arXiv subjects

J. M. Stone

Publications and source records attributed to J. M. Stone.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Spectrally dispersed non-redundant aperture-masking interferometry in the thermal infrared with LBTI/ALES

Non-redundant aperture-masking interferometry maximizes the angular resolution of a telescope by turning it into an interferometric array using pupil plane masks. If the interference pattern on the detector is spectrally dispersed, deeper contrasts of the astrophysical scenery and an improved coverage of its spatial Fourier modes is achieved. We combined a non-redundant aperture mask with the integral field spectrograph ALES of LMIRcam at the Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer (LBTI). With this setup, we recorded spectrally dispersed non-redundant aperture-masking observations in the $L$ band ($\sim$3-4$\,\mu$m). We present commissioning data with which we recovered a known binary star and derived contrast detection limits for further point-source components of ${\sim} 5 \times 10^{-3}$ for separations of ${\gtrsim} 80\,$mas. This is the first time that an integral field spectrograph was combined with a non-redundant aperture mask in the $L$ band. Opening up the thermal infrared for this technique, this new capability enables the LBTI to efficiently survey nearby, bright stars for faint companions, which is of great importance for studies on hot exozodiacal dust and target vetting for future exo-Earth imaging missions such as NASA's Habitable Worlds Observatory. A further application is aperture synthesis of extended sources such as active galactic nuclei or evolved stars.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2019

The X-ray Halo Scaling Relations of Supermassive Black Holes

We carry out a comprehensive Bayesian correlation analysis between hot halos and direct masses of supermassive black holes (SMBHs), by retrieving the X-ray plasma properties (temperature, luminosity, density, pressure, masses) over galactic to cluster scales for 85 diverse systems. We find new key scalings, with the tightest relation being the $M_\bullet-T_{\rm x}$, followed by $M_\bullet-L_{\rm x}$. The tighter scatter (down to 0.2 dex) and stronger correlation coefficient of all the X-ray halo scalings compared with the optical counterparts (as the $M_\bullet-σ_{\rm e}$) suggest that plasma halos play a more central role than stars in tracing and growing SMBHs (especially those that are ultramassive). Moreover, $M_\bullet$ correlates better with the gas mass than dark matter mass. We show the important role of the environment, morphology, and relic galaxies/coronae, as well as the main departures from virialization/self-similarity via the optical/X-ray fundamental planes. We test the three major channels for SMBH growth: hot/Bondi-like models have inconsistent anti-correlation with X-ray halos and too low feeding; cosmological simulations find SMBH mergers as sub-dominant over most of the cosmic time and too rare to induce a central-limit-theorem effect; the scalings are consistent with chaotic cold accretion (CCA), the rain of matter condensing out of the turbulent X-ray halos that sustains a long-term self-regulated feedback loop. The new correlations are major observational constraints for models of SMBH feeding/feedback in galaxies, groups, and clusters (e.g., to test cosmological hydrodynamical simulations), and enable the study of SMBHs not only through X-rays, but also via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect (Compton parameter), lensing (total masses), and cosmology (gas fractions).

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2019

[Plasma 2020 Decadal] The Material Properties of Weakly Collisional, High-Beta Plasmas

This white paper, submitted for the Plasma 2020 Decadal Survey, concerns the physics of weakly collisional, high-beta plasmas -- plasmas in which the thermal pressure dominates over the magnetic pressure and in which the inter-particle collision time is comparable to the characteristic timescales of bulk motions. This state of matter, although widespread in the Universe, remains poorly understood: we lack a predictive theory for how it responds to perturbations, how it transports momentum and energy, and how it generates and amplifies magnetic fields. Such topics are foundational to the scientific study of plasmas, and are of intrinsic interest to those who regard plasma physics as a fundamental physics discipline. But these topics are also of extrinsic interest: addressing them directly informs upon our understanding of a wide variety of space and astrophysical systems, including accretion flows around supermassive black holes, the intracluster medium (ICM) between galaxies in clusters, and regions of the near-Earth solar wind. Specific recommendations to advance this field of study are discussed.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2018

The HOSTS Survey for Exozodiacal Dust: Preliminary results and future prospects

[abridged] The presence of large amounts of dust in the habitable zones of nearby stars is a significant obstacle for future exo-Earth imaging missions. We executed an N band nulling interferometric survey to determine the typical amount of such exozodiacal dust around a sample of nearby main sequence stars. The majority of our data have been analyzed and we present here an update of our ongoing work. We find seven new N band excesses in addition to the high confidence confirmation of three that were previously known. We find the first detections around Sun-like stars and around stars without previously known circumstellar dust. Our overall detection rate is 23%. The inferred occurrence rate is comparable for early type and Sun-like stars, but decreases from 71% [+11%/-20%] for stars with previously detected mid- to far-infrared excess to 11% [+9%/-4%] for stars without such excess, confirming earlier results at high confidence. For completed observations on individual stars, our sensitivity is five to ten times better than previous results. Assuming a lognormal luminosity function of the dust, we find upper limits on the median dust level around all stars without previously known mid to far infrared excess of 11.5 zodis at 95% confidence level. The corresponding upper limit for Sun-like stars is 16 zodis. An LBTI vetted target list of Sun-like stars for exo-Earth imaging would have a corresponding limit of 7.5 zodis. We provide important new insights into the occurrence rate and typical levels of habitable zone dust around main sequence stars. Exploiting the full range of capabilities of the LBTI provides a critical opportunity for the detailed characterization of a sample of exozodiacal dust disks to understand the origin, distribution, and properties of the dust.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2018

Shaken Snow Globes: Kinematic Tracers of the Multiphase Condensation Cascade in Massive Galaxies, Groups, and Clusters

We propose a novel method to constrain turbulence and bulk motions in massive galaxies, groups and clusters, exploring both simulations and observations. As emerged in the recent picture of the top-down multiphase condensation, the hot gaseous halos are tightly linked to all other phases in terms of cospatiality and thermodynamics. While hot halos (10^7 K) are perturbed by subsonic turbulence, warm (10^4 K) ionized and neutral filaments condense out of the turbulent eddies. The peaks condense into cold molecular clouds (< 100 K) raining in the core via chaotic cold accretion (CCA). We show all phases are tightly linked via the ensemble (wide-aperture) velocity dispersion along the line of sight. The correlation arises in complementary long-term AGN feedback simulations and high-resolution CCA runs, and is corroborated by the combined Hitomi and new IFU measurements in Perseus cluster. The ensemble multiphase gas distributions are characterized by substantial spectral line broadening (100-200 km/s) with mild line shift. On the other hand, pencil-beam detections sample the small-scale clouds displaying smaller broadening and significant line shift up to several 100 km/s, with increased scatter due to the turbulence intermittency. We present new ensemble sigma_v of the warm Halpha+[NII] gas in 72 observed cluster/group cores: the constraints are consistent with the simulations and can be used as robust proxies for the turbulent velocities, in particular for the challenging hot plasma (otherwise requiring extremely long X-ray exposures). We show the physically motivated criterion C = t_cool/t_eddy ~ 1 best traces the condensation extent region and presence of multiphase gas in observed clusters/groups. The ensemble method can be applied to many available datasets and can substantially advance our understanding of multiphase halos in light of the next-generation multiwavelength missions.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2017

Three-dimensional hydrodynamical models of wind and outburst-related accretion in symbiotic systems

Gravitationally focused wind accretion in binary systems consisting of an evolved star with a gaseous envelope and a compact accreting companion is a possible mechanism to explain mass transfer in symbiotic binaries. We study the mass accretion around the secondary caused by the strong wind from the primary late-type component using global three-dimensional hydrodynamic numerical simulations during quiescence and outburst stages. In particular, the dependence of the mass accretion rate on the mass-loss rate, wind parameters and phases of wind outburst development is considered. For a typical wind from an asymptotic giant branch star with a mass-loss rate of 1e-6 Msun/year and wind speeds of 20-50 km/s, the mass transfer through a focused wind results in efficient infall on to the secondary. Accretion rates onto the secondary of 5-20 per cent of the mass-loss from the primary are obtained during quiescence and outburst periods where the wind velocity and mass-loss rates are varied, about 20-50 per cent larger than in the standard Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton approximation. This mechanism could be an important method for explaining observed accretion luminosities and periodic modulations in the accretion rates for a broad range of interacting binary systems.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

The Effect of Anisotropic Viscosity on Cold Fronts in Galaxy Clusters

Cold fronts -- contact discontinuities in the intracluster medium (ICM) of galaxy clusters -- should be disrupted by Kelvin-Helmholtz (K-H) instabilities due to the associated shear velocity. However, many observed cold fronts appear stable. This opens the possibility to place constraints on microphysical mechanisms that stabilize them, such as the ICM viscosity and/or magnetic fields. We performed exploratory high-resolution simulations of cold fronts arising from subsonic gas sloshing in cluster cores using the grid-based Athena MHD code, comparing the effects of isotropic Spitzer and anisotropic Braginskii viscosity (expected in a magnetized plasma). Magnetized simulations with full Braginskii viscosity or isotropic Spitzer viscosity reduced by a factor f ~ 0.1 are both in qualitative agreement with observations in terms of suppressing K-H instabilities. The RMS velocity of turbulence within the sloshing region is only modestly reduced by Braginskii viscosity. We also performed unmagnetized simulations with and without viscosity and find that magnetic fields have a substantial effect on the appearance of the cold fronts, even if the initial field is weak and the viscosity is the same. This suggests that determining the dominant suppression mechanism of a given cold front from X-ray observations (e.g. viscosity or magnetic fields) by comparison with simulations is not straightforward. Finally, we performed simulations including anisotropic thermal conduction, and find that including Braginskii viscosity in these simulations does not significant affect the evolution of cold fronts; they are rapidly smeared out by thermal conduction, as in the inviscid case.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2013

Time-monitoring Observations of the Ro-Vibrational Overtone CO bands in Young Stars

We present near-IR spectra of a sample of T Tauri, Herbig Ae/Be, and FU Ori objects. Using the FSPEC instrument on the Bok 90-inch telescope, we obtained K-band spectra with a resolution of ~3500. Here we present spectra of the v=2->0 and v=3->1 bandheads of ro-vibrational transitions of carbon monoxide. We observed these spectra over multiple epochs spaced by a few days and approximately one month. Several of our targets show CO emission or absorption features. However we see little evidence of variability in these features across multiple epochs. We compare our results with previous observations, and discuss the physical implications of non-variable CO emission across the sampled timescales.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2009

Sustained Magnetorotational Turbulence in Local Simulations of Stratified Disks with Zero Net Magnetic Flux

We examine the effects of density stratification on magnetohydrodynamic turbulence driven by the magnetorotational instability in local simulations that adopt the shearing box approximation. Our primary result is that, even in the absence of explicit dissipation, the addition of vertical gravity leads to convergence in the turbulent energy densities and stresses as the resolution increases, contrary to results for zero net flux, unstratified boxes. The ratio of total stress to midplane pressure has a mean of ~0.01, although there can be significant fluctuations on long (>~50 orbit) timescales. We find that the time averaged stresses are largely insensitive to both the radial or vertical aspect ratio of our simulation domain. For simulations with explicit dissipation, we find that stratification extends the range of Reynolds and magnetic Prandtl numbers for which turbulence is sustained. Confirming the results of previous studies, we find oscillations in the large scale toroidal field with periods of ~10 orbits and describe the dynamo process that underlies these cycles.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2008

Effects of Magnetic Field Strength and Orientation on Molecular Cloud Formation

We present a set of numerical simulations addressing the effects of magnetic field strength and orientation on the flow-driven formation of molecular clouds. Fields perpendicular to the flows sweeping up the cloud can efficiently prevent the formation of massive clouds but permit the build-up of cold, diffuse filaments. Fields aligned with the flows lead to substantial clouds, whose degree of fragmentation and turbulence strongly depends on the background field strength. Adding a random field component leads to a "selection effect" for molecular cloud formation: high column densities are only reached at locations where the field component perpendicular to the flows is vanishing. Searching for signatures of colliding flows should focus on the diffuse, warm gas, since the cold gas phase making up the cloud will have lost the information about the original flow direction because the magnetic fields redistribute the kinetic energy of the inflows.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Magnetic pressure support and accretion disk spectra

Stellar atmosphere models of ionized accretion disks have generally neglected the contribution of magnetic fields to the vertical hydrostatic support, although magnetic fields are widely believed to play a critical role in the transport of angular momentum. Simulations of magnetorotational turbulence in a vertically stratified shearing box geometry show that magnetic pressure support can be dominant in the upper layers of the disk. We present calculations of accretion disk spectra that include this magnetic pressure support, as well as a vertical dissipation profile based on simulation. Magnetic pressure support generically produces a more vertically extended disk atmosphere with a larger density scale height. This acts to harden the spectrum compared to models that neglect magnetic pressure support. We estimate the significance of this effect on disk-integrated spectra by calculating an illustrative disk model for a stellar mass black hole, assuming that similar magnetic pressure support exists at all radii.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

Analysis of Clumps in Molecular Cloud Models: Mass Spectrum, Shapes, Alignment and Rotation

Observations reveal concentrations of molecular line emission on the sky, called ``clumps,'' in dense, star-forming molecular clouds. These clumps are believed to be the eventual sites of star formation. We study the three-dimensional analogs of clumps using a set of self-consistent, time-dependent numerical models of molecular clouds. The models follow the decay of initially supersonic turbulence in an isothermal, self-gravitating, magnetized fluid. We find the following. (1) Clumps are intrinsically triaxial. This explains the observed deficit of clumps with a projected axis ratio near unity, and the apparent prolateness of clumps. (2) Simulated clump axes are not strongly aligned with the mean magnetic field within clumps, nor with the large-scale mean fields. This is in agreement with observations. (3) The clump mass spectrum has a high-mass slope that is consistent with the Salpeter value. There is a low-mass break in the slope at $\sim 0.5 \msun$, although this may depend on model parameters including numerical resolution. (4) The typical specific spin angular momentum of clumps is $4 \times 10^{22} {\rm cm^2 s^{-1}}$. This is larger than the median specific angular momentum of binary stars. Scaling arguments suggest that higher resolution simulations may soon be able to resolve the scales at which the angular momentum of binary stars is determined.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

Local Three-Dimensional Simulations of Magneto-Rotational Instability in Radiation-Dominated Accretion Disks

We examine the small-scale dynamics of black hole accretion disks in which radiation pressure exceeds gas pressure. Local patches of disk are modeled by numerically integrating the equations of radiation MHD in the flux-limited diffusion approximation. The shearing-box approximation is used, and the vertical component of gravity is neglected. Magneto-rotational instability (MRI) leads to turbulence in which accretion stresses are due primarily to magnetic torques. When radiation is locked to gas over the length and time scales of fluctuations in the turbulence, the accretion stress, density contrast, and dissipation differ little from those in the corresponding calculations with radiation replaced by extra gas pressure. However, when radiation diffuses each orbit a distance that is comparable to the RMS vertical wavelength of the MRI, radiation pressure is less effective in resisting squeezing. Large density fluctuations occur, and radiation damping of compressive motions converts PdV work into photon energy. The accretion stress in calculations having a net vertical magnetic field is found to be independent of opacity over the range explored, and approximately proportional to the square of the net field. In calculations with zero net magnetic flux, the accretion stress depends on the portion of the total pressure that is effective in resisting compression. The stress is lower when radiation diffuses rapidly with respect to the gas. We show that radiation-supported Shakura-Sunyaev disks accreting via internal magnetic stresses are likely in their interiors to have radiation marginally coupled to turbulent gas motions.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

Local Axisymmetric Simulations of Magneto-Rotational Instability in Radiation-Dominated Accretion Disks

We perform numerical simulations of magneto-rotational instability in a local patch of accretion disk in which radiation pressure exceeds gas pressure. Such conditions may occur in the central regions of disks surrounding compact objects in active galactic nuclei and Galactic X-ray sources. We assume axisymmetry, and neglect vertical stratification. The growth rates of the instability on initially uniform magnetic fields are consistent with the linear analysis of Blaes & Socrates 2001. As is the case when radiation effects are neglected, the non-linear development of the instability leads to transitory turbulence when the initial magnetic field has no net vertical flux. During the turbulent phase, angular momentum is transported outwards. The Maxwell stress is a few times the Reynolds stress, and their sum is about four times the mean pressure in the vertical component of the magnetic field. For magnetic pressure exceeding gas pressure, turbulent fluctuations in the field produce density contrasts about equal to the ratio of magnetic to gas pressure. These are many times larger than in the corresponding gas pressure dominated situation, and may have profound implications for the steady-state vertical structure of radiation-dominated disks. Diffusion of radiation from compressed regions damps turbulent motions, converting kinetic energy into photon energy.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

A Module for Radiation Hydrodynamic Calculations With ZEUS-2D Using Flux-Limited Diffusion

A module for the ZEUS-2D code is described which may be used to solve the equations of radiation hydrodynamics to order unity in v/c, in the flux-limited diffusion (FLD) approximation. In this approximation, the tensor Eddington factor f which closes the radiation moment equations is chosen to be an empirical function of radiation energy density. This is easier to implement and faster than full-transport techniques, in which f is computed by solving the transfer equation. However, FLD is less accurate when the flux has a component perpendicular to the gradient in radiation energy density, and in optically thin regions when the radiation field depends strongly on angle. The material component of the fluid is here assumed to be in local thermodynamic equilibrium. The energy equations are operator-split, with transport terms, radiation diffusion term, and other source terms evolved separately. Transport terms are applied using the same consistent transport algorithm as in ZEUS-2D. The radiation diffusion term is updated using an alternating-direction implicit method with convergence checking. Remaining source terms are advanced together implicitly using numerical root-finding. However when absorption opacity is zero, accuracy is improved by treating compression and expansion source terms using time-centered differencing. Results are discussed for test problems including radiation-damped linear waves, radiation fronts propagating in optically-thin media, subcritical and supercritical radiating shocks, and an optically-thick shock in which radiation dominates downstream pressure.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2000

Dynamics of line-driven disk winds in Active Galactic Nuclei

We present the results of time-dependent hydrodynamic calculations of line- driven winds from accretion disks in AGN. To calculate the radiation force, we take into account radiation from the disk and the central engine. The gas temperature and ionization state in the wind are calculated self-consistently. We find that a disk accreting onto a 10^8 MSUN black hole at the rate of 1.8 MSUN/YR can launch a wind at about 10^16 cm from the central engine. The X-rays from the central object are attenuated by the disk atmosphere so they cannot prevent the local disk radiation from pushing matter away from the disk. For a reasonable X-ray opacity, the disk wind can be accelerated by the central UV radiation to velocities of up to 15000 km/s at a distance of about 10^17 cm from the central engine. The covering factor of the disk wind is $\sim 0.2$. The wind is unsteady and consists of an opaque, slow vertical flow near the disk that is bounded on the polar side by a high-velocity stream. A typical column density through the fast stream is a few 10^23 cm^-2. The fast stream contributes nearly 100% to the total wind mass loss rate of 0.5 MSUN/YR.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1999

The Formation and Structure of a Strongly Magnetized Corona above Weakly Magnetized Accretion Disks

We use three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) simulations to study the formation of a corona above an initially weakly magnetized, isothermal accretion disk. We also describe a modification to time-explicit numerical algorithms for MHD which enables us to evolve highly stratified disks for many orbital times. We find that MHD turbulence driven by the magnetorotational instability (MRI) produces strong amplification of weak fields within two scale heights of the disk midplane in a few orbital times. About 25 % of the magnetic energy generated by the MRI within two scale heights escapes due to buoyancy, producing a strongly magnetized corona above the disk. Most of the buoyantly rising magnetic energy is dissipated between 3 and 5 scale heights, suggesting the corona will also be hot. The average vertical disk structure consists of a weakly magnetized turbulent core below a strongly magnetized corona which is stable to the MRI. The largescale field structure in both the disk and corona is toroidal. The functional form of the stress is flat within two scale heights, but proportional to the density above two scale heights. For initially weak uniform vertical fields, we find the exponential growth of magnetic field via axisymmetric vertical modes of the MRI produces strongly buoyant sheets of magnetic energy which break the disk apart into horizontal channels. These channels rise several scale heights vertically before the onset of the Parker instability distorts the sheets and allows matter to flow back towards the midplane and reform a disk. We suggest this evolution may be relevant to the dynamical processes which disrupt the inner regions of a disk when it interacts with a strongly magnetized central object.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1999

Line-driven disk wind models with an improved line force

We describe an efficient method of calculating the radiation pressure due to spectral lines, including all the terms in the velocity gradient tensor. We apply this method to calculate the two-dimensional, time-dependent structure of winds from luminous disks. Qualitative features of our new models are very similar to those we calculated including only the dominant terms in the tensor (Proga, Stone & Drew 1998, hereafter PSD). In particular, we find that models which displayed unsteady behaviour in PSD are also unsteady with the new method, and gross properties of the winds, such as mass-loss rate and characteristic velocity are not changed by the more accurate approach. The largest change caused by the new method is in the disk-wind opening angle: winds driven only by the disk radiation are more polar with the new method while winds driven by the disk and central object radiation are typically more equatorial. In the closing discussion, we provide further insight into the way the geometry of the radiation field and consequent flow determines the time properties of the flow.

astro-ph↗