Search results for "GRAVITATION"
showing 10 items of 743 documents
Correlation Functions and Finite–Size Effects in Granular Media
2014
A model is considered, where the local order parameter is an n–component vector. This model allows us to calculate correlation functions, describing the correlations between local order parameter at different spatial coordinates. The longitudinal and transverse Fourier–transformed two–point correlation functions \(G_{\parallel }(\mathbf{k})\) and \(G_{\perp }(\mathbf{k})\) in presence of an external field h are considered in some detail. In the thermodynamic limit, these correlation functions exhibit the so-called Goldstone mode singularities below certain critical temperature at an infinitesimal external field \(h = +0\). The actual model can be applied to granular media, in which case it …
On the sources of the late integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect
2000
In some scenarios, the peculiar gravitational potential of linear and mildly nonlinear structures depends on time and, as a result of this dependence, a late integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect appears. Here, an appropriate formalism is used which allows us to improve on the analysis of the spatial scales and locations of the main cosmological inhomogeneities producing this effect. The study is performed in the framework of the currently preferred flat model with cosmological constant, and it is also developed in an open model for comparisons. Results from this analysis are used to discuss the contribution of Great Attractor-like objects, voids, and other structures to the CMB anisotropy.
A Study of Gravitational Lens Chromaticity using Ground-based Narrow Band Photometry
2011
We present observations of wavelength-dependent flux ratios for four gravitational lens systems (SDSS~J1650+4251, HE~0435$-$1223, FBQ 0951+2635, and Q~0142$-$100) obtained with the Nordic Optical Telescope. The use of narrowband photometry, as well as the excellent seeing conditions during the observations, allows us to study their chromatic behavior. For SDSS~J1650+4251, we determine the extinction curve of the dust in the $z_L=0.58$ lens galaxy and find that the 2175 \AA \ feature is absent. In the case of HE~0435$-$1223, we clearly detect chromatic microlensing. This allows us to estimate the wavelength-dependent size of the accretion disk. We find an R-band disk size of $r^{R}_s=13\pm5$…
PECULIAR TRANSVERSE VELOCITIES OF GALAXIES FROM QUASAR MICROLENSING. TENTATIVE ESTIMATE OF THE PECULIAR VELOCITY DISPERSION ATZ∼ 0.5
2016
We propose to use the flux variability of lensed quasar images induced by gravitational microlensing to measure the transverse peculiar velocity of lens galaxies over a wide range of redshift. Microlensing variability is caused by the motions of the observer, the lens galaxy (including the motion of the stars within the galaxy), and the source; hence, its frequency is directly related to the galaxy's transverse peculiar velocity. The idea is to count time-event rates (e.g., peak or caustic crossing rates) in the observed microlensing light curves of lensed quasars that can be compared with model predictions for different values of the transverse peculiar velocity. To compensate for the larg…
Lepton flavor asymmetries and the mass spectrum of primordial black holes
2020
We study the influence of lepton flavour asymmetries on the formation and the mass spectrum of primordial black holes. We estimate the detectability of their mergers with LIGO/Virgo and show that the currently published gravitational wave events may actually be described by a primordial black hole spectrum from non-zero asymmetries. We suggest to use gravitational-wave astronomy as a novel tool to probe how lepton flavour asymmetric the Universe has been before the onset of neutrino oscillations.
A Robust Determination of the size of quasar accretion disks using gravitational microlensing
2012
Using microlensing measurements from a sample of 27 image-pairs of 19 lensed quasars we determine a maximum likelihood estimate for the accretion disk size of an {{\em}average} quasar of $r_s=4.0^{+2.4}_{-3.1} $ light days at rest frame $=1736$\AA\ for microlenses with a mean mass of $=0.3M_\odot$. This value, in good agreement with previous results from smaller samples, is roughly a factor of 5 greater than the predictions of the standard thin disk model. The individual size estimates for the 19 quasars in our sample are also in excellent agreement with the results of the joint maximum likelihood analysis.
Whispers from the dark side: Confronting light new physics with NANOGrav data
2021
The NANOGrav collaboration has recently observed first evidence of a gravitational wave background (GWB) in pulsar timing data. Here we explore the possibility that this GWB is due to new physics, and show that the signal can be well fit also with peaked spectra like the ones expected from phase transitions (PTs) or from the dynamics of axion like particles (ALPs) in the early universe. We find that a good fit to the data is obtained for a very strong PT at temperatures around 1 MeV to 10 MeV. For the ALP explanation the best fit is obtained for a decay constant of $F \approx 5\times 10^{17}$ GeV and an axion mass of $2\times 10^{-13}$ eV. We also illustrate the ability of PTAs to constrain…
Microlensing of Quasar Broad Emission Lines: Constraints on Broad Line Region Size
2012
We measure the differential microlensing of the broad emission lines between 18 quasar image pairs in 16 gravitational lenses. We find that high ionization lines such as CIV are more strongly microlensed than low ionization lines, indicating that the high ionization line emission regions are more compact. If we statistically model the distribution of microlensing magnifications, we obtain estimates for the broad line region radius of 24 (-15/+22) and 55 (-35/+150) light-days (90% confidence) for the high and low ionization lines, respectively. When the sample is divided attending to quasar luminosity, we find that the line emission regions of more luminous quasars are larger, with a slope c…
More about a successful vector-tensor theory of gravitation
2016
The vector-tensor (VT) theory of gravitation revisited in this article was studied in previous papers, where it was proved that VT works and deserves attention. New observational data and numerical codes have motivated further development which is presented here. New research has been planed with the essential aim of proving that current cosmological observations, including Planck data, baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO), and so on, may be explained with VT, a theory which accounts for a kind of dark energy which has the same equation of state as vacuum. New versions of the codes CAMB and COSMOMC have been designed for applications to VT, and the resulting versions have been used to get the…
LONG-TERM MONITORING, TIME DELAY, AND MICROLENSING IN THE GRAVITATIONAL LENS SYSTEM Q0142-100
2013
We present twelve years of monitoring of the gravitational lens Q0142-100 from the Teide Observatory. The data, taken from 1999 to 2010, comprise 105 observing nights with the IAC80 telescope. The application of the delta2-method to the dataset leads to a value of the time delay between both components of the system of 72+/-22 days (68 per cent confidence level), consistent within the uncertainties with the latest previous results. With this value in mind a possible microlensing event is detected in Q0142-100.