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M. Murphy

Publications and source records attributed to M. Murphy.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
arXiv2014

Transit Search from Antarctica and Chile - Comparison and Combination

Observing sites at the East-Antarctic plateau are considered to provide exceptional conditions for astronomy. The aim of this work is to assess its potential for detecting transiting extrasolar planets through a comparison and combination of photometric data from Antarctica with time series from a midlatitude site. During 2010, the two small aperture telescopes ASTEP 400 (Dome C) and BEST II (Chile) together performed an observing campaign of two target fields and the transiting planet WASP-18b. For the latter, a bright star, Dome C appears to yield an advantageous signal-to-noise ratio. For field surveys, both Dome C and Chile appear to be of comparable photometric quality. However, within two weeks, observations at Dome C yield a transit detection efficiency that typically requires a whole observing season in Chile. For the first time, data from Antarctica and Chile have been combined to extent the observational duty cycle. This approach is both feasible in practice and favorable for transit search, as it increases the detection yield by 12-18%.

astro-ph.IM↗
arXiv2014

Dust reverberation-mapping of the Seyfert 1 galaxy WPVS48

Using robotic telescopes of the Universitatssternwarte Bochum near Cerro Armazones in Chile, we monitored the z=0.0377 Seyfert 1 galaxy WPVS48 (2MASX J09594263-3112581) in the optical (B and R) and near-infrared (NIR, J and Ks) with a cadence of two days. The light curves show unprecedented variability details. The NIR variation features of WPVS48 are consistent with the corresponding optical variations, but the features appear sharper in the NIR than in the optical, suggesting that the optical photons undergo multiple scatterings. The J and Ks emission, tracing the hot (1600 K) dust echo, lags the B and R variations by on average 64 +/- 4 days and 71 +/- 5 days, respectively (restframe). WPVS48 lies on the known tau-M_V relationship. However, the observed lag is about three times shorter than expected from the dust sublimation radius r_sub inferred from the optical-UV luminosity, and explanations for this common discrepancy are searched for. The sharp NIR echos argue for a face-on torus geometry and allow us to put forward two potential scenarios: 1) as previously proposed, in the equatorial plane of the accretion disk the inner region of the torus is flattened and may come closer to the accretion disk. 2) The dust torus with inner radius r_sub is geometrically and optically thick, so that the observer only sees the facing rim of the torus wall, which lies closer to the observer than the torus equatorial plane and therefore leads to an observed foreshortened lag. Both scenarios are able to explain the factor three discrepancy between tau and r_sub. Longer-wavelength dust reverberation data might enable one to distinguish between the scenarios.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2013

Controlling the transport of an ion: Classical and quantum mechanical solutions

We investigate the performance of different control techniques for ion transport in state-of-the-art segmented miniaturized ion traps. We employ numerical optimization of classical trajectories and quantum wavepacket propagation as well as analytical solutions derived from invariant based inverse engineering and geometric optimal control. We find that accurate shuttling can be performed with operation times below the trap oscillation period. The maximum speed is limited by the maximum acceleration that can be exerted on the ion. When using controls obtained from classical dynamics for wavepacket propagation, wavepacket squeezing is the only quantum effect that comes into play for a large range of trapping parameters. We show that this can be corrected by a compensating force derived from invariant based inverse engineering, without a significant increase in the operation time.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2013

The Berlin Exoplanet Search Telescope II. Catalog of Variable Stars. I. Characterization of Three Southern Target Fields

A photometric survey of three Southern target fields with BEST II yielded the detection of 2,406 previously unknown variable stars and an additional 617 stars with suspected variability. This study presents a catalog including their coordinates, magnitudes, light curves, ephemerides, amplitudes, and type of variability. In addition, the variability of 17 known objects is confirmed, thus validating the results. The catalog contains a number of known and new variables that are of interest for further astrophysical investigations, in order to, e.g., search for additional bodies in eclipsing binary systems, or to test stellar interior models. Altogether, 209,070 stars were monitored with BEST II during a total of 128 nights in 2009/2010. The overall variability fraction of 1.2-1.5% in these target fields is well comparable to similar ground-based photometric surveys. Within the main magnitude range of $R\in\left[11,17\right]$, we identify 0.67(3)% of all stars to be eclipsing binaries, which indicates a completeness of about one third for this particular type in comparison to space surveys.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2013

Variability survey in the CoRoT SRa01 field: Implications of eclipsing binary distribution on cluster formation in NGC 2264

Time-series photometry of the CoRoT field SRa01 was carried out with the Berlin Exoplanet Search Telescope II (BEST II) in 2008/2009. A total of 1,161 variable stars were detected, of which 241 were previously known and 920 are newly found. Several new, variable young stellar objects have been discovered. The study of the spatial distribution of eclipsing binaries revealed the higher relative frequency of Algols toward the center of the young open cluster NGC 2264. In general Algol frequency obeys an isotropic distribution of their angular momentum vectors, except inside the cluster, where a specific orientation of the inclinations is the case. We suggest that we see the orbital plane of the binaries almost edge-on.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2013

Eclipsing high-mass binaries I. Light curves and system parameters for CPD-518946, PISMIS24-1 and HD319702

We present first results of a comprehensive photometric O-star survey performed with a robotic twin refractor at the Universitätssternwarte Bochum located near Cerro Armazones in Chile. For three high-mass stars, namely Pismis24-1, CPD-518946 and HD319702, we determined the period through the Lafler-Kinman algorithm and model the light curves within the framework of the Roche geometry. For Pismis24-1, a previously known eclipsing binary, we provide first light curves and determined a photometric period of 2.36 days together with an orbital inclination of 61.8 degrees. The best-fitting model solution to the light curves suggest a detached configuration. With a primary temperature of T1 = 42520K we obtain the temperature of the secondary component as T2 = 41500K. CPD-518946 is another known eclipsing binary for which we present a revised photometric period of 1.96 days with an orbital inclination of 58.4 degrees. The system has likely a semi-detached configuration and a mass ratio q = M1/M2 = 2.8. If we adopt a primary temperature of T1 = 34550K we obtain T2 = 21500K for the secondary component. HD319702 is a newly discovered eclipsing binary member of the young open cluster NGC6334. The system shows well-defined eclipses favouring a detached configuration with a period of 2.0 days and an orbital inclination of 67.5 degrees. Combining our photometric result with the primary spectral type O8 III(f) (T1 = 34000K) we derive a temperature of T2 = 25200K for the secondary component.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2013

Size and disk-like shape of the broad-line region of ESO399-IG20

We present photometric reverberation mapping of the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy ESO399-IG20 performed with the robotic 15 cm telescope VYSOS-6 at the Cerro Armazones Observatory. Through the combination of broad- and narrow-band filters we determine the size of the broad-line emitting region (BLR) by measuring the time delay between the variability of the continuum and the H_alpha emission line. We use the flux variation gradient method to separate the host galaxy contribution from that of the active galactic nucleus (AGN), and to calculate the 5100A luminosity L_AGN of the AGN. Both measurements permit us to derive the position of ESO399-IG20 in the BLR size -- AGN luminosity R_BLR-L_AGN^0.5 diagram. We infer the basic geometry of the BLR through modelling of the light curves. The pronounced sharp variability patterns in both the continuum and the emission line light curves allow us to reject a spherical BLR geometry. The light curves are best fitted by a disk-like BLR seen nearly face-on with an inclination angle of 6+/-3 degrees and with an extension from 16 to 20 light days.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2013

Photometric reverberation mapping of 3C120

We present the results of a five month monitoring campaign of the local active galactic nuclei (AGN) 3C120. Observations with a median sampling of two days were conducted with the robotic 15cm telescope VYSOS-6 located near Cerro Armazones in Chile. Broad band (B,V) and narrow band (NB) filters were used in order to measure fluxes of the AGN and the H_beta broad line region (BLR) emission line. The NB flux is constituted by about 50% continuum and 50% H_beta emission line. To disentangle line and continuum flux, a synthetic H_beta light curve was created by subtracting a scaled V-band light curve from the NB light curve. Here we show that the H_beta emission line responds to continuum variations with a rest frame lag of 23.6 +/- 1.69 days. We estimate a virial mass of the central black hole M_BH = 57 +/- 27 * 10^6 solar masses, by combining the obtained lag with the velocity dispersion of a single contemporaneous spectrum. Using the flux variation gradient (FVG) method, we determined the host galaxy subtracted rest frame 5100A luminosity at the time of our monitoring campaign with an uncertainty of 10% (L_AGN = 6.94 +/- 0.71* 10^43 ergs^-1). Compared with recent spectroscopic reverberation results, 3C120 shifts in the R_BLR - L_AGN diagram remarkably close to the theoretically expected relation of R-L^0.5. Our results demonstrate the performance of photometric AGN reverberation mapping, in particular for efficiently determining the BLR size and the AGN luminosity

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2012

Improved Variable Star Search in Large Photometric Data Sets -- New Variables in CoRoT Field LRa02 Detected by BEST II

The CoRoT field LRa02 has been observed with the Berlin Exoplanet Search Telescope II (BEST II) during the southern summer 2007/2008. A first analysis of stellar variability led to the publication of 345 newly discovered variable stars. Now, a deeper analysis of this data set was used to optimize the variability search procedure. Several methods and parameters have been tested in order to improve the selection process compared to the widely used J index for variability ranking. This paper describes an empirical approach to treat systematic trends in photometric data based upon the analysis of variance statistics that can significantly decrease the rate of false detections. Finally, the process of reanalysis and method improvement has virtually doubled the number of variable stars compared to the first analysis by Kabath et al. A supplementary catalog of 272 previously unknown periodic variables plus 52 stars with suspected variability is presented. Improved ephemerides are given for 19 known variables in the field. In addition, the BEST II results are compared with CoRoT data and its automatic variability classification.

astro-ph.IM↗
arXiv2011

Optimizing entangling quantum gates for physical systems

Optimal control theory is a versatile tool that presents a route to significantly improving figures of merit for quantum information tasks. We combine it here with the geometric theory for local equivalence classes of two-qubit operations to derive an optimization algorithm that determines the best entangling two-qubit gate for a given physical setting. We demonstrate the power of this approach for trapped polar molecules and neutral atoms.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2011

Photometric AGN reverberation mapping - an efficient tool for BLR sizes, black hole masses and host-subtracted AGN luminosities

Photometric reverberation mapping employs a wide bandpass to measure the AGN continuum variations and a suitable band, usually a narrow band (NB), to trace the echo of an emission line in the broad line region (BLR). The narrow band catches both the emission line and the underlying continuum, and one needs to extract the pure emission line light curve. We performed a test on two local AGNs, PG0003+199 (=Mrk335) and Ark120, observing well-sampled broad- (B, V) and narrow-band light curves with the robotic 15cm telescope VYSOS-6 on Cerro Armazones, Chile. In PG0003+199, H_alpha dominates the flux in the NB by 85%, allowing us to measure the time lag of H_alpha against B without the need to correct for the continuum contribution. In Ark120, H_beta contributes only 50% to the flux in the NB. The cross correlation of the B and NB light curves shows two distinct peaks of similar strength, one at lag zero from the autocorrelated continuum and one from the emission line at tau_cent = 47.5 +/- 3.4 days. We constructed a synthetic H_beta light curve, by subtracting a scaled V light curve, which traces the continuum, from the NB light curve. The cross correlation of this synthetic H_beta light curve with the B light curve shows only one major peak at tau_cent = 48.0 +/- 3.3 days, while the peak from the autocorrelated continuum at lag zero is absent. We conclude that, as long as the emission line contributes at least 50% to the bandpass, the pure emission line light curve can be reconstructed from photometric monitoring data so that the time lag can be measured. For both objects the lags we find are consistent with spectroscopic reverberation results. While the dense sampling (median 2 days) enables us to determine tau_cent with small (10%) formal errors, we caution that gaps in the light curves may lead to much larger systematic uncertainties. (Abstract shortened, see the manuscript.)

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2009

Periodic variable stars in CoRoT field LRa02 observed with BEST II

The Berlin Exoplanet Search Telescope II (BEST II) is a small wide field-of-view photometric survey telescope system located at the Observatorio Cerro Armazones, Chile. The high duty cycle combined with excellent observing conditions and millimagnitude photometric precision makes this instrument suitable for ground based support observations for the CoRoT space mission. Photometric data of the CoRoT LRa02 target field collected between November 2008 and March 2009 were analysed for stellar variability. The presented results will help in the future analysis of the CoRoT data, particularly in additional science programs related to variable stars. BEST II observes selected CoRoT target fields ahead of the space mission. The photometric data acquired are searched for stellar variability, periodic variable stars are identified with time series analysis of the obtained stellar light curves. We obtained the light curves of 104335 stars in the CoRoT LRa02 field over 41 nights. Variability was detected in light curves of 3726 stars of which 350 showed a regular period. These stars are, with the exception of 5 previously known variable stars, new discoveries.

astro-ph.SR↗
arXiv2007

The CODEX-ESPRESSO experiment: cosmic dynamics, fundamental physics, planets and much more..

CODEX, a high resolution, super-stable spectrograph to be fed by the E-ELT, the most powerful telescope ever conceived, will for the first time provide the possibility of directly measuring the change of the expansion rate of the Universe with time and much more, from the variability of fundamental constants to the search for other earths. A study for the implementation at the VLT of a precursor of CODEX, dubbed ESPRESSO, is presently carried out by a collaboration including ESO, IAC, INAF, IoA Cambridge and Observatoire de Geneve. The present talk is focused on the cosmological aspects of the experiment.

astro-ph↗