16795633
Theoretical aspects of roAp stars
The theoretical work on roAp stars is reviewed, especially in relation with observational facts that still need to be understood: high frequencies of the modes observed, which can be higher than the theoretical critical cutoff frequency for acoustic modes in these stars; their apparent alignment with the magnetic field, and the fact that some modes cannot be described by a single spherical harmonic.
14738827
Improved pulsating models of magnetic Ap stars ¿ I. Exploring different magnetic field configurations
Magnetic perturbations to the frequencies of low-degree, high radial order, axisymmetric pulsations in stellar models permeated by large-scale magnetic fields are presented. Magnetic fields with dipolar, quadrupolar and a superposition of aligned dipolar and quadrupolar components are considered. The results confirm that the magnetic field may produce strong anomalies in the power spectra of roAp stars. It is shown for the first time that anomalies may result both from a sudden decrease or a sudden increase of a mode frequency. Moreover, the results indicate that the anomalies depend essentially on the geometry of the problem, that is, on the configuration of the magnetic field and on the degree of the modes. This dependence opens the possibility of using these anomalies as a tool to learn about the magnetic field configuration in the magnetic boundary layer of pulsating stars permeated by large-scale magnetic fields.
118476277
Probing tiny convective cores with the acoustic modes of lowest degree
Solar-like oscillations are expected to be excited in stars of up to about 1.6 solar masses. Most of these stars will have convective cores during their main-sequence evolution. At the edges of these convective cores, there is a rapid variation in the sound speed, which influences the frequencies of acoustic oscillations. In this paper we build on earlier work to investigate the impact that these rapid structural variations have on different p-mode frequency combinations, involving modes of low degree. In particular, we adopt a different expression to describe the sound speed variation at the edge of the core, which we show more closely reproduces the profiles derived from the equilibrium models. We analyse the impact of this change on the frequency perturbation derived for radial modes. Moreover, we consider three different small frequency separations involving modes of degree l = 0, 1, 2, 3, l = 0, 1, and l = 0, 2, and show that they are all significantly affected by the sharp sound speed variation at the edge of the core. In particular, we confirm that the frequency derivative of the diagnostic tool that combines modes of degree up to 3 can potentially be used to infer the amplitude of the relative sound speed variation directly at the edge of the core. We show that at high frequencies the other two diagnostic tools can be up to a few μHz smaller than what would be expected in the absence of the rapid structural variation at the edge of the core. Also, we show that the absolute values of their frequency derivatives are significantly increased, in a manner that strongly depends on stellar age.
59387646
Theory of rapidly oscillating Ap stars
I review recent theoretical work on rapidly oscillating Ap stars and discuss key aspects of the physics of the oscillations observed in this class of pulsators.
16590095
Asteroseismology and interferometry
Asteroseismology provides us with a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of stellar structure and evolution. Recent developments, including the first systematic studies of solar-like pulsators, have boosted the impact of this field of research within astrophysics and have led to a significant increase in the size of the research community. In the present paper we start by reviewing the basic observational and theoretical properties of classical and solar-like pulsators and present results from some of the most recent and outstanding studies of these stars. We centre our review on those classes of pulsators for which interferometric studies are expected to provide a significant input. We discuss current limitations to asteroseismic studies, including difficulties in mode identification and in the accurate determination of global parameters of pulsating stars, and, after a brief review of those aspects of interferometry that are most relevant in this context, anticipate how interferometric observations may contribute to overcome these limitations. Moreover, we present results of recent pilot studies of pulsating stars involving both asteroseismic and interferometric constraints and look into the future, summarizing ongoing efforts concerning the development of future instruments and satellite missions which are expected to have an impact in this field of research.
14857158
A search for rapid pulsations among nine luminous Ap stars
The rapidly oscillating Ap (roAp) stars are of importance for studying the atmospheric structure of stars where the process of chemical element diffusion is significant. We have performed a survey for rapid oscillations in a sample of nine luminous Ap stars, selected from their location in the colour‐magnitude diagram as more evolved main-sequence Ap stars that are inside the instability strip for roAp stars. Until recently this region was devoid of stars with observed rapid pulsations. We used the Very Large Telescope UV‐Visual Echelle Spectrograph to obtain high time resolution spectroscopy to make the first systematic spectroscopic search for rapid oscillations in this region of the roAp instability strip. We report nine null detections with upper limits for radial velocity amplitudes of 20‐65 m s −1 and precisions of σ = 7‐ 20 m s −1 for combinations of Nd and Pr lines. Cross-correlations confirm these null results. At least six stars are magnetic and we provide magnetic field measurements for four of them, of which three are newly discovered magnetic stars. It is found that four stars have magnetic fields smaller than ∼2 kG, which according to theoretical predictions might be insufficient for suppressing envelope convection around the magnetic poles for more evolved Ap stars. Suppression of convection is expected to be essential for the opacity mechanism acting in the hydrogen ionization zone to drive the high-overtone roAp pulsations efficiently. Our null results suggest that the more evolved roAp stars may require particularly strong magnetic fields to pulsate. Three of the studied stars do, however, have magnetic fields stronger than 5 kG.
119305702
Confluent Heun functions in gauge theories on thick braneworlds
We investigate the propagation modes of gauge fields in an infinite Randall-Sundrum scenario. In this model a sine-Gordon soliton represents our thick four-dimensional braneworld while an exponentially coupled scalar acts for the dilaton field. For the gauge-field motion we find a differential equation which can be transformed into a confluent Heun equation. By means of another change of variables we obtain a related Schroedinger equation with a family of symmetric rational ({gamma}-{omega}z{sup 2})/(1-z{sup 2}){sup 2} potential functions. We discuss both results and present the infinite spectrum of analytical solutions for the gauge field. Finally, we assess the existence and the relative weights of Kaluza-Klein modes in the present setup.
119212554
Some remarks on Relativistic Diffusion and the Spectral Dimension Criterion
The spectral dimension $d_s$ for high energies is calculated using the Relativistic Schr\"{o}dinger Equation Analytically Continued (RSEAC) instead of the so-called Telegraph's Equation (TE), in both ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) regimens. Regarding the TE, the recent literature presents difficulties related to its stochastic derivation and interpretation, advocating the use of the RSEAC to properly describe the relativistic diffusion phenomena. Taking into account that the Lorentz symmetry is broken in UV regime at Lifshitz point, we show that there exists a degeneracy in very high energies, meaning that both the RSEAC and the TE correctly describe the diffusion processes at these energy scales, at least under the spectral dimension criterion. In fact, both the equations yield the same result, namely, $d_s = 2$, a dimensional reduction that is compatible with several theories of quantum gravity. This result is reached even when one takes into account a cosmological model - the De Sitter one - for a flat Universe. On the other hand, in the IR regimen, such degeneracy is lifted in favor of the approach via TE, due to the fact that only this equation provides the correct value for $d_s$, which is equal to the actual number of spacetime dimensions, i. e., $d_s = 4$, while RSEAC furnishes $d_s=3$, so that a diffusing particle described by this latter experiences a three-dimensional spacetime.
119397004
Vortices in a nonminimal Maxwell Chern-Simons O(3) sigma model
Abstract In this work we consider an Abelian O(3) sigma model coupled nonminimally with a gauge field governed by Maxwell and Chern–Simons terms. Bogomol'nyi equations are constructed for a specific form of the potential and generic nonminimal coupling constant. Furthermore, topological and nontopological self-dual soliton solutions are obtained for a critical value of the nonminimal coupling constant. Some particular static vortex solutions (topological and nontopological) satisfying the Bogomol'nyi bound are numerically solved and presented.
14735362
Bogomol'nyi equations in gauge theories
By imposing self-duality conditions, we obtain the explicit form in which gauge theories spontaneously breakdown in the Bogomol'nyi limit. In this context, we reconsider the Abelian Higgs, Chern-Simons Higgs and Maxwell-Chern-Simons Higgs models. On the same footing, we find a topological Higgs potential for a Maxwell-Chern-Simons extended theory presenting both minimal and nonminimal coupling. Finally, we perform a numerical calculation in the asymmetric phase and show the solutions to the self-dual equations of motion of the topological theory. We argue about certain relations among the parameters of the model in order to obtain such vortex configurations.
16268453
Topological mass generation to antisymmetric tensor matter field
We propose a mechanism to give mass to tensor matter field which preserves the U(1) symmetry. We introduce a complex vector field that couples with the tensor in a topological term. We also analyze the influence of the kinetic terms of the complex vector in our mechanism.