arXiv subjects

Manuel A. Bautista

Publications and source records attributed to Manuel A. Bautista.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2022

Atomic Radiative Data for Oxygen and Nitrogen for Solar Photospheric Studies

Our recent re-analysis of the solar photospheric spectra with non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) models resulted in higher metal abundances compared to previous works. When applying the new chemical abundances to Standard Solar Model calculations, the new composition resolves the long-standing discrepancies with independent constraints on the solar structure from helioseismology. Critical to the determination of chemical abundances is the accuracy of the atomic data, specially the $f$-values, used in the radiative transfer models. Here we describe in detail the calculations of $f$-values for neutral oxygen and nitrogen used in our non-LTE models. Our calculations of $f$-values are based on a multi-method, multi-code approach and are the most detailed and extensive of its kind for the spectral lines of interest. We also report in this paper the details of extensive R-matrix calculation of photo-ionization cross sections for oxygen. Our calculation resulted in reliable $f$-values with well constrained uncertainties. We compare our results with previous theoretical and experimental determinations {of atomic data. We also quantify the influence of adopted photo-ionisation cross-sections on the spectroscopic estimate of the solar O abundance, using the data from different sources. We confirm that our 3D non-LTE value is robust and unaffected by the choice of photo-ionisation data, contrary to the recent claim made by Nahar.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2020

The XSTAR Atomic Database

We describe the atomic database of the XSTAR spectral modeling code, summarizing the systematic upgrades carried out in the past twenty years to enable the modeling of K lines from chemical elements with atomic number $Z\leq 30$ and recent extensions to handle high-density plasmas. Such plasma environments are found, for instance, in the inner region of accretion disks round compact objects (neutron stars and black holes), which emit rich information about the system physical properties. Our intention is to offer a reliable modeling tool to take advantage of the outstanding spectral capabilities of the new generation of X-ray space telescopes (e.g., XRISM and ATHENA) to be launched in the coming years. Data curatorial aspects are discussed and an updated list of reference sources is compiled to improve the database provenance metadata. Two XSTAR spin-offs -- the ISMabs absorption model and the uaDB database -- are also described.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

Atomic Data Assessment with PyNeb

PyNeb is a Python package widely used to model emission lines in gaseous nebulae. We take advantage of its object-oriented architecture, class methods, and historical atomic database to structure a practical environment for atomic data assessment. Our aim is to reduce the uncertainties in parameter space (line-ratio diagnostics, electron density and temperature, and ionic abundances) arising from the underlying atomic data by critically selecting the PyNeb default datasets. We evaluate the questioned radiative-rate accuracy of the collisionally excited forbidden lines of the N- and P-like ions (O II, Ne IV, S II, Cl III, and Ar IV), which are used as density diagnostics. With the aid of observed line ratios in the dense NGC 7027 planetary nebula and careful data analysis, we arrive at emissivity-ratio uncertainties from the radiative rates within 10\%, a considerable improvement over a previously predicted 50\%. We also examine the accuracy of an extensive dataset of electron-impact effective collision strengths for the carbon isoelectronic sequence recently published. By estimating the impact of the new data on the pivotal temperature diagnostics of [N II] and [O III] and by benchmarking the collision strength with a measured resonance position, we question their usefulness in nebular modeling. We confirm that the effective-collision-strength scatter of selected datasets for these two ions does not lead to uncertainties in the temperature diagnostics larger than 10\%.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2018

Resonant Temperature Fluctuations in Nebulae Ionized by Short-Period Binary Stars

A prevailing open problem in planetary nebulae research, and photoionized gaseous nebulae research at large, is the systematic discrepancies in electron temperatures and ionic abundances as derived from recombination and collisionally excited lines. Peimbert (1967) proposed the presence of 'temperature fluctuations' in these nebulae, but the apparent amplitude of such fluctuations, as deduced from spectral diagnostics and/or abundance discrepancy factors, remain unexplained by standard photoionization modeling. While this and other alternative models to explain the temperature and abundance discrepancies remain inconclusive, recent observations seem to point at a connection between nebular abundance discrepancy factors and a binary nature of photoionizing stars. In this paper we show that large amplitude temperature fluctuations are expected to form in planetary nebulae photoionized by short-period binary stars. Resonant temperature fluctuations are first formed along the orbital disk around the binary stars, as the periodically varying ionizing radiation field induces periodic oscillations in the heating-minus-cooling function. Then, the temperatures fluctuations propagate vertically to the disk as thermal waves that later steepen into radiative shocks. The binary period of the ionizing stars is determinant in the formation and propagation of temperature fluctuations, as well as in associated density fluctuations. Fluctuations propagate efficiently only in systems with binary periods significantly shorter than the gas thermalization time, of the order of 10 days. Further, we propose temperature diagnostic line ratios that combine [O III] collisionally excited lines and O II recombination lines to determine the equilibrium temperature and the magnitude of resonant temperature fluctuations in nebulae.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2018

A collection of model stellar spectra for spectral types B to early-M

Models of stellar spectra are necessary for interpreting light from individual stars, planets, integrated stellar populations, nebulae, and the interstellar medium. We provide a comprehensive and homogeneous collection of synthetic spectra for a wide range of atmospheric parameters and chemical compositions. We compile atomic and molecular data from the literature. We adopt the largest and most recent set of ATLAS9 model atmospheres, and use the radiative code ASS$ε$T.The resulting collection of spectra is made publicly available at medium and high-resolution ($R\equivλ/δλ$ = 10,000, 100,000 and 300,000 spectral grids, which include variations in effective temperature between 3500 K and 30,000 K, surface gravity ($0\le \log g \le 5$), and metallicity ($-5 \le$[Fe/H]$\le +0. 5$), spanning the wavelength interval 120-6500 nm. A second set of denser grids with additional dimensions, [$α$/Fe] and micro-turbulence, are also provided (covering 200-2500 nm). We compare models with observations for a few representative cases.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2018

Neutron-Capture elements in planetary nebulae: first detections of near-Infrared [Te III] and [Br V] emission lines

We have identified two new near-infrared emission lines in the spectra of planetary nebulae (PNe) arising from heavy elements produced by neutron capture reactions: [Te III] 2.1019 $μ$m and [Br V] 1.6429 $μ$m. [Te III] was detected in both NGC 7027 and IC 418, while [Br V] was seen in NGC 7027. The observations were obtained with the medium-resolution spectrograph EMIR on the 10.4m Gran Telescopio Canarias at La Palma, and with the high-resolution spectrograph IGRINS on the 2.7m Harlan J. Smith telescope at McDonald Observatory. New calculations of atomic data for these ions, specifically A-values and collision strengths, are presented and used to derive ionic abundances of Te$^{2+}$ and Br$^{4+}$. We also derive ionic abundances of other neutron-capture elements detected in the near-infrared spectra, and estimate total elemental abundances of Se, Br, Kr, Rb, and Te after correcting for unobserved ions. Comparison of our derived enrichments to theoretical predictions from AGB evolutionary models shows reasonable agreement for solar metallicity progenitor stars of $\sim$2 - 4 M$_{\odot}$. The spectrally-isolated [Br V] 1.6429 $μ$m line has advantages for determining nebular Br abundances over optical [Br III] emission lines that can be blended with other features. Finally, measurements of Te are of special interest because this element lies beyond the first peak of the s-process, and thus provides new leverage on the abundance pattern of trans-iron species produced by AGB stars.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2017

Resonant temperature fluctuations in nebulae ionized by short-period binary stars

A present prevailing open problem planetary nebulae research, and photoionized gaseous nebulae research at large, is the systematic discrepancies in ionic abundances derived from recombination and collisionally excited lines in many H II regions and planetary nebulae. Peimbert (1967) proposed that these discrepancies were due to 'temperature fluctuations' in the plasma, but the amplitude of such fluctuations remain unexplained by standard phtoionization modeling. In this letter we show that large amplitude temperature oscillations are expected to form in gaseous nebulae photoionized by short-period binary stars. Such stars yield periodically varying ionizing radiation fields, which induce periodic oscilla- tions in the heating-minus-cooling function across the nebula. For flux oscillation periods of a few days any temperature perturbations in the gas with frequencies similar to those of the ionizing source will undergo resonant amplification. In this case, the rate of growth of the perturbations increases with the amplitude of the variations of the ionizing flux and with decreasing nebular equilibrium temperature. We also present a line ratios diagnostic plot that combines [O III] collisional lines and O II recombination lines for diagnosing equilibrium and fluctuation am- plitude temperatures in gaseous nebulae. When applying this diagnostic to the planetary nebula M 1-42 we find an equilibrium temperature of ~6000 K and a resonant temperature fluctuation amplitude (Trtf ) of ~4000 K. This equilibrium temperature is significantly lower than the temperature estimated when temperature perturbations are ignored.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

Atomic Data and Spectral Models for FeII

We present extensive calculations of radiative transition rates and electron impact collision strengths for Fe II. The data sets involve 52 levels from the $3d\,^7$, $3d\,^64s$, and $3d\,^54s^2$ configurations. Computations of $A$-values are carried out with a combination of state-of-the-art multiconfiguration approaches, namely the relativistic Hartree--Fock, Thomas--Fermi--Dirac potential, and Dirac--Fock methods; while the $R$-matrix plus intermediate coupling frame transformation, Breit--Pauli $R$-matrix and Dirac $R$-matrix packages are used to obtain collision strengths. We examine the advantages and shortcomings of each of these methods, and estimate rate uncertainties from the resulting data dispersion. We proceed to construct excitation balance spectral models, and compare the predictions from each data set with observed spectra from various astronomical objects. We are thus able to establish benchmarks in the spectral modeling of [Fe II] emission in the IR and optical regions as well as in the UV Fe II absorption spectra. Finally, we provide diagnostic line ratios and line emissivities for emission spectroscopy as well as column densities for absorption spectroscopy. All atomic data and models are available online and through the AtomPy atomic data curation environment.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2013

Uncertainties in Atomic Data and Their Propagation Through Spectral Models. I

We present a method for computing uncertainties in spectral models, i.e. level populations, line emissivities, and emission line ratios, based upon the propagation of uncertainties originating from atomic data. We provide analytic expressions, in the form of linear sets of algebraic equations, for the coupled uncertainties among all levels. These equations can be solved efficiently for any set of physical conditions and uncertainties in the atomic data. We illustrate our method applied to spectral models of O III and Fe II and discuss the impact of the uncertainties on atomic systems under different physical conditions. As to intrinsic uncertainties in theoretical atomic data, we propose that these uncertainties can be estimated from the dispersion in the results from various independent calculations. This technique provides excellent results for the uncertainties in A-values of forbidden transitions in [Fe II].

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2010

Atomic data and spectral model for Fe III

We present new atomic data (radiative transitions rates and collision strengths) from large scale calculations and a non-LTE spectral model for Fe III. This model is in very good agreement with observed astronomical emission spectra, in contrast with previous models that yield large discrepancies with observations. The present atomic computations employ a combination of atomic physics methods, e.g. relativistic Hatree-Fock, the Thomas-Fermi-Dirac potential, and Dirac-Fock computation of A-values and R-matrix with intermediate coupling frame transformation and Dirac R-matrix. We study the advantages and shortcomings of each method. It is found that the Dirac R-matrix collision strengths yield excellent agreement with observations, much improved over previously available models. By contrast, the transformation of LS-coupling R-matrix fails to yield accurate effective collision strengths at around 10^4 K, despite using very large configuration expansions, due to the limited treatment of spin-orbit effects in the near threshold resonances of the collision strengths. The present work demonstrates that accurate atomic data for low ionization iron-peak species is now within reach.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2010

Ionization Driven Fragmentation of Gas Outflows Responsible for FeLoBALs in Quasars

We show that time variations in the UV ionizing continuum of quasars, on scales of $\sim$1 year, affect the dynamic structure of the plasmas responsible for low ionization broad absorption lines. Variations of the ionizing continuum produce non-equilibrium photoionization conditions over a significant fraction of the absorbing clouds and supersonically moving ionization fronts. When the flux drops the contraction of the ionized region drives a supersonic cooling front towards the radiation source and a rarefaction wave in the opposite direction. The pressure imbalance is compensated by an increased speed of the cool gas relative to the front. When the flux recovers the cool gas is re-ionized and re-heated by a supersonic ionization front traveling away from the radiation source and a forward shock is created. The reheated clouds equilibrate to a temperature of $\sim 10^4$ K and are observed to have different radial velocities than the main cloud. Such fragmentation seems consistent with the multicomponent structure of troughs seen in some objects. The velocity differences measured among various components in the quasars QSO 2359--1241 and SDSS J0318--0600 can be reproduced by our model if strong magnetic fields ($\sim$10 mG) are present within the clouds.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2009

The Quasar Outflow Contribution to AGN Feedback: VLT Measurements of SDSS J0318-0600

We present high spectral resolution VLT observations of the BAL quasar SDSS J0318-0600. This high quality data set allows us to extract accurate ionic column densities and determine an electron number density of n_e=10^3.3 +/- 0.2 cm^-3 for the main outflow absorption component. The heavily reddened spectrum of SDSS J0318-0600 requires purely silicate dust with a reddening curve characteristic of predominately large grains, from which we estimate the bolometric luminosity. We carry out photoionization modeling to determine the total column density, ionization parameter and distance of the gas and find that the photionization models suggest abundances greater than solar. Due to the uncertainty in the location of the dust extinction, we arrive at two viable distances for the main ouflow component from the central source, 6 and 18 kpc, where we consider the 6 kpc location as somewhat more physically plausable. Assuming the canonical global covering of 20% for the outflow and a distance of 6 kpc, our analysis yields a mass flux of 120 M_sun yr^-1 and a kinetic luminosity that is ~0.1% of the bolometric luminosity of the object. Should the dust be part of the outflow, then these values are ~4x larger. The large mass flux and kinetic luminosity make this outflow a significant contributor to AGN feedback processes.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2009

Quasar Outflow Contribution to AGN Feedback: Observations of QSO SDSS J0838+2955

We present a detailed analysis of the Astrophysical Research Consortium 3.5 m telescope spectrum of QSO SDSS J0838+2955. The object shows three broad absorption line (BAL) systems at 22,000, 13,000, and 4900 km s^-1 blueshifted from the systemic redshift of z=2.043. Of particular interest is the lowest velocity system that displays absorption from low-ionization species such as Mg II, Al II, Si II, Si II*, Fe II and Fe II*. Accurate column densities were measured for all transitions in this lowest velocity BAL using an inhomogeneous absorber model. The ratio of column densities of Si II* and Fe II* with respect to their ground states gave an electron number density of log n_e (cm^-3) = 3.75 +/- 0.22 for the outflow. Photoionization modeling with careful regards to chemical abundances and the incident spectral energy distribution predicts an ionization parameter of log U_H = -1.93 +/- 0.21 and a hydrogen column density of log N_H (cm^-2) = 20.80 +/- 0.28. This places the outflow at 3.3+1.5-1.0 kpc from the central AGN. Assuming that the fraction of solid angle subtended by the outflow is 0.2, these values yield a kinetic luminosity of (4.5+3.1-1.8) x 10^45 erg s^-1, which is (1.4+1.1-0.6)% the bolometric luminosity of the QSO itself. Such large kinetic luminosity suggests that QSO outflows are a major contributor to AGN feedback mechanisms.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2008

Atomic Processes in Planetary Nebulae and H II Regions

Spectroscopic studies of Planetary Nebulae (PNe) and H {\sc ii} regions have driven much development in atomic physics. In the last few years the combination of a generation of powerful observatories, the development of ever more sophisticated spectral modeling codes, and large efforts on mass production of high quality atomic data have led to important progress in our understanding of the atomic spectra of such astronomical objects. In this paper I review such progress, including evaluations of atomic data by comparisons with nebular spectra, detection of spectral lines from most iron-peak elements and n-capture elements, observations of hyperfine emission lines and analysis of isotopic abundances, fluorescent processes, and new techniques for diagnosing physical conditions based on recombination spectra. The review is directed toward atomic physicists and spectroscopists trying to establish the current status of the atomic data and models and to know the main standing issues.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

Electron-Ion Recombination Rate Coefficients and Photoionization Cross Sections for Astrophysically Abundant Elements VI. Ni II

We present the first detailed ab initio quantum mechanical calculations for total and state-specific recombination rate coefficients for e + Ni III --> Ni II. These rates are obtained using a unified treatment for total electron-ion recombination that treats the nonresonant radiative recombination and the resonant dielectronic recombination in a self-consistent unified manner in the close coupling approximation. Large-scale calculations are carried out using a 49-state wavefunction expansion from core configurations 3d^8, 3d^74s, and 3d^64p that permits the inclusion of prominent dipole allowed core transitions. These extensive calculations for the recombination rates of Ni II required hundreds of CPU hours on the Cray T90. The total recombination rate coefficients are provided for a wide range of temperature. The state-specific recombination rates for 532 bound states of doublet and quartet symmetries, and the corresponding photoionization cross sections for leaving the core in the ground state, are presented. Present total recombination rate coefficients differ considerably from the currently used data in astrophysical models.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2000

Theoretical Calculations of Atomic Data for Spectroscopy

Several different approximations and techniques have been developed for the calculation of atomic structure, ionization, and excitation of atoms and ions. These techniques have been used to compute large amounts of spectroscopic data of various levels of accuracy. This paper presents a review of these theoretical methods to help non-experts in atomic physics to better understand the qualities and limitations of various data sources and assess how reliable are spectral models based on those data.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1997

Ionization Structure and Spectra of Iron in Gaseous Nebulae}

The emission spectra and the ionization structure of the low ionization stages of iron, Fe I--IV, in gaseous nebulae are studied. This work includes: (i) new atomic data: photoionization cross sections, total e-ion recombination rates, excitation collision strengths, and transition probabilities; (ii) detailed study of excitation mechanisms for the [Fe II], [Fe III], and [Fe IV] emission, and spectroscopic analysis of the observed IR, optical, and UV spectra; (iii) study of the physical structure and kinematics of the nebulae and their ionization fronts. Spectral analysis of the well observed Orion nebula is carried out as a test case, using extensive collisional-radiative and photoionization models. It is shown that the [Fe II] emission from the Orion nebula is predominantly excited via electron collisions in high density partially ionized zones; radiative fluorescence is relatively less effective. Further evidence for high density zones is derived from the [O I] and [Ni II] spectral lines, as well as from the kinematic measurements of ionic species in the nebula. The ionization structure of iron in Orion is modeled using the newly calculated atomic data, showing some significant differences from previous models. The new model suggests a fully ionized H II region at densities on the order of $10^3$ cm$^{-3}$, and a dynamic partially ionized H II/H I region at densities of $10^5-10^7$ \cm3. Photoionization models also indicate that the optical [O I] and [Fe II] emission originates in high density partially ionized regions within ionization fronts. The gas phase iron abundance in Orion is estimated from observed spectra.

astro-ph↗