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At least 1,369 records · Page 76

A D-term Modeling Code (DMC) for Simultaneous Calibration and Full-Stokes Imaging of Very Long Baseline Interferometric Data

In this paper we present DMC, a model and associated tool for polarimetric imaging of very long baseline interferometry data sets that simultaneously reconstructs the full-Stokes emission structure along with the station-based gain and leakage calibration terms. DMC formulates the imaging problem in terms of posterior exploration, which is achieved using Hamiltonian Monte Carlo sampling. The resulting posterior distribution provides a natural quantification of uncertainty in both the image structure and the data calibration. We run DMC on both synthetic and real data sets, the results of which demonstrate its ability to accurately recover both the image structure and calibration quantities, as well as to assess their corresponding uncertainties. The framework underpinning DMC is flexible, and its specific implementation is under continued development.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Cometary Activity Begins at Kuiper Belt Distances: Evidence from C/2017 K2

We study the development of activity in the incoming long-period comet C/2017 K2 over the heliocentric distance range 9 ≲ r {sub H} ≲ 16 au. The comet continues to be characterized by a coma of submillimeter-sized and larger particles ejected at low velocity. In a fixed co-moving volume around the nucleus we find that the scattering cross section of the coma, C, is related to the heliocentric distance by a power law, C∝r{sub H}{sup -s}, with heliocentric index s = 1.14 ± 0.05. This dependence is significantly weaker than the r {sub H} {sup -2} variation of the insolation as a result of two effects. These are, first, the heliocentric dependence of the dust velocity and, second, a lag effect due to very slow-moving particles ejected long before the observations were taken. A Monte Carlo model of the photometry shows that dust production beginning at r {sub H} ~ 35 au is needed to match the measured heliocentric index, with only a slight dependence on the particle size distribution. Mass-loss rates in dust at 10 au are of order 10{sup 3} kg s{sup -1}, while loss rates in gas may be much smaller, depending on the unknown dust to gas ratio. Consequently, the ratio of the nongravitational acceleration to the local solar gravity, α', may, depending on the nucleus size, attain values of ~10{sup -7} ≲ α' ≲ 10{sup -5}, comparable to values found in short-period comets at much smaller distances. Nongravitational acceleration in C/2017 K2 and similarly distant comets, while presently unmeasured, may limit the accuracy with which we can infer the properties of the Oort cloud from the orbits of long-period comets.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

The Anatomy of an Unusual Edge-on Protoplanetary Disk. I. Dust Settling in a Cold Disk

As the earliest stage of planet formation, massive, optically thick, and gas-rich protoplanetary disks provide key insights into the physics of star and planet formation. When viewed edge-on, high-resolution images offer a unique opportunity to study both the radial and vertical structures of these disks and relate this to vertical settling, radial drift, grain growth, and changes in the midplane temperatures. In this work, we present multi-epoch Hubble Space Telescope and Keck scattered light images, and an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array 1.3 mm continuum map for the remarkably flat edge-on protoplanetary disk SSTC2DJ163131.2–242627, a young solar-type star in ρ Ophiuchus. We model the 0.8 μm and 1.3 mm images in separate Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) runs to investigate the geometry and dust properties of the disk using the MCFOST radiative transfer code. In scattered light, we are sensitive to the smaller dust grains in the surface layers of the disk, while the submillimeter dust continuum observations probe larger grains closer to the disk midplane. An MCMC run combining both data sets using a covariance-based log-likelihood estimation was marginally successful, implying insufficient complexity in our disk model. The disk is well characterized by a flared disk model with an exponentially tapered outer edge viewed nearly edge-on, though some degree of dust settling is required to reproduce the vertically thin profile and lack of apparent flaring. A colder than expected disk midplane, evidence for dust settling, and residual radial substructures all point to a more complex radial density profile to be probed with future, higher-resolution observations.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

A Detailed Characterization of HR 8799's Debris Disk with ALMA in Band 7

The exoplanetary system of HR 8799 is one of the rare systems in which multiple planets have been directly imaged. Its architecture is strikingly similar to that of the solar system, with the four imaged giant planets surrounding a warm dust belt analogous to the Asteroid Belt, and themselves being surrounded by a cold dust belt analog to the Kuiper Belt. Previous observations of this cold belt with ALMA in Band 6 (1.3 mm) revealed its inner edge, but analyses of the data differ on its precise location. It was therefore unclear whether or not the outermost planet HR 8799 b was dynamically sculpting it. We present here new ALMA observations of this debris disk in Band 7 (340 GHz, 880 μm). These are the most detailed observations of this disk obtained so far, with a resolution of 1″ (40 au) and sensitivity of 9.8 μJy beam{sup −1}, which allowed us to recover the disk structure with high confidence. In order to constrain the disk morphology, we fit its emission using radiative transfer models combined with a Markov Chain Monte Carlo procedure. We find that this disk cannot be adequately represented by a single power law with sharp edges. It exhibits a smoothly rising inner edge and smoothly falling outer edge, with a peak in between, as expected from a disk that contains a high-eccentricity component, hence confirming previous findings. Whether this excited population and inner edge shape stem from the presence of an additional planet remains, however, an open question.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

The Initial–Final Mass Relation for Hydrogen-deficient White Dwarfs

The initial–final mass relation represents the total mass lost by a star during the entirety of its evolution from the zero age main sequence to the white-dwarf cooling track. The semiempirical initial–final mass relation (IFMR) is largely based on observations of DA white dwarfs, the most common spectral type of white dwarf and the simplest atmosphere to model. We present a first derivation of the semiempirical IFMR for hydrogen-deficient (non-DA) white dwarfs in open star clusters. We identify a possible discrepancy between the DA and non-DA IFMRs, with non-DA white dwarfs ≈0.07 M {sub ⊙} less massive at a given initial mass. Such a discrepancy is unexpected based on theoretical models of non-DA formation and observations of field white dwarf mass distributions. If real, the discrepancy is likely due to enhanced mass loss during the final thermal pulse and renewed post-AGB evolution of the star. However, we are dubious that the mass discrepancy is physical and instead is due to the small sample size, to systematic issues in model atmospheres of non-DAs, and to the uncertain evolutionary history of Procyon B (spectral type DQZ). A significantly larger sample size is needed to test these assertions. In addition, we also present Monte Carlo models of the correlated errors for DA and non-DA white dwarfs in the initial–final mass plane. We find the uncertainties in initial–final mass determinations for individual white dwarfs can be significantly asymmetric, but the recovered functional form of the IFMR is grossly unaffected by the correlated errors.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Eta Fragmentation Functions Revisited

We revisit the extraction of parton-to-eta meson fragmentation functions at next-to-leading order accuracy in QCD in the light of the recent hadroproduction measurements in proton-proton collisions obtained by the PHENIX, LHCb, and ALICE collaborations. In addition to an increased precision, the data explore complementary rapidity ranges and center-of-mass system energies. The analysis exploits the theoretical scale dependence to ease tensions among the data sets at different energies that are potentially caused by QCD corrections beyond the next-to-leading order. The resulting set of fragmentation functions yields a consistent description of all available data. Estimates of uncertainties are obtained with the Monte Carlo replica method.

FOS: Physical sciences↗

Systematic improvement of trial states in phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo

We extend the use of coupled cluster (CC) trial states in the phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AFQMC) method beyond single and double excitations to include both triple and quadruple excitations. With this AFQMC/CC hierarchy, we are able to systematically benchmark the method's performance on molecular systems as the quality of the trial is improved. Our results show that the phaseless AFQMC energy improves systematically and is typically significantly more accurate than the energy of the underlying trial state. However, the relative improvement compared to the trial CC energy decreases as we ascend the CC hierarchy. As the CC wavefunction is usually further approximated when used as an AFQMC trial, we also explore the relationship between the components of the CC wavefunction and the resulting AFQMC/CC error. Our results suggest that improving the representation of the CC wave function in the AFQMC trial does not always lower the bias even when it increases the fidelity of the trial with the exact ground state.

Chemical Physics (physics.chem-ph)↗

First Global Extraction of the Worm-gear TMD g 1 T

In these proceedings, we report on the first simultaneous extraction of the worm-gear function g 1 T , one of the eight leading-twist TMDs. The study analyzes COMPASS, HERMES and JLab semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering data using Monte Carlotechniques. We also provide a comparison of g 1 T obtained from this experimental data with a large N c analysis, the Wandzura–Wilczek-type approximation, and lattice QCD.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Monte Carlo Calculations of Neutron Number Spectra and Buildup Factors in Infinite Conical Configurations

A Monte Carlo code simulating neutron transport in infinite cones of water and water-equivalent hydrogen was prepared for an IBM 704 computer. The code was essentially a modification of the point-source, infinite-medium code used in NASA TN D-850. Studies were made of differential neutron number spectra and associated buildup factors for infinite cones having apex half-angles of 15 degrees, 30 degrees, 45 degrees, and 60 degrees. The buildup factors obtained were compared with those for the appropriate infinite medium, which allowed an examination of the effect of solid angle subtended by material on the transport of 6-Mev source neutrons emanating from the cone apex. The variation of number buildup factor with distance for the various cones shows that neutron scattering out of the cones is predominant in the first 30 t o 40 centimeters of material, and that transport beyond this distance is of a similar nature in all the cones.

CONE↗