically very difficult to detect at the LHC.
118523006
Modelling the clustering of dark matter haloes in resummed perturbation theories
We address the issue of the cosmological bias between matter and galaxy distributions, looking at dark matter haloes as a first step to characterize galaxy clustering. Starting from the linear density field at high redshift, we follow the centre-of-mass trajectory of the material that will form each halo at late times (protohalo). We adopt a fluid-like description for the evolution of perturbations in the protohalo distribution, which is coupled to the matter density field via gravity. We present analytical solutions for the density and velocity fields, in the context of renormalized perturbation theory. We start from the linear solution, then compute one-loop corrections for the propagator and the power spectrum. Finally, we analytically resum the propagator, and we use a suitable extension of the time-renormalization-group method to resum the power spectrum. For halo masses M < 1014 h−1 M⊙, our results at z= 0 are in good agreement with N-body simulations. Our model is able to predict the halo–matter cross-spectrum with an accuracy of 5 per cent up to k≈ 0.1 h Mpc−1 approaching the requirements of future galaxy redshift surveys.
17804275
How common are magnetars? the consequences of magnetic-field decay
Ultramagnetized neutron stars, or magnetars, have been invoked to explain several astrophysical phenomena. We examine how the magnetic field of a magnetar will decay over time and how this decay affects the cooling of the object. We find that for sufficiently strong nascent fields, field decay alters significantly the cooling evolution relative to similarly magnetized neutron stars with constant fields. As a result, old magnetars can be expected to be bright in the soft X-ray band. The soft X-ray source RX J0720.4-3125 may well be the nearest such old magnetar.
15519228
PRECISION ASTROMETRY WITH ADAPTIVE OPTICS
We investigate the limits of ground-based astrometry with adaptive optics using the core of the Galactic globular cluster M5. Adaptive optics systems provide near diffraction-limit imaging with the world's largest telescopes. The substantial improvement in both resolution and signal-to-noise ratio enables high-precision astrometry from the ground. We describe the dominant systematic errors that typically limit ground-based differential astrometry, and enumerate observational considerations for mitigating their effects. After implementing these measures, we find that the dominant limitation on astrometric performance in this experiment is caused by tilt anisoplanatism. We then present an optimal estimation technique for measuring the position of one star relative to a grid of reference stars in the face of this correlated random noise source. Our methodology has the advantage of reducing the astrometric errors to and faster than the square root of the number of reference stars, effectively eliminating noise caused by atmospheric tilt to the point that astrometric performance is limited by centering accuracy. Using 50 reference stars, we demonstrate a single-epoch astrometric precision of ≈1 mas in 1 s, decreasing to 100 μas in 2 minutes of integration time at the Hale 200 inch telescope. We also show that our astrometry is accurate to 100 μas for observations separated by 2 months. Finally, we discuss the limits and potential of differential astrometry with current and next-generation large-aperture telescopes. At this level of accuracy, numerous astrometric applications become accessible, including planet detection, astrometric microlensing signatures, and kinematics of distant Galactic stellar populations.
116599063
Hawking fluxes and covariant anomalies
A non-destructive, direct method and apparatus for producing stretch blow molded articles having at least one physical dimension within a preselected range. The apparatus includes an injection mold defining an injection mold interior surface having a first differentially dimensioned portion disposed at a preselected location thereon and capable of producing a parison having a parison exterior surface including a first marker formed by contact with the first differentially dimensioned portion, and a stretch blow mold defining a stretch blow mold interior surface having a second differentially dimensioned portion disposed at a predetermined location thereon and capable of producing the article from the parison including a second marker formed by contact with the second differentially dimensioned portion. Relative position of the first marker with respect to the second marker indicates whether a dimension is within a preselected range. The method includes injection molding a parison so that a parison exterior surface includes a first marker disposed at a preselected position thereon and formed by contact with a first differentially dimensioned portion disposed at a preselected location on an injection mold interior surface, and stretch blow molding an article from the parison so that an article exterior surface includes a second marker disposed at a predetermined position thereon and formed by contact with a second differentially dimensioned portion disposed at a predetermined location on a stretch blow mold interior surface.
206535504
Transformation of a Star into a Planet in a Millisecond Pulsar Binary
Timing observations of a millisecond pulsar reveal a planet that is far denser than any known planet. Millisecond pulsars are thought to be neutron stars that have been spun-up by accretion of matter from a binary companion. Although most are in binary systems, some 30% are solitary, and their origin is therefore mysterious. PSR J1719−1438, a 5.7-millisecond pulsar, was detected in a recent survey with the Parkes 64-meter radio telescope. We show that this pulsar is in a binary system with an orbital period of 2.2 hours. The mass of its companion is near that of Jupiter, but its minimum density of 23 grams per cubic centimeter suggests that it may be an ultralow-mass carbon white dwarf. This system may thus have once been an ultracompact low-mass x-ray binary, where the companion narrowly avoided complete destruction.
119518818
X-Ray Binaries and Globular Clusters in Elliptical Galaxies
The X-ray emission from normal elliptical galaxies has two major components: soft (kT ? 0.2-1 keV) emission from diffuse gas and harder (kT ? 6 keV) emission from populations of accreting (low mass) stellar X-ray binaries. If the low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) population is intimately tied to the field stellar population in a galaxy, its aggregate X-ray luminosity is expected to be simply proportional to the optical luminosity of the galaxy. However, recent ASCA and Chandra X-ray observations show that the global luminosities of LMXB components in elliptical galaxies exhibit significant scatter (a factor of ~4) at a given optical luminosity. This scatter may reflect a range of evolutionary stages among X-ray binary populations in elliptical galaxies of different ages. If so, the ratio of the global LMXB X-ray luminosity to the galactic optical luminosity, LLMXB/Lopt, may in principle be used to determine when the bulk of stars were formed in individual elliptical galaxies. To test this we compare variations in LLMXB/Lopt for LMXB populations in elliptical galaxies to optically derived estimates of stellar ages in the same galaxies. We find no correlation, which suggests that variations in LLMXB/Lopt are not a good age indicator for elliptical galaxies. Alternatively, LMXBs may be formed primarily in globular clusters (through stellar tidal interactions) rather than comprise a subset of the primordial binary star population in a galactic stellar field. Since elliptical galaxies exhibit a wide range of globular cluster populations for a given galactic luminosity, this may induce a dispersion in the LMXB populations of elliptical galaxies with similar optical luminosities. Indeed, we find that LLMXB/Lopt ratios for LMXB populations are strongly correlated with the specific globular cluster frequencies in elliptical galaxies. This suggests that most LMXBs were formed in globular clusters. If so, Chandra observations of central dominant galaxies with unusually large globular cluster populations should find proportionally excessive numbers of LMXBs.