197492896
Discovery of six high-redshift quasars with the Lijiang 2.4m telescope and MMT
Quasars with redshifts greater than four are rare, and can provide us important helps in probing the nature of the early universe. Here we report the discovery of six new quasars with $i$-band magnitudes brighter than 19.5 and redshifts between 2.4 and 4.6 from the spectroscopic observations made with the YFOSC instrument of the Lijiang 2.4m telescope in February, 2012. These six quasars are in the list of high redshift ($z>3.6$) quasar candidates selected by using our proposed J-K/i-Y criterion and the photometric redshift estimations from the SDSS optical and UKIDSS near-IR photometric data. Nine candidates were observed by YFOSC, and five among six new quasars were identified as $z>3.6$ quasars. One of the other three objects was identified as a star and the rest two were unidentified due to the lower signal-to-noise ratio of their spectra. This is the first time to discover quasars with redshifts greater than four with a telescope in China. Thanks to the Chinese Telescope Access Program (TAP), the redshift of 4.6 for one of these new quasars was confirmed by the MMT Red Channel spectroscopy. The continuum and emission line properties of these six quasars, as well as their central black hole masses and Eddington ratios, were obtained.
199676816
Discovering the missing bright quasars at intermediate redshifts based on the optical/near-IR color selections
2227030
Testing the transition layer model of quasi-periodic oscillations in neutron star X-ray binaries
We compare the theoretical predictions of the transition layer model with some observational features of quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) in neutron star X-ray binaries. We found that the correlation between horizontal branch oscillation (HBO) frequencies and kilohertz (kHz) QPO frequencies, the difference between the low-frequency QPOs in atoll sources and HBOs in Z sources, and the correlation between the frequencies of low-frequency QPOs and break frequencies can be well explained by the transition layer model, provided the neutron star mass is around 1.4 M☉ and the angle between magnetosphere equator and accretion disk plane is around 6°. The observed decrease of peak separation between the two kHz QPO frequencies with the increase of the kHz QPO frequencies and the increase of QPO frequencies with the increase of inferred mass accretion rate are also consistent with the theoretical predictions of the transition layer model. In addition, we derive a simple equation that can be adopted to estimate the angle (δ) between magnetosphere equator and accretion disk plane by use of the simultaneously observed QPO frequency data. We estimate this angle, in the range of 4°-8°, for five Z sources and two atoll sources. The nearly constant δ value for each source, derived from the different sets of simultaneously observed QPO frequency data, provides a strong test of the theoretical model. Finally, we suggest that similar transition layer oscillations may be responsible for the observed QPOs in accretion-powered millisecond X-ray pulsars and Galactic black hole candidates.
2377462
Galaxy bulge formation: Interplay with dark matter halo and central supermassive black hole
We present a simple scenario where the formation of galactic bulges was regulated by the dark halo gravity and regulates the growth of the central supermassive black hole. Assuming the angular momentum is low, we suggest that bulges form in a runaway collapse due to the "gravothermal" instability once the central gas density or pressure exceeds a certain threshold. We emphasize that the threshold is nearly universal, set by the background NFW dark matter gravity gDM ~ 1.2 × 10-8 cm s-2 in the central cusps of halos. Unlike known thresholds for gradual formation of galaxy disks, we show that the universal "halo-regulated" star formation threshold for spheroids matches the very high star formation rate and star formation efficiency seen in high-redshift observations of central starburst regions. The starburst feedback also builds up a pressure shortly after the collapse. This large pressure could act both outward to halt further infall of gas from larger scales and inward to counter the Compton-thick wind launched from the central black hole in an Eddington accretion. Assuming the feedback balances inward and outward forces, our scenario naturally gives rise to the black hole-bulge relationships observed in the local universe.
2132712
Inclinations and black hole masses of Seyfert 1 galaxies
A tight correlation between black hole mass (MBH) and central velocity dispersion (σ) has been found recently for both active and quiescent galaxies. By applying this correlation, we develop a simple method to derive the inclination angles for a sample of 11 Seyfert 1 galaxies that have both measured central velocity dispersions and black hole masses estimated by reverberation mapping. These angles, with a mean value of 36° that agrees well with the result obtained by fitting the iron Kα lines of Seyfert 1 galaxies observed with ASCA, provide further support to the orientation-dependent unification scheme of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). A positive correlation of the inclinations with observed FWHMs of the Hβ line and a possible anticorrelation with the nuclear radio loudness have been found. We conclude that more accurate knowledge of inclinations and broad-line region dynamics is needed to improve the black hole mass determination of AGNs with the reverberation mapping technique.
118357880
ON THE STRUCTURE OF ACCRETION DISKS WITH OUTFLOWS
To study the outflows from accretion disks, we solve the set of hydrodynamic equations for accretion disks in spherical coordinates (rθ) to obtain the explicit structure along the θ-direction. Using self-similar assumptions in the radial direction, we change the equations to a set of ordinary differential equations about the θ-coordinate, which are then solved with symmetrical boundary conditions in the equatorial plane; the velocity field is then obtained. The α viscosity prescription is applied and an advective factor f is used to simplify the energy equation. The results display thinner, quasi-Keplerian disks for Shakura-Sunyaev disks; thicker, sub-Keplerian disks for advection-dominated accretion flows; and slim disks which are consistent with previous popular analytical models. However, an inflow region and an outflow region always exist, except when the viscosity parameter α is too large, which supports the results of some recent numerical simulation works. Our results indicate that the outflows should be common in various accretion disks and may be stronger in slim disks, where both advection and radiation pressure are dominant. We also present the structure's dependence on the input parameters and discuss their physical meanings. The caveats of this work and possible improvements for the future are discussed.
119144104
Age constraints on the Agegraphic Dark Energy Model
We investigate the age constraint on the agegraphic dark energy model by using two old galaxies (LBDS 53W091 and LBDS 53W069) and the old high redshift quasar APM 08279+5255. We find that the agegraphic dark energy model can easily accommodate LBDS 53W091 and LBDS 53W069. To accommodate APM 08279+5255, one can take the reduced Hubble parameter as large as h=0.64, when the fraction matter energy density $\Omega_{m0}\approx 0.22$.
118599552
Some mass relations for mesons and baryons in Regge phenomenology
In the quasilinear Regge trajectory ansatz, some useful linear mass inequalities, quadratic mass inequalities, and quadratic mass equalities are derived for mesons and baryons. Based on these relations, mass ranges of some mesons and baryons are given. The masses of bc and ss belonging to the pseudoscalar, vector, and tensor meson multiplets are also extracted. The J{sup P} of the baryon {xi}{sub cc}{sup +}(3520) is assigned to be (1/2){sup +}. The parameters of the (1/2){sup +} and (3/2){sup +} SU(4) baryon trajectories are extracted and the masses of the orbital excited baryons lying on the (1/2){sup +} and (3/2){sup +} trajectories are estimated. The J{sup P} assignments of baryons {xi}{sub c}(2980), {xi}{sub c}(3055), {xi}{sub c}(3077), and {xi}{sub c}(3123) are discussed. The predictions are in reasonable agreement with the existing experimental data and those suggested in many other different approaches. The mass relations and the predictions may be useful for the discovery of the unobserved meson and baryon states and the J{sup P} assignment of these states.
118633399
Next-to-leading order QCD corrections for the charmonium production via the channel $e^+ e^- \to H(|c\bar{c}\rangle) + \gamma$ round the $Z^0$ peak
In our previous work [2], it has been found that sizable charmonium events via the channel $e^+e^- \to \gamma^*/Z^0 \to H(|c\bar{c}\rangle) +\gamma$ can be produced at the suggested super $Z$ factory, where $H(|c\bar{c}\rangle)$ represents the dominant color-singlet $S$-wave and $P$-wave charmonium states $J/\psi$, $\eta_c$, $h_c$ and $\chi_{cJ}$ ($J=0, 1, 2$), respectively. As an important step forward, in the present paper, we present a next-to-leading order (NLO) QCD analysis within the framework of nonrelativistic QCD. In different to the case of $B$ factory in which the single charmonium production is dominated by the channel via a virtual photon, at the super $Z$ factory, its cross-section is dominated by the channel via a $Z^0$ boson. Estimations up to NLO level are done at both the $B$ factory and the super $Z$ factory experimental conditions. We observe that the NLO distributions have the same shapes as those of LO distributions, but their differences are sizable. This indicates that a NLO calculation is necessary and important to achieve a more accurate estimation. Due to $Z^0$ boson resonance effect, at the super $Z$ factory with a high luminosity up to $10^{36}{\rm cm}^{-2}{\rm s}^{-1}$, when summing all the color-singlet states' contribution together, one may observe about $8.0\times10^{4}$ charmonium events via the channel $e^+e^-\to Z^0 \to H(|c\bar{c}\rangle)+\gamma$ in one operation year. Then, such super $Z$ factory could provide another useful platform to study the charmonium properties, even for the higher charmonium states.
43275754
Eliminating the renormalization scale ambiguity for top-pair production using the principle of maximum conformality.
It is conventional to choose a typical momentum transfer of the process as the renormalization scale and take an arbitrary range to estimate the uncertainty in the QCD prediction. However, predictions using this procedure depend on the renormalization scheme, leave a nonconvergent renormalon perturbative series, and moreover, one obtains incorrect results when applied to QED processes. In contrast, if one fixes the renormalization scale using the principle of maximum conformality (PMC), all nonconformal {β(i)} terms in the perturbative expansion series are summed into the running coupling, and one obtains a unique, scale-fixed, scheme-independent prediction at any finite order. The PMC scale μ(R)(PMC) and the resulting finite-order PMC prediction are both to high accuracy independent of the choice of initial renormalization scale μ(R)(init), consistent with renormalization group invariance. As an application, we apply the PMC procedure to obtain next-to-next-to-leading-order (NNLO) predictions for the tt-pair production at the Tevatron and LHC colliders. The PMC prediction for the total cross section σ(tt) agrees well with the present Tevatron and LHC data. We also verify that the initial scale independence of the PMC prediction is satisfied to high accuracy at the NNLO level: the total cross section remains almost unchanged even when taking very disparate initial scales μ(R)(init) equal to m(t), 20m(t), and √s. Moreover, after PMC scale setting, we obtain A(FB)(tt)≃12.5%, A(FB)(pp)≃8.28% and A(FB)(tt)(M(tt)>450 GeV)≃35.0%. These predictions have a 1σ deviation from the present CDF and D0 measurements; the large discrepancy of the top quark forward-backward asymmetry between the standard model estimate and the data are, thus, greatly reduced.
67823085
General Properties on Applying the Principle of Minimum Sensitivity to High-order Perturbative QCD Predictions
As one of the key components of perturbative QCD theory, it is helpful to find a systematic and reliable way to set the renormalization scale for a high-energy process. The conventional treatment is to take a typical momentum as the renormalization scale, which assigns an arbitrary range and an arbitrary systematic error to pQCD predictions, leading to the well-known renormalization scheme and scale ambiguities. As a practical solution for such scale setting problem, the "Principle of Minimum Sensitivity" (PMS), has been proposed in the literature. The PMS suggests to determine an optimal scale for the pQCD approximant of an observable by requiring its slope over the scheme and scale changes to vanish. In the paper, we present a detailed discussion on general properties of PMS by utilizing three quantities $R_{e^+e^-}$, $R_\tau$ and $\Gamma(H\rightarrow b\bar{b})$ up to four-loop QCD corrections. After applying the PMS, the accuracy of pQCD prediction, the pQCD convergence, the pQCD predictive power and etc., have been discussed. Furthermore, we compare PMS with another fundamental scale setting approach, i.e. the Principle of Maximum Conformality (PMC)... Our results show that PMS does provide a practical way to set the effective scale for high-energy process, and the PMS prediction agrees with the PMC one by including enough high-order QCD corrections, both of which shall be more accurate than the prediction under the conventional scale setting. However, the PMS pQCD convergence is an accidental, which usually fails to achieve a correct prediction of unknown high-order contributions with next-to-leading order QCD correction only, i.e. it is always far from the "true" values predicted by including more high-order contributions.