Peculiar Spectrum Research Articles

Exciton-Exciton Interactions in Coaxial Double Quantum Rings.

We study theoretically the quantum states of two interacting excitons in coaxial double quantum rings. An interplay between exciton–exciton Coulomb interactions and specific geometry of the structure leads to the emergence of peculiar energy spectrum of two exciton system. We develop a semi-analytic approach providing highly accurate energies of system in the wide range of values of geometrical parameters relevant to experimental realizations.

Rich Magnetic Quantization Phenomena in AA Bilayer Silicene

The rich magneto-electronic properties of AA-bottom-top (bt) bilayer silicene are investigated using a generalized tight-binding model. The electronic structure exhibits two pairs of oscillatory energy bands for which the lowest conduction and highest valence states of the low-lying pair are shifted away from the K point. The quantized Landau levels (LLs) are classified into various separated groups by the localization behaviors of their spatial distributions. The LLs in the vicinity of the Fermi energy do not present simple wave function modes. This behavior is quite different from other two-dimensional systems. The geometry symmetry, intralayer and interlayer atomic interactions, and the effect of a perpendicular magnetic field are responsible for the peculiar LL energy spectra in AA-bt bilayer silicene. This work provides a better understanding of the diverse magnetic quantization phenomena in 2D condensed-matter materials.

A Giant Lyα Nebula and a Small-scale Clumpy Outflow in the System of the Exotic Quasar J0952+0114 Unveiled by MUSE∗

Abstract The well-known quasar SDSS J095253.83+011421.9 (J0952+0114) at z = 3.02 has one of the most peculiar spectra discovered so far, showing the presence of narrow Lyα and broad metal emission lines. Although recent studies have suggested that a proximate damped Lyα absorption (PDLA) system causes this peculiar spectrum, the origin of the gas associated with the PDLA is unknown. Here we report the results of observations with the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) that reveal a new giant (≈100 physical kpc) Lyα nebula. The detailed analysis of the Lyα velocity, velocity dispersion, and surface brightness profiles suggests that the J0952+0114 Lyα nebula shares similar properties with other QSO nebulae previously detected with MUSE, implying that the PDLA in J0952+0144 is covering only a small fraction of the solid angle of the QSO emission. We also detected bright and spectrally narrow C iv λ1550 and He ii λ1640 extended emission around J0952+0114 with velocity centroids similar to the peak of the extended and central narrow Lyα emission. The presence of a peculiarly bright, unresolved, and relatively broad He ii λ1640 emission in the central region at exactly the same PDLA redshift hints at the possibility that the PDLA originates in a clumpy outflow with a bulk velocity of about 500 km s−1. The smaller velocity dispersion of the large-scale Lyα emission suggests that the high-speed outflow is confined to the central region. Lastly, the derived spatially resolved He ii/Lyα and C iv/Lyα maps show a positive gradient with the distance to the QSO, hinting at a non-homogeneous distribution of the ionization parameter.

Extremely peculiar spectrum of the primary component of the eclipsing binary HD 66051

AbstractHD 66051 is an eclipsing and spectroscopic double-lined binary (SB2), hosting two chemically peculiar stars: a highly peculiar B star as primary and an Am star as secondary. The investigation of the new high-resolution UVES spectrum of HD 66051 allowed us to decide on the chemical peculiarity type of both components with more reliability. An analysis of TESS photometric time series data will further specify the physical parameters of the stars and the orbital parameters of the system.

APC germline hepatoblastomas demonstrate cisplatin-induced intratumor tertiary lymphoid structures

ABSTRACTHepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common liver cancer in children. We aimed to characterize HB related to APC (Adenomatous Polyposis Coli) germline mutation (APC-HB). This French multicentric retrospective study included 12 APC-HB patients under 5 at diagnosis. Clinical features of APC-HB were compared to the French SIOPEL2-3 cohort of HB patients. Molecular and histopathological analyses of APC-HB were compared to 15 consecutive sporadic HB treated at Bicêtre hospital from 2013 to 2015 (non-APC-HB). APC-HB patients have a peculiar spectrum of germline APC mutations, with no events in the main hotspot of classical APC mutations at codon 1309 (P < .05). Compared to sporadic HB, they have similar clinical features including good prognosis since all patients are alive in complete remission at last follow-up. APC-HB are mostly well-limited tumors with fetal predominance and few mesenchymal components. All APC-HB have an activated Wnt/β-catenin pathway without CTNNB1 mutation, confirming that germline APC and somatic CTNNB1 mutations are mutually exclusive (P < .001). Pathological reviewing identified massive intratumor tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) containing both lymphocytes and antigen-presenting cells in all 11 APC-HB cases who received cisplatin-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy but not in five pre-chemotherapy samples (four paired biopsies and one patient resected without chemotherapy), indicating that these TLS are induced by chemotherapy (P < .001). Conclusion: APC-HB show a good prognosis, they are all infiltrated by cisplatin-induced TLS, a feature only retrieved in a minority of non-APC-HB. This suggests that APC inactivation can synergize with cisplatin to induce an immunogenic cell death that initiates an anti-tumor immune response.

Accurate fitting functions for peculiar velocity spectra in standard and massive-neutrino cosmologies

We estimate the velocity field in a large set of N-body simulations including massive neutrino particles, and measure the auto-power spectrum of the velocity divergence field as well as the cross-power spectrum between the cold dark matter density and the velocity divergence. We perform these measurements at four different redshifts and within four different cosmological scenarios, covering a wide range in neutrino masses. We find that the nonlinear correction to the velocity power spectra largely depends on the degree of nonlinear evolution with no specific dependence on the value of neutrino mass. We provide a fitting formula based on the value of the rms of the matter fluctuations in spheres of 8 h−1 Mpc, describing the nonlinear corrections with 3% accuracy on scales below k = 0.7 h Mpc−1.

Phase-transition sound of inflation at gravitational waves detectors

It is well-known that the first-order phase transition (PT) will yield a stochastic gravitational waves (GWs) background with a peculiar spectrum. However, we show that when such a PT happened during the primordial inflation, the GWs spectrum brought by the PT will be reddened, which thus records the unique voiceprint of inflation. We assess the abilities of the GW detectors to detect the corresponding signal.

MWCNTs-polymer composites characterization through spectroscopies: FTIR and Raman

Composites from carbon nanotubes and polymers have been synthesized and studied. The composites were obtained joining carbon nanotubes with polymethyl methacrylate, nylon-6 and polystyrene. The materials were observed through scanning electron microscopy to evaluate the carbon nanotubes dispersion in the polymeric matrices. FTIR and Raman spectroscopies were used to analyze the interactions among functionalized and non-functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes and polymers, demonstrating affinity and peculiar spectra behaviors for each composite with different carbon nanotubes loads.

Reinterpretation of the electronic absorption spectrum of the methylene amidogen radical (H2CN).

The peculiar electronic absorption spectrum of H2CN has been of great interest to experiment. Herein, this system is studied extensively by applying theoretical methods to the ground and low-lying excited electronic states. Employing a large breadth of high-level ab initio computations, including coupled cluster [CCSD(T) and CCSDT(Q)] and multireference configuration interaction [MRCISD+Q] methods, we comprehensively demonstrate that the most recent experimental and theoretical interpretations of the electronic spectrum of H2CN are in error. The previous assignments of the two broad features in the spectrum as the origin (∼35 050 cm-1) and (∼35 600 cm-1) transitions are both found to be incorrect. The presently reported transition energies suggest that the higher energy band near 35 600 cm-1 is the true origin band. Additionally, from the computed anharmonic vibrational frequencies of the and states, we show that this ∼550 cm-1 band spacing cannot be attributed to a simple vibronic transition, as claimed by the assignment. Possible alternative explanations for the appearance of the lower intensity band near 35 050 cm-1 are discussed.

Self-Bound Quantum Droplets of Atomic Mixtures in Free Space.

Self-bound quantum droplets are a newly discovered phase in the context of ultracold atoms. In this Letter, we report their experimental realization following the original proposal by Petrov [Phys. Rev. Lett. 115, 155302 (2015)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.115.155302], using an attractive bosonic mixture. In this system, spherical droplets form due to the balance of competing attractive and repulsive forces, provided by the mean-field energy close to the collapse threshold and the first-order correction due to quantum fluctuations. Thanks to an optical levitating potential with negligible residual confinement, we observe self-bound droplets in free space, and we characterize the conditions for their formation as well as their size and composition. This work sets the stage for future studies on quantum droplets, from the measurement of their peculiar excitation spectrum to the exploration of their superfluid nature.

Low‐dispersion spectroscopy with cubesats and photographic plates

We will briefly present the proposal for the UV experiment based on low‐dispersion spectroscopy (LDS) of stars for cubesat mission, as well as the potential of LDS with digitized photographic plates taken mostly by Schmidt telescopes. Extended databases of these records are available at numerous observatories, mainly in the United States, with the total estimated number exceeding 100,000. They represent a valuable source of astrophysical information, especially for automated searches for objects with peculiar spectra as well as for (prominent) spectral changes.

Probing large-scale magnetism with the cosmic microwave background

Prior to photon decoupling magnetic random fields of comoving intensity in the nano-Gauss range distort the temperature and the polarization anisotropies of the microwave background, potentially induce a peculiar B-mode power spectrum and may even generate a frequency-dependent circularly polarized V-mode. We critically analyze the theoretical foundations and the recent achievements of an interesting trialogue involving plasma physics, general relativity and astrophysics.

Tracking down the origin of peculiar vibrational spectra of aromatic self-assembled thiolate monolayers.

Several studies have previously observed surprisingly low frequencies for the C-H stretching modes of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) prepared from aromatic thiols. The reason for this property has so far remained elusive. Therefore, we report a novel study of the vibrational spectra of SAMs prepared on Au from two different aromatic thiols, namely, 4'-nitro-1,1'-biphenyl-4-thiol (NBPT) and 4-aminothiophenol (ATP). The SAMs were prepared by vapor deposition (VD) in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) as well as by the solution method (SM) and their quality was controlled by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In addition, amino terminated SAMs were also obtained by electron irradiation and by chemical reduction of NBPT SAMs. Beside infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), we have employed high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS), by which VD SAMs can be studied in situ, i.e. without exposing them to air. Hence, we can exclude possible contributions of solvent molecules to the vibrational spectra. Nonetheless, HREELS in fact reveals the same large red shift of the C-H stretching modes in the SAMs as also observed in ex situ IRRAS experiments. In contrast, HREELS for physisorbed ATP and ATP in a KBr pellet measured by transmission infrared spectroscopy exhibit the expected aromatic bands. Using a computational approach, we can exclude molecular packing effects as origin of this shift. Therefore, we propose chemical changes in the aromatic rings during SAM formation as an alternative explanation for the observed frequency shift. As another striking effect, the N-H stretching vibrational modes of the amino-terminated SAMs are extremely weak in both IRRAS and HREELS despite the fact that XPS confirms the presence of amino groups. A very weak signal is observed only in the case of an electron irradiated NBPT SAM. In contrast, an energy loss ascribed to the N-H stretching vibrations is clearly observed in HREELS of ATP physisorbed on an ATP SAM and on graphite as well as in the transmission infrared spectrum of ATP in KBr. The extremely low intensity of these vibrations in the SAM is traced back to the inherently low transition dipole moment for the excitation of N-H stretching modes in free N-H groups. Furthermore, the calculations suggest that the much stronger signals of N-H stretching modes involved in hydrogen-bonding with adjacent amino groups are suppressed because these vibrations are oriented parallel to the surface.

Outburst Cycle of the Dwarf Nova SS Cygni

Extensive observational data obtained to date is analyzed with special attention given to space observations. The spectral type of the white dwarf is estimated and it is concluded that accretion of matter on it is the only source of the x-ray flux in the system. The rotation of the secondary is shown to be synchronous and therefore its illumination by hard x-rays results in the formation of stellar wind. This is the main mechanism of mass transfer onto the white dwarf. The geometry of the system prevents the formation of the disk by stellar wind. Instead, stellar wind forms a quasispherical envelope whose variability influences the outburst process. Based on these conclusions, the properties of the system are interpreted, which so far have remained unexplained: short-term appearance of peculiar spectrum during the rising phase of the outburst, rather constant width of absorption lines during the outburst, decrease of the width of emission lines during the outburst, variation of the x-ray and ultraviolet fluxes during ordinary and low-amplitude anomalous outbursts, and, finally, the quasiperiodicity of the outbursts.

Long-range topological insulators and weakened bulk-boundary correspondence

We investigate the appearance of new types of insulators and superconductors in long-range (LR) fermionic quantum systems. These phases are not included in the famous ‘ten-fold way classification’ (TWC), valid in the short-range (SR) limit. This conclusion is obtained analysing at first specific one-dimensional models, in particular their phase diagrams and entanglement properties. The LR phases are signalled, for instance, by the violation of the area-law for the von Neumann entropy and by a corresponding peculiar entanglement spectrum (ES). Later on, the origin of the deviations from the TWC is investigated from a more general point of view and in any dimension, showing that it is related with the presence of divergences occurring in the spectrum, due to the LR couplings. A satisfying characterization for the LR phases can be achieved, at least for one-dimensional quantum systems, as well as the definition of a nontrivial topology for them, resulting in the presence of massive edge states, provided a careful evaluation of the LR contributions. Our results allows to infer, at least for one-dimensional models, the weakening of the bulk-boundary correspondence, due to the important correlations between bulk and edges, and consequently to clarify the nature of the massive edge states. The emergence of this peculiar edge structure is signalled again by the bulk ES. The stability of the LR phases against local disorder is also discussed, showing notably that this ingredient can even strengthen the effect of the LR couplings. Finally, we analyse the entanglement content of the paradigmatic LR Ising chain, inferring again important deviations from the SR regime, as well as the limitations of bulk-boundary (tensor-network based) approaches to classify LR spin models.

Pathogenesis, clinical manifestations and management of immune checkpoint inhibitors toxicity.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have emerged as an effective treatment for several tumor types and their use in clinical practice is expected to further increase in the immediate future. Although these agents are well tolerated, they are associated with a peculiar spectrum of toxicity, which is immune mediated and may potentially affect every organ. However, immune-related adverse events are mostly reversible if promptly diagnosed and adequately treated. Therefore, it is crucial that medical oncologists know how to diagnose and treat immune-related adverse events. This review focuses on the pathogenesis, clinical manifestations and management of immune-related toxicity of anti-CTLA-4 and anti-PD-1 antibodies.

Broad-band characteristics of seven new hard X-ray selected cataclysmic variables

We present timing and spectral analysis of a sample of seven hard X-ray selected Cataclysmic Variable candidates based on simultaneous X-ray and optical observations collected with XMM-Newton , complemented with Swift/BAT and INTEGRAL/IBIS hard X-ray data and ground-based optical photometry. For six sources, X-ray pulsations are detected for the first time in the range $\rm \sim296-6098\,s$, identifying them as members of the magnetic class. Swift J0927.7-6945, Swift J0958.0-4208, Swift J1701.3-4304, Swift J2113.5+5422, and possibly PBC J0801.2-4625, are Intermediate Polars (IPs), while Swift J0706.8+0325 is a short (1.7 h) orbital period Polar, the 11$^{\rm th}$ hard X-ray selected identified so far. X-ray orbital modulation is also observed in Swift J0927.7-6945 (5.2 h) and Swift J2113.5+5422 (4.1 h). Swift J1701.3-4304 is discovered as the longest orbital period (12.8 h) deep eclipsing IP. The spectra of the magnetic systems reveal optically thin multi-temperature emission between 0.2 and 60 keV. Energy dependent spin pulses and the orbital modulation in Swift J0927.7-6945 and Swift J2113.5+5422 are due to intervening local high density absorbing material ($\rm N_H\sim10^{22-23}\,cm^{-2}$). In Swift J0958.0-4208 and Swift J1701.3-4304, a soft X-ray blackbody (kT$\sim$50 and $\sim$80 eV) is detected, adding them to the growing group of "soft" IPs. White dwarf masses are determined in the range $\rm \sim0.58-1.18\,M_{\odot}$, indicating massive accreting primaries in five of them. Most sources accrete at rates lower than the expected secular value for their orbital period. Formerly proposed as a long-period (9.4 h) novalike CV, Swift J0746.3-1608 shows peculiar spectrum and light curves suggesting either an atypical low-luminosity CV or a low mass X-ray binary.

The Galah Survey: Classification and Diagnostics with t-SNE Reduction of Spectral Information

Abstract Galah is an ongoing high-resolution spectroscopic survey with the goal of disentangling the formation history of the Milky Way using the fossil remnants of disrupted star formation sites that are now dispersed around the Galaxy. It is targeting a randomly selected magnitude-limited (V ≤ 14) sample of stars, with the goal of observing one million objects. To date, 300,000 spectra have been obtained. Not all of them are correctly processed by parameter estimation pipelines, and we need to know about them. We present a semi-automated classification scheme that identifies different types of peculiar spectral morphologies in an effort to discover and flag potentially problematic spectra and thus help to preserve the integrity of the survey results. To this end, we employ the recently developed dimensionality reduction technique t-SNE (t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding), which enables us to represent the complex spectral morphology in a two-dimensional projection map while still preserving the properties of the local neighborhoods of spectra. We find that the majority (178,483) of the 209,533 Galah spectra considered in this study represents normal single stars, whereas 31,050 peculiar and problematic spectra with very diverse spectral features pertaining to 28,579 stars are distributed into 10 classification categories: hot stars, cool metal-poor giants, molecular absorption bands, binary stars, Hα/Hβ emission, Hα/Hβ emission superimposed on absorption, Hα/Hβ P-Cygni, Hα/Hβ inverted P-Cygni, lithium absorption, and problematic. Classified spectra with supplementary information are presented in the catalog, indicating candidates for follow-up observations and population studies of the short-lived phases of stellar evolution.

Measuring the velocity field from type Ia supernovae in an LSST-like sky survey

In a few years, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope will vastly increase the number of type Ia supernovae observed in the local universe. This will allow for a precise mapping of the velocity field and, since the source of peculiar velocities is variations in the density field, cosmological parameters related to the matter distribution can subsequently be extracted from the velocity power spectrum. One way to quantify this is through the angular power spectrum of radial peculiar velocities on spheres at different redshifts. We investigate how well this observable can be measured, despite the problems caused by areas with no information. To obtain a realistic distribution of supernovae, we create mock supernova catalogs by using a semi-analytical code for galaxy formation on the merger trees extracted from N-body simulations. We measure the cosmic variance in the velocity power spectrum by repeating the procedure many times for differently located observers, and vary several aspects of the analysis, such as the observer environment, to see how this affects the measurements. Our results confirm the findings from earlier studies regarding the precision with which the angular velocity power spectrum can be determined in the near future. This level of precision has been found to imply, that the angular velocity power spectrum from type Ia supernovae is competitive in its potential to measure parameters such as σ8. This makes the peculiar velocity power spectrum from type Ia supernovae a promising new observable, which deserves further attention.

Continuous excitations of the triangular-lattice quantum spin liquid YbMgGaO4

A quantum spin liquid (QSL) is an exotic state of matter in which electrons' spins are quantum entangled over long distances, but do not show symmetry-breaking magnetic order in the zero-temperature limit. The observation of QSL states is a central aim of experimental physics, because they host collective excitations that transcend our knowledge of quantum matter; however, examples in real materials are scarce. Here, we report neutron-scattering measurements on YbMgGaO4, a QSL candidate in which Yb3+ ions with effective spin-1/2 occupy a triangular lattice. Our measurements reveal a continuum of magnetic excitations - the essential experimental hallmark of a QSL - at very low temperature (0.06 K). The origin of this peculiar excitation spectrum is a crucial question, because isotropic nearest-neighbor interactions do not yield a QSL ground state on the triangular lattice. Using measurements of the magnetic excitations close to the field-polarized state, we identify antiferromagnetic next-nearest-neighbor interactions in the presence of planar anisotropy as key ingredients for QSL formation in YbMgGaO4.