| 1. |
- Schael, S, et al.
(författare)
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Precision electroweak measurements on the Z resonance
- 2006
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Ingår i: Physics Reports. - : Elsevier BV. - 0370-1573 .- 1873-6270. ; 427:5-6, s. 257-454
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the final electroweak measurements performed with data taken at the Z resonance by the experiments operating at the electron-positron colliders SLC and LEP. The data consist of 17 million Z decays accumulated by the ALEPH, DELPHI, L3 and OPAL experiments at LEP, and 600 thousand Z decays by the SLID experiment using a polarised beam at SLC. The measurements include cross-sections, forward-backward asymmetries and polarised asymmetries. The mass and width of the Z boson, m(Z) and Gamma(Z), and its couplings to fermions, for example the p parameter and the effective electroweak mixing angle for leptons, are precisely measured: m(Z) = 91.1875 +/- 0.0021 GeV, Gamma(Z) = 2.4952 +/- 0.0023 GeV, rho(l) = 1.0050 +/- 0.0010, sin(2)theta(eff)(lept) = 0.23153 +/- 0.00016. The number of light neutrino species is determined to be 2.9840 +/- 0.0082, in agreement with the three observed generations of fundamental fermions. The results are compared to the predictions of the Standard Model (SM). At the Z-pole, electroweak radiative corrections beyond the running of the QED and QCD coupling constants are observed with a significance of five standard deviations, and in agreement with the Standard Model. Of the many Z-pole measurements, the forward-backward asymmetry in b-quark production shows the largest difference with respect to its SM expectation, at the level of 2.8 standard deviations. Through radiative corrections evaluated in the framework of the Standard Model, the Z-pole data are also used to predict the mass of the top quark, m(t) = 173(+10)(+13) GeV, and the mass of the W boson, m(W) = 80.363 +/- 0.032 GeV. These indirect constraints are compared to the direct measurements, providing a stringent test of the SM. Using in addition the direct measurements of m(t) and m(W), the mass of the as yet unobserved SM Higgs boson is predicted with a relative uncertainty of about 50% and found to be less than 285 GeV at 95% confidence level. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 2. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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Fermi Observations of High-Energy Gamma-Ray Emission from GRB 080916C
- 2009
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Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 323:5922, s. 1688-1693
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are highly energetic explosions signaling the death of massive stars in distant galaxies. The Gamma-ray Burst Monitor and Large Area Telescope onboard the Fermi Observatory together record GRBs over a broad energy range spanning about 7 decades of gamma-ray energy. In September 2008, Fermi observed the exceptionally luminous GRB 080916C, with the largest apparent energy release yet measured. The high-energy gamma rays are observed to start later and persist longer than the lower energy photons. A simple spectral form fits the entire GRB spectrum, providing strong constraints on emission models. The known distance of the burst enables placing lower limits on the bulk Lorentz factor of the outflow and on the quantum gravity mass.
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| 3. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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FERMI OBSERVATIONS OF GRB 090902B : A DISTINCT SPECTRAL COMPONENT IN THE PROMPT AND DELAYED EMISSION
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Letters. - 2041-8205 .- 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 706:1, s. L138-L144
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the observation of the bright, long gamma-ray burst (GRB), GRB 090902B, by the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) and Large Area Telescope (LAT) instruments on-board the Fermi observatory. This was one of the brightest GRBs to have been observed by the LAT, which detected several hundred photons during the prompt phase. With a redshift of z = 1.822, this burst is among the most luminous detected by Fermi. Time-resolved spectral analysis reveals a significant power-law component in the LAT data that is distinct from the usual Band model emission that is seen in the sub-MeV energy range. This power-law component appears to extrapolate from the GeV range to the lowest energies and is more intense than the Band component, both below similar to 50 keV and above 100 MeV. The Band component undergoes substantial spectral evolution over the entire course of the burst, while the photon index of the power-law component remains constant for most of the prompt phase, then hardens significantly toward the end. After the prompt phase, power-law emission persists in the LAT data as late as 1 ks post-trigger, with its flux declining as t(-1.5). The LAT detected a photon with the highest energy so far measured from a GRB, 33.4(-3.5)(+ 2.7) GeV. This event arrived 82 s after the GBM trigger and similar to 50 s after the prompt phase emission had ended in the GBM band. We discuss the implications of these results for models of GRB emission and for constraints on models of the extragalactic background light.
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| 4. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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FERMI/LARGE AREA TELESCOPE DISCOVERY OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM THE FLAT-SPECTRUM RADIO QUASAR PKS 1454-354
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 697:1, s. 934-941
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report the discovery by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope of high-energy gamma-ray (GeV) emission from the flat-spectrum radio quasar PKS 1454-354 (z = 1.424). On 2008 September 4, the source rose to a peak flux of (3.5 +/- 0.7) x 10(-6) ph cm(-2) s(-1) (E > 100 MeV) on a timescale of hours and then slowly dropped over the following 2 days. No significant spectral changes occurred during the flare. Fermi/LAT observations also showed that PKS 1454-354 is the most probable counterpart of the unidentified EGRET source 3EG J1500-3509. Multiwavelength measurements performed during the following days (7 September with Swift; 6-7 September with the ground-based optical telescope Automated Telescope for Optical Monitoring; 13 September with the Australia Telescope Compact Array) resulted in radio, optical, UV, and X-ray fluxes greater than archival data, confirming the activity of PKS 1454-354.
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| 5. |
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| 6. |
- Tanvir, N. R., et al.
(författare)
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A γ-ray burst at a redshift of z~8.2
- 2009
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Ingår i: Nature. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 461, s. 1254-1257
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Long-duration γ-ray bursts (GRBs) are thought to result from the explosions of certain massive stars, and some are bright enough that they should be observable out to redshifts of z>20 using current technology. Hitherto, the highest redshift measured for any object was z = 6.96, for a Lyman-α emitting galaxy. Here we report that GRB090423 lies at a redshift of z~8.2, implying that massive stars were being produced and dying as GRBs ~630Myr after the Big Bang. The burst also pinpoints the location of its host galaxy.
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| 7. |
- Kerzenmacher, T., et al.
(författare)
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Validation of NO2 and NO from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE)
- 2008
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 8:19, s. 5801--5841-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Vertical profiles of NO2 and NO have been obtained from solar occultation measurements by the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE), using an infrared Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) and (for NO2) an ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared spectrometer, MAESTRO (Measurement of Aerosol Extinction in the Stratosphere and Troposphere Retrieved by Occultation). In this paper, the quality of the ACE-FTS version 2.2 NO2 and NO and the MAESTRO version 1.2 NO2 data are assessed using other solar occultation measurements (HALOE, SAGE II, SAGE III, POAM III, SCIAMACHY), stellar occultation measurements (GOMOS), limb measurements (MIPAS, OSIRIS), nadir measurements (SCIAMACHY), balloon-borne measurements (SPIRALE, SAOZ) and ground-based measurements (UV-VIS, FTIR). Time differences between the comparison measurements were reduced using either a tight coincidence criterion, or where possible, chemical box models. ACE-FTS NO2 and NO and the MAESTRO NO2 are generally consistent with the correlative data. The ACE-FTS and MAESTRO NO2 volume mixing ratio (VMR) profiles agree with the profiles from other satellite data sets to within about 20% between 25 and 40 km, with the exception of MIPAS ESA (for ACE-FTS) and SAGE II (for ACE-FTS (sunrise) and MAESTRO) and suggest a negative bias between 23 and 40 km of about 10%. MAESTRO reports larger VMR values than the ACE-FTS. In comparisons with HALOE, ACE-FTS NO VMRs typically (on average) agree to ±8% from 22 to 64 km and to +10% from 93 to 105 km, with maxima of 21% and 36%, respectively. Partial column comparisons for NO2 show that there is quite good agreement between the ACE instruments and the FTIRs, with a mean difference of +7.3% for ACE-FTS and +12.8% for MAESTRO.
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| 8. |
- Barthelmy, S D, et al.
(författare)
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An origin for short gamma-ray bursts unassociated with current star formation
- 2005
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 438, s. 994-996
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two short (< 2 s) gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) have recently been localized(1-4) and fading afterglow counterparts detected(2-4). The combination of these two results left unclear the nature of the host galaxies of the bursts, because one was a star-forming dwarf, while the other was probably an elliptical galaxy. Here we report the X-ray localization of a short burst (GRB 050724) with unusual gamma-ray and X-ray properties. The X-ray afterglow lies off the centre of an elliptical galaxy at a redshift of z = 0.258 (ref. 5), coincident with the position determined by ground-based optical and radio observations(6-8). The low level of star formation typical for elliptical galaxies makes it unlikely that the burst originated in a supernova explosion. A supernova origin was also ruled out for GRB 050709 ( refs 3, 31), even though that burst took place in a galaxy with current star formation. The isotropic energy for the short bursts is 2 - 3 orders of magnitude lower than that for the long bursts. Our results therefore suggest that an alternative source of bursts - the coalescence of binary systems of neutron stars or a neutron star-black hole pair - are the progenitors of short bursts.
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| 9. |
- Davenport, J., et al.
(författare)
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Doses of darkness control latitudinal differences in breeding date in the barnacle Semibalanus balanoides
- 2005
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Ingår i: Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. - 0025-3154. ; 85:1, s. 59-63
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper reports the first study of breeding in the boreo-arctic barnacle Semibalanus balanoides in which latitudinal variation in timing of egg mass hardening has been examined simultaneously over the geographical scale involved, thereby excluding temporal confounding of the data. The timing of autumn egg mass hardening on the middle shore was established in 2002 and 2003 at ten stations ranging latitudinally from Trondheim (63 degrees 24'N) to Plymouth (50 degrees 18'N). To assess variation at local scale (< 10 km), breeding was studied on three shores at each of two Irish locations (Cork and Galway). At Oban (Scotland) and Cork, the effect of shore height on timing of breeding was investigated. A strong influence of latitude and day length on timing of breeding was found in both 2002 and 2003. In both years, barnacles bred much earlier (when day length was longer) at high rather than low latitudes. No significant effect of environmental temperature or insolation on timing of breeding was detected. Shores no more than 10 km apart showed minimal difference in middle shore breeding date (< 4 days). However, upper shore barnacles bred significantly earlier (by 7-13 days) than middle shore animals. The data indicate that breeding is controlled by period of daily darkness, with high shore annuals encountering longer effective 'nights' because of the opercular closure response to emersion (which will reduce light penetration to tissues). Predictions concerning the effects of global changes in climate and cloud cover on breeding and population distribution are made. It is suggested that increased cloud cover in the northern hemisphere is likely to induce earlier breeding, and possibly shift the present southern limit of Semibalanus southwards.
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