117922628
Minimal walking technicolour, the top mass and precision electroweak measurements
We consider a minimal technicolour theory with two techniflavours in the adjoint representation of an SU(2) technicolour gauge group which has been argued to feature walking dynamics. We show how to naturally embed this theory in an extended technicolour model capable of generating the top quark mass. We investigate the precision constraints and conclude that such models, in the light of the most recent precision data fit, are not ruled out.
7462815
Softly broken SQCD: in the continuum, on the lattice, on the brane
Abstract We review progress in studying the solutions of SQCD in the presence of explicit, soft SUSY breaking terms. Massive N = 1 SQCD in the presece of a small gaugino mass leads to a controlled solution which has interesting phase structure with changing θ angle reminiscent of the QCD chiral Lagrangian. Current attempts to test the solutions of pure glue SQCD on the lattice require a theoretical understandinf of the theory with small gaugino mass in order to understand the approach to the SUSY point. We provide such a description making predictions for the gaugino condensate and lightest bound state masses. Finally we briefly review recent D-brane constructions of 4D gauge theories in string theory including a non-supersymmetric configuration. We identify this configuration with softly broken N = 2 SQCD.
119206061
Hadronization at the AdS wall
We describe hadronization events, using the AdS/CFT Correspondence, which display many of the qualitative features expected in QCD. In particular we study the motion of strings with separating end points in a back-reacted hard wall geometry. The solutions show the development of a linear QCD-like string. The end points oscillate in the absence of string breaking. We introduce string breaking by hand and evolve the new state forward in time to observe the separation of two string segments. A kink associated with this breaking evolves to the end points of the string inducing rho meson production. We explicitly compute the rho meson production at the end point.
18555159
Additional fermion families and precision electroweak data
Abstract The S , T , and U formalism for studying electroweak precision data has recently been updated to include the effects of new light physics and within this analysis the latest LEP and SLC data tightly constrain models of physics beyond the Standard Model. We re-examine the constraints on additional strong and weakly interacting fermion families in the light of these developments. We conclude that the precision data favour models with at least one fermion with a mass below 150 GeV.
14538317
Field theory operator encoding in N = 2 geometries
We investigate supergravity solutions describing D5-branes wrapped on a two cycle which are dual to = 2 super Yang Mills theory. Brane probing these solutions allows the moduli space of the field theory to be identified. There are a unique set of coordinates in which the field theory on the probe takes an = 2 form and in these coordinates the running coupling of the gauge theory may be identified. We show that the geometry, when restricted to the moduli space, takes a very simple form involving only two functions. One is the running gauge coupling whilst the other parametrizes the scalar operators of the field theory. The D5-brane distributions, for the full set of solutions in the literature, can be determined by assuming the field theory's form for the running coupling as a function of scalar vevs. We show that the resulting distributions also correctly reproduce the scalar operators parametrized elsewhere providing the first non-trivial consistency check on the duality.
118470786
Chemical potential in the gravity dual of a 2 + 1 dimensional system
We study probe D5 branes in D3 brane AdS5 and AdS5-Schwarzschild backgrounds as a prototype dual description of strongly coupled 2+1 dimensional quasiparticles. We introduce a chemical potential through the U(1)R symmetry group, U(1) baryon number, and a U(1) of isospin in the multiflavor case. We find the appropriate D5 embeddings in each case—the embeddings do not exhibit the spontaneous symmetry breaking that would be needed for a superconductor. The isospin chemical potential does induce the condensation of charged meson states.
119498034
Submillimeter Dust Continuum Studies of Low and High Mass Star Formation
Studying the physical environments of low mass and high mass cores using dust continuum emission provides important observational constraints on theoretical models of star formation. The motivation and procedure for modeling dust continuum emission is reviewed and the results of recent surveys towards low mass and high mass star forming regions are compared.
16588244
MAMBO mapping of Spitzer c2d small clouds and cores
Aims. To study the structure of nearby (<500 pc) dense starless and star-forming cores with the particular goal to identify and understand evolutionary trends in core properties, and to explore the nature of Very Low Luminosity Objects (<0.1 L ⊙ ; VeLLOs). Methods. Using the MAMBO bolometer array, we create maps unusually sensitive to faint (few mJy per beam) extended (≈5') thermal dust continuum emission at 1.2 mm wavelength. Complementary information on embedded stars is obtained from Spitzer, IRAS, and 2MASS. Results. Our maps are very rich in structure, and we characterize extended emission features ("subcores") and compact intensity peaks in our data separately to pay attention to this complexity. We derive, e.g., sizes, masses, and aspect ratios for the subcores, as well as column densities and related properties for the peaks. Combination with archival infrared data then enables the derivation of bolometric luminosities and temperatures, as well as envelope masses, for the young embedded stars. Conclusions. Starless and star-forming cores occupy the same parameter space in many core properties; a picture of dense core evolution in which any dense core begins to actively form stars once it exceeds some fixed limit in, e.g., mass, density, or both, is inconsistent with our data. A concept of necessary conditions for star formation appears to provide a better description: dense cores fulfilling certain conditions can form stars, but they do not need to, respectively have not done so yet. Comparison of various evolutionary indicators for young stellar objects in our sample (e.g., bolometric temperatures) reveals inconsistencies between some of them, possibly suggesting a revision of some of these indicators. Finally, we challenge the notion that VeLLOs form in cores not expected to actively form stars, and we present a first systematic study revealing evidence for structural differences between starless and candidate VeLLO cores.
119100119
THE STAR FORMATION RATE AND GAS SURFACE DENSITY RELATION IN THE MILKY WAY: IMPLICATIONS FOR EXTRAGALACTIC STUDIES
We investigate the relation between star formation rate (SFR) and gas surface densities in Galactic star-forming regions using a sample of young stellar objects (YSOs) and massive dense clumps. Our YSO sample consists of objects located in 20 large molecular clouds from the Spitzer cores to disks (c2d) and Gould's Belt (GB) surveys. These data allow us to probe the regime of low-mass star formation, essentially invisible to tracers of high-mass star formation used to establish extragalactic SFR-gas relations. We estimate the gas surface density (Σgas) from extinction (AV ) maps and YSO SFR surface densities (ΣSFR) from the number of YSOs, assuming a mean mass and lifetime. We also divide the clouds into evenly spaced contour levels of AV , counting only Class I and Flat spectral energy distribution YSOs, which have not yet migrated from their birthplace. For a sample of massive star-forming clumps, we derive SFRs from the total infrared luminosity and use HCN gas maps to estimate gas surface densities. We find that c2d and GB clouds lie above the extragalactic SFR-gas relations (e.g., Kennicutt-Schmidt law) by factors of up to 17. Cloud regions with high Σgas lie above extragalactic relations up to a factor of 54 and overlap with high-mass star-forming regions. We use 12CO and 13CO gas maps of the Perseus and Ophiuchus clouds from the COMPLETE survey to estimate gas surface densities and compare to measurements from AV maps. We find that 13CO, with the standard conversions to total gas, underestimates the AV -based mass by factors of ~4-5. 12CO may underestimate the total gas mass at Σgas 200 M ☉ pc–2 by 30%; however, this small difference in mass estimates does not explain the large discrepancy between Galactic and extragalactic relations. We find evidence for a threshold of star formation (Σth) at 129 ± 14 M ☉ pc–2. At Σgas>Σth, the Galactic SFR-gas relation is linear. A possible reason for the difference between Galactic and extragalactic relations is that much of Σgas is below Σth in extragalactic studies, which detect all the CO-emitting gas. If the Kennicutt-Schmidt relation (ΣSFR Σ1.4 gas) and a linear relation between dense gas and star formation are assumed, the fraction of dense star-forming gas (f dense) increases as ~Σ0.4 gas. When Σgas reaches ~300 Σth, the fraction of dense gas is ~1, creating a maximal starburst.
118401675
The Diskionary: A Glossary of Terms Commonly Used for Disks and Related Objects, First Edition
Based on a panel discussion at the meeting "New Light on Young Stars: Spitzer's View of Circumstellar Disks", we provide some definitions of common usage of terms describing disks and related objects.
119355247
Studying Infall
The study of protostellar collapse or infall has proven unusually difficult and controversial. Some historical context will be provided, against which recent advances can be measured. We now have a substantial number of objects with signatures that can be interpreted in terms of collapse, but a number of issues remain. One issue is the effect of chemical variations, especially depletion in the dense, cold interiors of cores that are likely to form low mass stars. Strategies for dealing with this issue depend on using dust emission to constrain the density and temperature distribution, leaving molecular line observations to constrain dynamics and abundance distributions. Recent progress in this area will be described and we will consider the next challenges to be overcome. Interferometeric observations, especially with future instruments, will provide a powerful tool. In combination with chemical studies coupled with dynamical models, the observations made possible by interferometers should finally put this subject on a firm foundation.