Active Region Emission Research Articles

OPTICAL SYSTEM DESIGN OF THE DETECTOR FOR SOLAR TERAHERTZ EMISSION MEASUREMENTS

The objectives and scientific tasks of the planned space experiment “Solntse-Terahertz” to be performed onboard the ISS Russian Segment are briefly described in the paper. In particular, the aim of the experiment is to study uninvestigated solar electromagnetic emission in the terahertz domain, in ~ 1012 – 1013 Hz (300-30 µm) frequency range. It is expected to obtain new data on solar active region emission including solar flare emission. These data are necessary to clarify the nature of solar activity and construct physical model of charged particle acceleration in active regions during solar flares and other astrophysical objects. We focus on the telescope optical system design and evaluation of main characteristics of this system. Results of simulations and comparison with the experimental verification of obtained characteristics are presented. A close correlation of the estimations and experimental results was obtained. As a result, main parameters of the telescope optical system of experimental hardware “Solntse-Terahertz” were determined. Key words: Sun, solar flares, terahertz emission, optical system.

Features of the Behavior of Microwave and Ultraviolet Emission of Solar Active Regions in Relation to Eruptive and Confined Flares

Features of the Behavior of Microwave and Ultraviolet Emission of Solar Active Regions in Relation to Eruptive and Confined Flares

Magnetic Connections across the Chromosphere–Corona Transition Region

Abstract The plasma contributing to emission from the Sun between the cool chromosphere (≤104 K) and hot corona (≥106 K) has been subjected to many different interpretations. Here we look at the magnetic structure of this transition region (TR) plasma, based upon the implications of CLASP2 data of an active region recently published by Ishikawa et al., and earlier Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) and Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) data of quiet regions. Ishikawa et al. found that large areas of sunspot plages are magnetically unipolar as measured in the cores of Mg ii resonance lines, formed in the lower TR under low plasma-β conditions. Here we show that IRIS images in the line cores have fibrils that are well aligned with the overlying coronal loop segments seen in the 171 Å channel of SDO. When the TR emission in active regions arises from plasma magnetically and thermally connected to the corona, then the line cores can provide the first credible magnetic boundary conditions for force-free calculations extended to the corona. We also re-examine IRIS images of dynamic TR cool loops previously reported as a major contributor to TR emission from the quiet Sun. Dynamic cool loops contribute only a small fraction of the total TR emission from the quiet Sun.

Signs of Preflare Situation in Solar Ultraviolet and Microwave Emission

The spatial dynamics of microwave emission (data from the Nobeyama Radioheliograph) of active regions with a complex magnetic field configuration before powerful flares, as well as the fine structure of active sources of ultraviolet (UV) emission based on AIA/SDO data, are studied. It is shown that there is unsteady behavior of microwave sources, along with the ignition of a system of crossed UV loops (X-structures). A class-M X-ray flare occurs after several hours at the site of ignition of the intersecting UV loops. The similar behavior observed in microwave and ultraviolet emission in the five active regions studied by us likely serves as a sign of a preflare situation in the active region on the Sun.

Preflare Dynamics of Microwave and Ultraviolet Emission in Active Regions of the Sun

This paper is a study of the spatial dynamics of microwave emission (data from the Nobeyama Radioheliograph) from two active regions NOAA 12673 and NOAA 11261 for several hours prior to powerful class M x-ray flares. The spatial distribution of the radio brightness and emission intensity in certain parts of the active region is found to be highly nonstationary. Data in the ultraviolet (AIA/SDO) are also used for studying the fine structure of the active emission sources. It is shown that the spatial dynamics of the microwave sources correlates well with the position and appearance of bright ultraviolet (UV) loops in the 94 A line, i.e., with magnetic loops where the plasma is heated to high temperatures ~107 K. A combined analysis of the UV and radio emission charts with magnetic field charts (HMI/SDO) for NOAA 12673 shows that the highly nonstationary behavior of the microwave sources develops simultaneously with the ignition of a system of intersecting UV loops (X-structures). It is also shown that the bright UV loops and microwave sources arise in the area where new magnetic fluxes emerge.

Observation and Modeling of High-temperature Solar Active Region Emission during the High-resolution Coronal Imager Flight of 2018 May 29

Abstract Excellent coordinated observations of NOAA active region 12712 were obtained during the flight of the High-resolution Coronal Imager (Hi-C) sounding rocket on 2018 May 29. This region displayed a typical active region core structure with relatively short, high-temperature loops crossing the polarity inversion line and bright “moss” located at the footpoints of these loops. The differential emission measure (DEM) in the active region core is very sharply peaked at about 4 MK. Further, there is little evidence for impulsive heating events in the moss, even at the high spatial resolution and cadence of Hi-C. This suggests that active region core heating is occurring at a high frequency and keeping the loops close to equilibrium. To create a time-dependent simulation of the active region core, we combine nonlinear force-free extrapolations of the measured magnetic field with a heating rate that is dependent on the field strength and loop length and has a Poisson waiting time distribution. We use the approximate solutions to the hydrodynamic loop equations to simulate the full ensemble of active region core loops for a range of heating parameters. In all cases, we find that high-frequency heating provides the best match to the observed DEM. For selected field lines, we solve the full hydrodynamic loop equations, including radiative transfer in the chromosphere, to simulate transition region and chromospheric emission. We find that for heating scenarios consistent with the DEM, classical signatures of energy release, such as transition region brightenings and chromospheric evaporation, are weak, suggesting that they would be difficult to detect.

Line-defect photonic crystal terahertz quantum cascade laser

The terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser (QCL) provides a versatile tool in a plethora of applications ranging from spectroscopy to astronomy and communications. In many of these fields, compactness, single mode frequency emission, and low threshold are highly desirable. The proposed approach, based on line defects in a photonic crystal (PhC) matrix, addresses all these features while offering unprecedented capabilities in terms of flexibility, light waveguiding, and emission directionality. Nine line-defect QCLs were realized in a triangular lattice of pillars fabricated in the laser active region (AR), centered around ∼2 THz by tuning the photonic design. A maximal 36% threshold reduction was recorded for these ultraflat dispersion line-defect QCLs in comparison to standard metal-metal QCL. The mode selectivity is an intrinsic property of the chosen fabrication design and has been achieved by lithographically scaling the dimension of the defect pillars and by acting on the PhC parameters in order to match the AR emission bandwidth. The measured line-defect QCLs emitted preferentially in the single frequency mode in the propagation direction throughout the entire dynamic range. An integrated active platform with multiple directional outputs was also fabricated as proof-of-principle to demonstrate the potential of this approach. The presented results pave the way for integrated circuitry operating in the THz regime and for fundamental studies on microcavity lasers.

Study of High-temperature Emission in Solar Active Regions

Abstract The high-temperature (T > 4 MK) emissions of nonflaring active regions are investigated in the context of the coronal heating problem. We study the role of emerging flux, nonpotential magnetic fields, and sunspots in the heating of active-region loops. Using extreme ultraviolet images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO), we construct intensity maps in Fe xviii 94 Å for 48 active regions. We also use the corresponding magnetograms from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on SDO to measure the total magnetic flux. The Fe xviii 94 Å emission intensity of the brightest loops is found to be correlated with the presence of sunspots and emerging or canceling magnetic flux in the photosphere below. We conclude that sunspots and emerging flux play an important role in the process of coronal heating and the production of high-temperature plasmas. We suggest that energy may be injected into the corona as a result of the dynamics of magnetic fields associated with sunspots and/or emerging flux. These processes may cause the large magnetic disturbances (δB ⊥ ∼ 10 G) needed to produce strong nanoflare-heating events.

Understanding Heating in Active Region Cores through Machine Learning. I. Numerical Modeling and Predicted Observables.

To adequately constrain the frequency of energy deposition in active region cores in the solar corona, systematic comparisons between detailed models and observational data are needed. In this paper, we describe a pipeline for forward modeling active region emission using magnetic field extrapolations and field-aligned hydrodynamic models. We use this pipeline to predict time-dependent emission from active region NOAA 1158 for low-, intermediate-, and high-frequency nanoflares. In each pixel of our predicted multi-wavelength, time-dependent images, we compute two commonly used diagnostics: the emission measure slope and the time lag. We find that signatures of the heating frequency persist in both of these diagnostics. In particular, our results show that the distribution of emission measure slopes narrows and the mean decreases with decreasing heating frequency and that the range of emission measure slopes is consistent with past observational and modeling work. Furthermore, we find that the time lag becomes increasingly spatially coherent with decreasing heating frequency while the distribution of time lags across the whole active region becomes more broad with increasing heating frequency. In a follow-up paper, we train a random forest classifier on these predicted diagnostics and use this model to classify real observations of NOAA 1158 in terms of the underlying heating frequency.

H-, He-like recombination spectra – III. n-changing collisions in highly excited Rydberg states and their impact on the radio, IR, and optical recombination lines

ABSTRACT At intermediate to high densities, electron (de-)excitation collisions are the dominant process for populating or depopulating high Rydberg states. In particular, the accurate knowledge of the energy changing (n-changing) collisional rates is determinant for predicting the radio recombination spectra of gaseous nebula. The different data sets present in the literature come either from impact parameter calculations or semi-empirical fits and the rate coefficients agree within a factor of 2. We show in this paper that these uncertainties cause errors lower than 5 per cent in the emission of radio recombination lines of most ionized plasmas of typical nebulae. However, in special circumstances where the transitions between Rydberg levels are amplified by maser effects, the errors can increase up to 20 per cent. We present simulations of the optical depth and Hnα line emission of active galactic nuclei broad-line regions and the Orion Nebula Blister to showcase our findings.

The Effects of Stellar Activity on Optical High-resolution Exoplanet Transmission Spectra

Abstract Chromospherically sensitive atomic lines display different spectra in stellar active regions, spots, and the photosphere, raising the possibility that exoplanet transmission spectra are contaminated by the contrast between various portions of the stellar disk. To explore this effect, we performed transit simulations of G-type and K-type stars for the spectral lines Ca ii K at 3933 Å, Na i 5890 Å, H i 6563 Å (Hα), and He i 10830 Å. We find that strong facular emission and large coverage fractions can contribute a non-negligible amount to transmission spectra, especially for Hα, Ca ii K, and Na i D, while spots and filaments are comparatively unimportant. The amount of contamination depends strongly on the location of the active regions and the intrinsic emission strength. In particular, active regions must be concentrated along the transit chord in order to produce a consistent in-transit signal. Mean absorption signatures in Na i and Hα, for example, can reach ≈0.2% and 0.3%, respectively, for transits of active latitudes with line emission similar in strength to moderate solar flares. Transmission spectra of planets transiting active stars, such as HD 189733, are likely contaminated by the contrast effect, although the tight constraints on active region geometry and emission strength make it unlikely that consistent in-transit signatures are due entirely to the contrast effect. He i 10830 Å is not strongly affected and absorption signatures are likely diluted, rather than enhanced, by stellar activity. He i 10830 Å should thus be considered a priority for probing extended atmospheres, even in the case of active stars.

Deep-UV emission at 219 nm from ultrathin MBE GaN/AlN quantum heterostructures

Deep ultraviolet (UV) optical emission below 250 nm (∼5 eV) in semiconductors is traditionally obtained from high aluminum containing AlGaN alloy quantum wells. It is shown here that high-quality epitaxial ultrathin binary GaN quantum disks embedded in an AlN matrix can produce efficient optical emission in the 219–235 nm (∼5.7–5.3 eV) spectral range, far above the bulk bandgap (3.4 eV) of GaN. The quantum confinement energy in these heterostructures is larger than the bandgaps of traditional semiconductors, made possible by the large band offsets. These molecular beam epitaxy-grown extreme quantum-confinement GaN/AlN heterostructures exhibit an internal quantum efficiency of 40% at wavelengths as short as 219 nm. These observations together with the ability to engineer the interband optical matrix elements to control the direction of photon emission in such binary quantum disk active regions offer unique advantages over alloy AlGaN quantum well counterparts for the realization of deep-UV light-emitting diodes and lasers.

A Decade of Hα Transits for HD 189733 b: Stellar Activity versus Absorption in the Extended Atmosphere

Abstract HD 189733 b is one of the most well studied exoplanets due to its large transit depth and host star brightness. The focus on this object has produced a number of high-cadence transit observations using high-resolution optical spectrographs. Here we present an analysis of seven full Hα transits of HD 189733 b using HARPS on the 3.6 meter La Silla telescope and HIRES on Keck I, taken over the course of nine years from 2006 to 2015. Hα transmission signals are analyzed as a function of the stellar activity level, as measured using the normalized core flux of the Ca ii H and K lines. We find strong variations in the strength of the Hα transmission spectrum from epoch to epoch. However, there is no clear trend between the Ca ii core emission and the strength of the in-transit Hα signal, although the transit showing the largest absorption value also occurs when the star is the most active. We present simulations of the in-transit contrast effect and find that the planet must consistently transit active latitudes with very strong facular and plage emission regions in order to reproduce the observed line strengths. We also investigate the measured velocity centroids with models of planetary rotation and show that the small line profile velocities could be due to large velocities in the upper atmosphere of the planet. Overall, we find it more likely that the measured Hα signals arise in the extended planetary atmosphere, although a better understanding of active region emission for active stars such as HD 189733 is needed.

Determination of the Structure of the Coronal Magnetic Field Using Microwave Polarization Measurements

An analysis of the oscillatory motions and wave processes in active regions requires knowledge of the structure of the magnetic fields in the chromosphere and corona. We study the magnetic field structure of active regions at coronal heights, as they are determined by means of multiwave observations of polarized radio emission of active regions in the microwave range. Two methods, a stereoscopic method and the analysis of the radio spectrum are used. The method of stereoscopy rotation allows estimating the height of radio sources in a stable active region relative to the photosphere, based on its apparent motion in the image plane recorded over several days of observation. At various times one-dimensional scans at multiple frequencies spanning the 5.98 – 15.95 GHz frequency range from the RATAN-600 instrument are used. The gyroresonance emission mechanism, which is sensitive to the coronal magnetic field strength, is applied to convert the radio source estimated heights at various frequencies, \(h(f)\), to information as regards magnetic field vs. height, \(B(h)\). Diagrams of longitude – height of some polarized radio sources revealed multiple reversals, suggestive of a spiral magnetic structure. In all cases, the magnetic field strength maintains high values (800 – 1000 G) at the highest altitudes analysed, which reflects a relatively weak divergence in the field of magnetic flux tubes (in the height range 8 – 14 Mm) responsible for the main part of the radio emission of active regions.

Shortwave infrared (SWIR) emission from 450 nm InGaN diode lasers

Shortwave infrared emission from 450 nm InGaN diode lasers is analyzed, and its physical origin is located by SWIR imaging of operating devices. Emission spectra taken in the 900-1700 nm range reveal three main contributions located at 900-1130 nm, 1130-1350 nm, and beyond 1350 nm. In concert with photoluminescence measurements at the substrate, these emission bands are identified as, first, genuine deep-level electroluminescence from the active region and deep-level defect-related emission from the substrate that is pumped by spontaneous 450 nm primary emission, second, pure deep-level defect emission, and third, Planck’s black-body radiation from the entire heated device and an additional deep-level defect contribution.

A MODEL FOR INTERFACE DYNAMOS IN LATE K AND EARLY M DWARFS

Measurements of the equivalent width EW(CaK) of emission in the Ca ii K line have been obtained by Houdebine et al. for stars with spectral types from dK5 to dM4. In order to explain the observed variations of EW(CaK) with spectral sub-type, we propose a quantitative model of interface dynamos in low-mass stars. Our model leads to surface field strengths Bs which turn out to be essentially linearly proportional to EW(CaK). This result is reminiscent of the Sun, where Skumanich et al. found that the intensity of CaK emission in solar active regions is linearly proportional to the local field strength.

Deep ultraviolet emitting polarization induced nanowire light emitting diodes with AlxGa1−xN active regions

In this report, we demonstrate band gap tuning of the active region emission wavelength from 365 nm to 250 nm in light emitting diodes fashioned from catalyst-free III-nitride nanowires. Optical characteristics of the nanowire heterostructures and fabricated devices are studied via electroluminescence (EL) and photoluminescence spectroscopy over a wide range of active region compositions. It is observed that for typical nanowire plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy growth conditions, tuning of emission to wavelengths shorter than 300 nm is hampered by the presence of an optically active defect level. We show that by increasing the AlGaN nanowire growth temperatures this defect emission can be suppressed. These findings are applied to growth of the active region of a nanowire light emitting diode, resulting in a polarization-induced nanowire light emitting diode with peak EL at 250 nm.

Enormous Eruption of 2.2 X-Class Solar Flares on 10<sup>th</sup> June 2014

The observational of active region emission of the Sun contain an critical answer of the time-dependence of the underlying heating mechanism. In this case, we investigate an X2.2 solar flare from a new Active Region AR2087 on the southeast limb of the Sun. The solar flare peaked in the X-rays is around 11:42 UT. It was found that the snapshot of this event from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) channel with the GOES X-ray plot overlayed. The flare is very bright causes by a diffraction pattern. We explore a parameter space of heating and coronal loop properties. Based on the wavelength, it shows plasma around 6 million Kelvin. At the same time, data from the NOAA issued an R3 level radio blackout, which is centered on Earth where the Sun is currently overhead at the North Africa region. This temporary blackout is caused by the heating of the upper atmosphere from the flare. The blackout level is now at an R1 and this will soon pass. Other than the temporary radio blackout for high frequencies centered over Africa this event will not have a direct impact on us. Until now, we await more data concerning a possible Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) but anything would more than likely not head directly towards Earth. An active region AR2087 just let out an X1.5 flare peaking at 12:52 UT. This shows plasmas with temperatures up to about 10 Million Kelvin. This event is considered one of the massive eruption of the Sun this year.

Enormous Eruption of 2.2 X-Class Solar Flares on 10<sup>th</sup> June 2014

The observational of active region emission of the Sun contain an critical answer of the time-dependence of the underlying heating mechanism. In this case, we investigate an X2.2 solar flare from a new Active Region AR2087 on the southeast limb of the Sun. The solar flare peaked in the X-rays is around 11:42 UT. It was found that the snapshot of this event from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) channel with the GOES X-ray plot overlayed. The flare is very bright causes by a diffraction pattern. We explore a parameter space of heating and coronal loop properties. Based on the wavelength, it shows plasma around 6 million Kelvin. At the same time, data from the NOAA issued an R3 level radio blackout, which is centered on Earth where the Sun is currently overhead at the North Africa region. This temporary blackout is caused by the heating of the upper atmosphere from the flare. The blackout level is now at an R1 and this will soon pass. Other than the temporary radio blackout for high frequencies centered over Africa this event will not have a direct impact on us. Until now, we await more data concerning a possible Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) but anything would more than likely not head directly towards Earth. An active region AR2087 just let out an X1.5 flare peaking at 12:52 UT. This shows plasmas with temperatures up to about 10 Million Kelvin. This event is considered one of the massive eruption of the Sun this year.

The multi-thermal emission in solar active regions

We present simultaneous SDO AIA and Hinode EIS observations of the hot cores of active regions (ARs) and assess the dominant contributions to the AIA EUV bands, extending our previous work. We find good agreement between SDO AIA, EVE and EIS observations, using our new EIS calibration and the latest EVE v.3 data. We find that all the AIA bands are multi-thermal, with the exception of the 171 and 335 A, and provide ways to roughly estimate the main contributions directly from the AIA data. We present and discuss new atomic data for the AIA bands, showing that they are now suffi ciently complete to obtain temperature information in the cores of ARs, with the exception of the 211 A band. We found that the newly identified Fexiv 93.61A line is the dominant contribution to the 94 A band, whenever Fexviii is not present. Three methods to estimate the Fexviii emission in this band are presented, two using EIS and one directly from the AIA data. Fexviii emission is often present in the cores, but we found cases where it is formed at 3 MK and not 7 MK, the temperature of peak ion abundance in equilibrium. The best EIS lines for elemental abundance and DE M analysis are discussed. A new set of abundances for many elements are obtained from EIS observations of hot 3 MK loops. The abundances of the elements with low First Ionisation Potential (FIP), relative to those of the high-FIP elements, are found enhanced by about a factor of three, compared to the photospheric values. A measurement of the path length implies that the absolute abundances of the low-FIP elements are higher than the photospheric values by at least a factor of three. We present a new differential emission measure (DE M) method customised for the AIA bands, to study the thermal structure of ARs at 1 ′′ resolution. It was tested on a few ARs, including one observed during the Hi-C rocket flight. We found excellent agreement between predicted and observed AIA count rates and EIS radiances. We found overall little differences in the AIA and Hi-C 193 A images of coronal structures, despite the higher Hi-C resolution (0.25 ′′ ). The Hi-C images and the AIA DE M modelling suggest that some of the cooler loops (below 1 MK) are already resolved by AIA, while the hotter (1.5‐2.5 MK) ‘background’ emission is in most places still unresolved even at the Hi-C resolution. This unresolved emission is sig nificantly lower than previously observed with TRACE and the SOHO CDS and Hinode EIS spectrometers. Its enhancement appears to be mostly due to increased iron abundance. We find an ubiquitous presence of emission at different temperatures that is not co-spatial, and suggest that future high -resolution imaging is done with isothermal bands.