| 11. |
- Abramowski, A., et al.
(author)
-
HESS J1818-154, a new composite supernova remnant discovered in TeV gamma rays and X-rays
- 2014
-
In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 562, s. 562-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Composite supernova remnants (SNRs) constitute a small subclass of the remnants of massive stellar explosions where non-thermal radiation is observed from both the expanding shell-like shock front and from a pulsar wind nebula (PWN) located inside of the SNR. These systems represent a unique evolutionary phase of SNRs where observations in the radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray regimes allow the study of the co-evolution of both these energetic phenomena. In this article, we report results from observations of the shell-type SNR G15.4+0.1 performed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H. E. S. S.) and XMM-Newton. A compact TeV gamma-ray source, HESS J1818-154, located in the center and contained within the shell of G15.4+0.1 is detected by H. E. S. S. and featurs a spectrum best represented by a power-law model with a spectral index of -2.3 +/- 0.3(stat) +/- 0.2(sys) and an integral flux of F(>0.42 TeV) = (0.9 +/- 0.3(stat) +/- 0.2(sys)) x 10(-12) cm(-2) s(-1). Furthermore, a recent observation with XMM-Newton reveals extended X-ray emission strongly peaked in the center of G15.4+0.1. The X-ray source shows indications of an energy-dependent morphology featuring a compact core at energies above 4 keV and more extended emission that fills the entire region within the SNR at lower energies. Together, the X-ray and VHE gamma-ray emission provide strong evidence of a PWN located inside the shell of G15.4+0.1 and this SNR can therefore be classified as a composite based on these observations. The radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray emission from the PWN is compatible with a one-zone leptonic model that requires a low average magnetic field inside the emission region. An unambiguous counterpart to the putative pulsar, which is thought to power the PWN, has been detected neither in radio nor in X-ray observations of G15.4+0.1.
|
|
| 12. |
- Abramowski, A., et al.
(author)
-
Long-term monitoring of PKS2155-304 with ATOM and HESS:investigation of optical/gamma-ray correlations in different spectral states
- 2014
-
In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 571
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this paper we report on the analysis of all the available optical and very high-energy gamma-ray (> 200 GeV) data for the BL Lac object PKS 2155-304, collected simultaneously with the ATOM and H.E.S.S. telescopes from 2007 until 2009. This study also includes X-ray (RXTE, Swift) and high-energy gamma-ray (Fermi-LAT) data. During the period analysed, the source was transitioning from its flaring to quiescent optical states, and was characterized by only moderate flux changes at different wavelengths on the timescales of days and months. A flattening of the optical continuum with an increasing optical flux can be noted in the collected dataset, but only occasionally and only at higher flux levels. We did not find any universal relation between the very high-energy gamma-ray and optical flux changes on the timescales from days and weeks up to several years. On the other hand, we noted that at higher flux levels the source can follow two distinct tracks in the optical flux-colour diagrams, which seem to be related to distinct gamma-ray states of the blazar. The obtained results therefore indicate a complex scaling between the optical and gamma-ray emission of PKS 2155 304, with different correlation patterns holding at different epochs, and a gamma-ray flux depending on the combination of an optical flux and colour rather than a flux alone.
|
|
| 13. |
- Abramowski, A., et al.
(author)
-
Search for dark matter annihilation signatures in HESS observations of dwarf spheroidal galaxies
- 2014
-
In: Physical Review D. - 1550-7998 .- 1550-2368. ; 90:11, s. 112012-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dwarf spheroidal galaxies of the Local Group are close satellites of the Milky Way characterized by a large mass-to-light ratio and are not expected to be the site of nonthermal high-energy gamma-ray emission or intense star formation. Therefore they are among the most promising candidates for indirect dark matter searches. During the last years the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes observed five of these dwarf galaxies for more than 140 hours in total, searching for TeV gamma-ray emission from annihilation of dark matter particles. The new results of the deep exposure of the Sagittarius dwarf spheroidal galaxy, the first observations of the Coma Berenices and Fornax dwarves and the reanalysis of two more dwarf spheroidal galaxies already published by the H.E.S.S. Collaboration, Carina and Sculptor, are presented. In the absence of a significant signal new constraints on the annihilation cross section applicable to weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) are derived by combining the observations of the five dwarf galaxies. The combined exclusion limit depends on the WIMP mass and the best constraint is reached at 1-2 TeV masses with a cross-section upper bound of similar to 3.9 x 10(-24) cm(3) s(-1) at a 95% confidence level.
|
|
| 14. |
- Abramowski, A., et al.
(author)
-
Search for extended gamma-ray emission around AGN with HESS and Fermi-LAT
- 2014
-
In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 562, s. A145-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. Very-high-energy (VHE; E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from blazars inevitably gives rise to electron-positron pair production through the interaction of these gamma-rays with the extragalactic background light (EBL). Depending on the magnetic fields in the proximity of the source, the cascade initiated from pair production can result in either an isotropic halo around an initially- beamed source or a magnetically- broadened cascade :aux. Aims. Both extended pair-halo (PH) and magnetically broadened cascade (MBC) emission from regions surrounding the blazars 1ES 1101-232, IRS 0229+200, and PKS 2155-304 were searched for using VHE y-ray data taken with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS.) and high-energy (HE; 100 MeV < E < 100 GeV) gamma-ray data with the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). Methods. By comparing the angular distributions of the reconstructed gamma-ray events to the angular profiles calculated from detailed theoretical models, the presence of PH and MBC was investigated. Results. Upper limits on the extended emission around lES 1101-232, lES 0229+200, and PKS 2155-304 are found to be at a level of a few per cent of the Crab nebula flux above 1 TeV, depending on the assumed photon index of the cascade emission. Assuming strong extra-Galactic magnetic field (EGME) values, >10(-12) G, this limits the production of pair haloes developing from electromagnetic cascades. For weaker magnetic fields, in which electromagnetic cascades would result in MBCs. EGMF strengths in the range (0.3-3) x 10(-15) G were excluded for PKS 2155-304 at the 99% confidence level, under the assumption of a 1 Mpc coherence length.
|
|
| 15. |
- Barata-Morgado, Rute, et al.
(author)
-
Theoretical study of the conformational equilibrium of 1,4-dioxane in gas phase, neat liquid, and dilute aqueous solutions
- 2013
-
In: Theoretical Chemistry accounts. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1432-881X .- 1432-2234. ; 132:10, s. 1390-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The conformational equilibrium of 1,4-dioxane in the gas phase, in the pure liquid, and in aqueous solution has been studied by means of the Average Solvent Electrostatic Potential from Molecular Dynamics (ASEP/MD) method and the Integral Equation Formalism for the Polarizable Continuum Model (IEF-PCM). The dioxane molecule was described at the DFT(B3LYP)/aug-cc-pVTZ level. In the three phases, the equilibrium is almost completely shifted toward the chair conformer, with populations of the twist-boat conformers lower than 0.01 %. The equilibrium is dominated by the internal energy of the molecule, as the solute-solvent interaction free energies are very similar in the three conformers considered (chair, 1,4 twist-boat, and 2,5 twist-boat). In the pure liquid, where the dioxane-dioxane interaction is dominated by the Lennard-Jones term, the structure is characteristic of a van der Waals liquid. However, the decrease in the C-H distance from gas phase to solution, the increase in the C-H vibrational frequencies, and the presence of a shoulder in the O-Haxial pair radial distribution function point to the presence of a weak C-H-O hydrogen bond. The analysis of the occupancy maps of water oxygen and hydrogen atoms around the 1,4-dioxane molecule confirms this conclusion. Contrary to what is found in small water-dioxane clusters, in the liquid, there is a preference for oxygen atoms to interact with axial hydrogen atoms to form C-H-O hydrogen bonds. Comparison of ASEP/MD and IEF-PCM results indicates that including specific interactions is very important for an adequate description of the solute-solvent interaction; however, the influence of these interactions does not translate in changes in the relative stability of the conformers because it cancels out when energy differences are calculated.
|
|
| 16. |
|
|
| 17. |
- Calleja, Manuel, 1984, et al.
(author)
-
Implementation of hybrid simulation schemes in COBAYA3/SUBCHANFLOW coupled codes for the efficient direct prediction of local safety parameters
- 2014
-
In: Annals of Nuclear Energy. - : Elsevier BV. - 0306-4549 .- 1873-2100. ; 70, s. 216-229
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The precise prediction of power generation, heat transfer and flow distribution within a reactor core is of great importance to asses the safety features of any reactor design. The necessity to better describe the most important safety related physical phenomena prevailing in LWRs drive the extensions of current neutronic (N)/thermal-hydraulic (TH) coupled methodologies. Nowadays, several computer codes that solve the time dependent neutron diffusion or transport equations are coupled with TH codes at nodal level. This coarse spatial discretization of both N and TH does not allow direct prediction of local phenomena at pin or subchannel levels. Moreover, pin by pin simulations are currently performed using different strategies and methodologies. The main drawback of these approaches is the considerable computational time needed when addressing whole core solutions. Consequently, new fast running and accurate approaches are needed to simulate reactor cores using multi physics and multi scale methodologies. This type of analysis includes for instance, the use of mixed nodal based solutions with pin level solutions for both N and TH. This paper discusses a methodology implemented to achieve coupled N/TH simulations based on hybrid schemes. First, an overview of the state of the art involving non-conform geometry is presented, followed with the description of the codes used for this purpose and their extensions to perform hybrid simulations. Results for the coupled N/TH scheme are presented for a full size PWR core in steady state.
|
|
| 18. |
- Carbajales, Carlos, et al.
(author)
-
Structure-Based Design of New KSP-Eg5 Inhibitors Assisted by a Targeted Multicomponent Reaction
- 2014
-
In: ChemBioChem. - : Wiley. - 1439-4227 .- 1439-7633. ; 15:10, s. 1471-1480
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- An integrated multidisciplinary approach that combined structure-based drug design, multicomponent reaction synthetic approaches and functional characterization in enzymatic and cell assays led to the discovery of new kinesin spindle protein (KSP) inhibitors with antiproliferative activity. A focused library of new benzimidazoles obtained by a Ugi + Boc removal/cyclization reaction sequence generated low-micromolar-range KSP inhibitors as promising anticancer prototypes. The design and functional studies of the new chemotypes were assessed by computational modeling and molecular biology techniques. The most active compounds-20 (IC50=1.49 mu m, EC50=3.63 mu m) and 22 (IC50=1.37 mu m, EC50=6.90 mu m)-were synthesized with high efficiency by taking advantage of the multicomponent reactions.
|
|
| 19. |
- Collaboration, H. E. S. S., et al.
(author)
-
HESS observations of the Crab during its March 2013 GeV gamma-ray flare
- 2014
-
In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 562, s. Article ID: UNSP L4-
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. On March 4, 2013 the Fermi-EAT and AGILE reported a flare from the direction of the Crab nebula in which the high-energy (HE; E > 100 MeV) flux was six times above its quiescent level. Simultaneous observations in other energy bands give us hints about the emission processes during the flare episode and the physics of pulsar wind nebulae in general. Aims. We search for variability in the emission of the Crab nebula at very-high energies (VHF,; E > 100 GeV), using contemporaneous data taken with the H.E.S.S. array of Cherenkov telescopes. Methods. Observational data taken with the H.E.S.S. instrument on five consecutive days during the flare were analysed for the flux and spectral shape of the emission from the Crab nebula. Night-wise light curves are presented with energy thresholds of 1 TeV and 5 TeV. Results. The observations conducted with H.E.S.S. on March 6 to March 10, 2013 show no significant changes in the flux. They limit the variation in the integral flux above 1 TeV to less than 63% and the integral flux above 5 TeV to less than 78% at a 95% confidence level.
|
|
| 20. |
- Corchado, José C., et al.
(author)
-
Theoretical Study of Solvent Effects on the Ground and Low-Lying Excited Free Energy Surfaces of a Push–Pull Substituted Azobenzene
- 2014
-
In: Journal of Physical Chemistry B. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1520-6106 .- 1520-5207. ; 118:43, s. 12518-12530
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The ground and low-lying excited free energy surfaces of 4-amino-4'-cyano azobenzene, a molecule that has been proposed as building block for chiroptical switches, are studied in gas phase and a variety of solvents (benzene, chloroform, acetone, and water). Solvent effects on the absorption and emission spectra and on the cistrans thermal and photo isomerizations are analyzed using two levels of calculation: TD-DFT and CASPT2/CASSCF. The solvent effects are introduced using a polarizable continuum model and a QM/MM method, which permits one to highlight the role played by specific interactions. We found that, in gas phase and in agreement with the results found for other azobenzenes, the thermal cistrans isomerization follows a rotation-assisted inversion mechanism where the inversion angle must reach values close to 180 degrees but where the rotation angle can take almost any value. On the contrary, in polar solvents the mechanism is controlled by the rotation of the CN=NC angle. The change in the mechanism is mainly related to a better solvation of the nitrogen atoms of the azo group in the rotational transition state. The photoisomerization follows a rotational pathway both in gas phase and in polar and nonpolar solvents. The solvent introduces only small modifications in the n pi* free energy surface (S-1), but it has a larger effect on the pi pi* surface (S-2) that, in polar solvents, gets closer to S-1. In fact, the S-2 band of the absorption spectrum is red-shifted 0.27 eV for the trans isomer and 0.17 eV for the cis. In the emission spectrum the trend is similar: only S-2 is appreciably affected by the solvent, but in this case a blue shift is found.
|
|
