arXiv subjects

S. Feng

Publications and source records attributed to S. Feng.

52 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Seeds of Life in Space (SOLIS) III. Formamide in protostellar shocks: evidence for gas-phase formation

Context: Modern versions of the Miller-Urey experiment claim that formamide (NH$_2$CHO) could be the starting point for the formation of metabolic and genetic macromolecules. Intriguingly, formamide is indeed observed in regions forming Solar-type stars as well as in external galaxies. Aims: How NH$_2$CHO is formed has been a puzzle for decades: our goal is to contribute to the hotly debated question of whether formamide is mostly formed via gas-phase or grain surface chemistry. Methods: We used the NOEMA interferometer to image NH$_2$CHO towards the L1157-B1 blue-shifted shock, a well known interstellar laboratory, to study how the components of dust mantles and cores released into the gas phase triggers the formation of formamide. Results: We report the first spatially resolved image (size $\sim$ 9", $\sim$ 2300 AU) of formamide emission in a shocked region around a Sun-like protostar: the line profiles are blueshifted and have a FWHM $\simeq$ 5 km s$^{-1}$. A column density of $N_{\rm NH_2CHO}$ = 8 $\times$ 10$^{12}$ cm$^{-1}$, and an abundance (with respect to H-nuclei) of 4 $\times$ 10$^{-9}$ are derived. We show a spatial segregation of formamide with respect to other organic species. Our observations, coupled with a chemical modelling analysis, indicate that the formamide observed in L1157-B1 is formed by gas-phase chemical process, and not on grain surfaces as previously suggested. Conclusions: The SOLIS interferometric observations of formamide provide direct evidence that this potentially crucial brick of life is efficiently formed in the gas-phase around Sun-like protostars.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2017

SOLIS II. Carbon-chain growth in the Solar-type protocluster OMC2-FIR4

The interstellar delivery of carbon atoms locked into molecules might be one of the key ingredients for the emergence of life. Cyanopolyynes are carbon chains delimited at their two extremities by an atom of hydrogen and a cyano group, so that they might be excellent reservoirs of carbon. The simplest member, HC3N, is ubiquitous in the galactic interstellar medium and found also in external galaxies. Thus, understanding the growth of cyanopolyynes in regions forming stars similar to our Sun, and what affects it, is particularly relevant. In the framework of the IRAM/NOEMA Large Program SOLIS (Seeds Of Life In Space), we have obtained a map of two cyanopolyynes, HC3N and HC5N, in the protocluster OMC2-FIR4. Because our Sun is thought to be born in a rich cluster, OMC2-FIR4 is one of the closest and best known representatives of the environment in which the Sun may have been born. We find a HC3N/HC5N abundance ratio across the source in the range ~ 1 - 30, with the smallest values (< 10) in FIR5 and in the Eastern region of FIR4. The ratios < 10 can be reproduced by chemical models only if: (1) the cosmic-ray ionisation rate $ζ$ is ~ $4 \times 10^{-14}$ s$^{-1}$; (2) the gaseous elemental ratio C/O is close to unity; (3) O and C are largely depleted. The large $ζ$ is comparable to that measured in FIR4 by previous works and was interpreted as due to a flux of energetic (> 10 MeV) particles from embedded sources. We suggest that these sources could lie East of FIR4 and FIR5. A temperature gradient across FIR4, with T decreasing by about 10 K, could also explain the observed change in the HC3N/HC5N line ratio, without the need of a cosmic ray ionisation rate gradient. However, even in this case, a high constant cosmic-ray ionisation rate (of the order of $10^{-14}$ s$^{-1}$) is necessary to reproduce the observations.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2017

Multiplicity and disks within the high-mass core NGC7538IRS1: Resolving cm line and continuum emission at ~0.06"x0.05" resolution

Context: High-mass stars have a high degree of multiplicity and most likely form via disk accretion processes. The detailed physics of the binary and disk formation are still poorly constrained. Methods: Using the VLA in its most extended configuration at ~24GHz toward the prototypical high-mass star-forming region NGC7538IRS1 has allowed us to study the NH3 and thermal CH3OH emission and absorption as well as the cm continuum emission at an unprecedented spatial resolution of 0.06"x0.05", corresponding to a linear resolution of ~150AU at a distance of 2.7kpc. Results: A comparison of these new cm continuum data with previous VLA observations from 23yrs ago reveals no recognizable proper motions. If the emission were caused by a protostellar jet, proper motion signatures should have been easily identified. In combination with the high spectral indices S~nu^{alpha} (alpha between 1 and 2), this allows us to conclude that the continuum emission is from two hypercompact HII regions separated in projection by about 430AU. The NH3 spectral line data reveal a common rotating envelope indicating a bound high-mass binary system. In addition to this, the thermal CH3OH data show two separate velocity gradients across the two hypercompact HII regions. This indicates two disk-like structures within the same rotating circumbinary envelope. Disk and envelope structures are inclined by ~33deg, which can be explained by initially varying angular momentum distributions within the natal, turbulent cloud. Conclusions: Studying high-mass star formation at sub-0.1" resolution allows us to isolate multiple sources as well as to separate circumbinary from disk-like rotating structures.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2016

Are Infrared Dark Clouds Really Quiescent?

The dense, cold regions where high-mass stars form are poorly characterised, yet they represent an ideal opportunity to learn more about the initial conditions of high-mass star formation (HMSF), since high-mass starless cores (HMSCs) lack the violent feedback seen at later evolutionary stages. We present continuum maps obtained from the Submillimeter Array (SMA) interferometry at 1.1 mm for four infrared dark clouds (IRDCs, G28.34S, IRDC 18530, IRDC 18306, and IRDC 18308). We also present 1 mm/3 mm line surveys using IRAM 30 m single-dish observations. Our results are: (1) At a spatial resolution of 10^4 AU, the 1.1 mm SMA observations resolve each source into several fragments. The mass of each fragment is on average >10 Msun, which exceeds the predicted thermal Jeans mass of the whole clump by a factor of up to 30, indicating that thermal pressure does not dominate the fragmentation process. Our measured velocity dispersions in the 30 m lines imply that non-thermal motions provides the extra support against gravity in the fragments. (2) Both non-detection of high-J transitions and the hyperfine multiplet fit of N2H+(1-0), C2H(1-0), HCN(1-0), and H13CN(1-0) indicate that our sources are cold and young. However, obvious detection of SiO and the asymmetric line profile of HCO+(1-0) in G28.34S indicate a potential protostellar object and probable infall motion. (3) With a large number of N-bearing species, the existence of carbon rings and molecular ions, and the anti-correlated spatial distributions between N2H+/NH2D and CO, our large-scale high-mass clumps exhibit similar chemical features as small-scale low-mass prestellar objects. This study of a small sample of IRDCs illustrates that thermal Jeans instability alone cannot explain the fragmentation of the clump into cold (~15 K), dense (>10^5 cm-3) cores and that these IRDCs are not completely quiescent.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2016

Inferring the evolutionary stages of the internal structures of NGC 7538 S and IRS1 from chemistry

To unambiguously diagnose the detailed physical mechanisms and the evolutionary status of high-mass star-forming regions (HMSFRs), we have performed 0.4" ($\sim1000$ AU) resolution observations towards NGC7538S and IRS1, using the Plateau de Bure Interferometer (PdBI). This paper presents a joint analysis of the 1.37 mm continuum emission and the line intensity of 15 molecular species. Assuming local thermal equilibrium, we derived molecular column densities and molecular abundances for each internal gas substructure which is spatially resolved. These derived quantities are compared with a suite of 1-D gas-grain models. NGC7538S is resolved into at least three dense gas condensations. Despite the comparable continuum intensity of these condensations, their differing molecular line emission is suggestive of an overall chemical evolutionary trend from the northeast to the southeast. Since these condensations are embedded within the same parent gas core, their differing chemical properties are the most likely due to the different warm-up histories, rather than the different dynamic timescales. Despite remaining spatially unresolved, in IRS1 we detect abundant complex organic molecules, indicating that IRS1 is the most chemically evolved hot molecular core presented here. We observe a continuum that is dominated by absorption features with at least three strong emission lines, potentially from $\rm CH_3OH$. The $\rm CH_3OH$ lines which are purely in emission have higher excitation than the ones showing purely absorption. Potential reasons for that difference are discussed. This is the first comprehensive comparison of observations of the high-mass cores NGC7538S and IRS1 and a chemical model. We have found that different chemical evolutionary stages can coexist in the same natal gas core. Our achievement illustrates the strength of chemical analysis for understanding HMSFRs.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2016

Outflow detection in a 70 $μ$m dark high-mass core

We present observations towards a high-mass ($\rm >40\,M_{\odot}$), low luminosity ($\rm <10\,L_{\odot}$) $\rm 70\,μ$m dark molecular core G 28.34 S-A at 3.4 mm, using the IRAM 30 m telescope and the NOEMA interferometer. We report the detection of $\rm SiO$ $J=\rm 2\rightarrow1$ line emission, which is spatially resolved in this source at a linear resolution of $\sim$0.1 pc, while the 3.4 mm continuum image does not resolve any internal sub-structures. The SiO emission exhibits two W-E oriented lobes centring on the continuum peak. Corresponding to the red-shifted and blue-shifted gas with velocities up to $\rm 40\,km\,s^{-1}$ relative to the quiescent cloud, these lobes clearly indicate the presence of a strong bipolar outflow from this $\rm 70\,μ$m dark core, a source previously considered as one of the best candidates of "starless" core. Our SiO detection is consistent with ALMA archival data of $\rm SiO$ $J=\rm 5\rightarrow4$, whose high-velocity blue-shifted gas reveals a more compact lobe spatially closer to the dust center. This outflow indicates that the central source may be in an early evolutionary stage of forming a high-mass protostar. We also find that the low-velocity components (in the range of $\rm V_{lsr}$$\rm_{-5}^{+3}\,km\,s^{-1}$) have an extended, NW-SE oriented distribution. Discussing the possible accretion scenarios of the outflow-powering young stellar object, we argue that the molecular line emission and the molecular outflows may provide a better indication of the accretion history when forming young stellar object, than that from a snapshot observations of the present bolometric luminosity. This is particularly significant for the cases of episodic accretion, which may occur during the collapse of the parent molecular core.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2016

Resolving the chemical substructure of Orion-KL

The Kleinmann-Low nebula in Orion (Orion-KL) is the nearest example of a high-mass star-forming environment. For the first time, we complemented 1.3 mm Submillimeter Array (SMA) interferometric line survey with IRAM 30 m single-dish observations of the Orion-KL region. Covering a 4 GHz bandwidth in total, this survey contains over 160 emission lines from 20 species (25 isotopologues), including 11 complex organic molecules (COMs). At a spatial resolution of 1200 AU, the continuum substructures are resolved. Extracting the spectra from individual substructures and providing the intensity-integrated distribution map for each species, we studied the small-scale chemical variations in this region. Our main results are: (1) We identify lines from the low-abundance COMs CH3COCH3 and CH3CH2OH, as well as tentatively detect CH3CHO and long carbon-chains C6H and HC7N. (2) We find that while most COMs are segregated by type, peaking either towards the hot core (e.g., N-bearing species) or the compact ridge (e.g., O-bearing species like HCOOCH3 and CH3OCH3), while the distributions of others do not follow this segregated structure (e.g., CH3CH2OH, CH3OH, CH3COCH3). (3) We find a second velocity component of HNCO, SO2, 34SO2, and SO lines, which may be associated with a strong shock event in the low-velocity outflow. (4) Temperatures and molecular abundances show large gradients between central condensations and the outflow regions, illustrating a transition between hot molecular core and shock-chemistry dominated regimes. Our observations of spatially resolved chemical variations in Orion-KL provide the nearest reference source for hot molecular core and outflow chemistry, which will be an important example for interpreting the chemistry of more distant HMSFRs.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2015

Isolated Galaxies versus Interacting Pairs with MaNGA

We present preliminary results of the spectral analysis on the radial distributions of the star formation history in both, a galaxy merger and a spiral isolated galaxy observed with MaNGA. We find that the central part of the isolated galaxy is composed by older stellar population ($\sim$2 Gyr) than in the outskirts ($\sim$7 Gyr). Also, the time-scale is gradually larger from 1 Gyr in the inner part to 3 Gyr in the outer regions of the galaxy. In the case of the merger, the stellar population in the central region is older than in the tails, presenting a longer time-scale in comparison to central part in the isolated galaxy. Our results are in agreement with a scenario where spiral galaxies are built from inside-out. In the case of the merger, we find evidence that interactions enhance star formation in the central part of the galaxy.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2015

Poincaré Inequality for Dirichlet Distributions and Infinite-Dimensional Generalizations

For any $N\ge 2$ and $å:=(å_1,\cdots, å_{N+1})\in (0,\infty)^{N+1}$, let $μ^{(N)}_å$ be the corresponding Dirichlet distribution on $\DD:= \big\{ x=(x_i)_{1\le i\le N}\in [0,1]^N:\ \sum_{1\le i\le N} x_i\le 1\big\}.$ We prove the Poincaré inequality $$μ^{(N)}_å(f^2)\le \ff 1 {å_{N+1}} \int_{\DD}\Big\{\Big(1-\sum_{1\le i\le N} x_i\Big) \sum_{n=1}^N x_n(\pp_n f)^2\Big\}μ^{(N)}_å(\d x)+μ^{(N)}_å(f)^2,\ f\in C^1(\DD)$$ and show that the constant $\ff 1 {å_{N+1}}$ is sharp. Consequently, the associated diffusion process on $\DD$ converges to $μ^{(N)}_å$ in $L^2(μ^{(N)}_å)$ at the exponentially rate $å_{N+1}$. The whole spectrum of the generator is also characterized. Moreover, the sharp Poincaré inequality is extended to the infinite-dimensional setting, and the spectral gap of the corresponding discrete model is derived.

math.PR↗

arXiv2015

Hierarchical fragmentation and collapse signatures in a high-mass starless region

Aims: Understanding the fragmentation and collapse properties of the dense gas during the onset of high-mass star formation. Methods: We observed the massive (~800M_sun) starless gas clump IRDC18310-4 with the Plateau de Bure Interferometer (PdBI) at sub-arcsecond resolution in the 1.07mm continuum andN2H+(3-2) line emission. Results: Zooming from a single-dish low-resolution map to previous 3mm PdBI data, and now the new 1.07mm continuum observations, the sub-structures hierarchically fragment on the increasingly smaller spatial scales. While the fragment separations may still be roughly consistent with pure thermal Jeans fragmentation, the derived core masses are almost two orders of magnitude larger than the typical Jeans mass at the given densities and temperatures. However, the data can be reconciled with models using non-homogeneous initial density structures, turbulence and/or magnetic fields. While most sub-cores remain (far-)infrared dark even at 70mum, we identify weak 70mum emission toward one core with a comparably low luminosity of ~16L_sun, re-enforcing the general youth of the region. The spectral line data always exhibit multiple spectral components toward each core with comparably small line widths for the individual components (in the 0.3 to 1.0km/s regime). Based on single-dish C18O(2-1) data we estimate a low virial-to-gas-mass ratio <=0.25. We discuss that the likely origin of these spectral properties may be the global collapse of the original gas clump that results in multiple spectral components along each line of sight. Even within this dynamic picture the individual collapsing gas cores appear to have very low levels of internal turbulence.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2015

Hall and field-effect mobilities in few layered $p$-WSe$_2$ field-effect transistors

Here, we present a temperature ($T$) dependent comparison between field-effect and Hall mobilities in field-effect transistors based on few-layered WSe$_2$ exfoliated onto SiO$_2$. Without dielectric engineering and beyond a $T$-dependent threshold gate-voltage, we observe maximum hole mobilities approaching 350 cm$^2$/Vs at $T$=300 K. The hole Hall mobility reaches a maximum value of 650 cm$^2$/Vs as $T$ is lowered below $\sim$ 150 K, indicating that insofar WSe$_2$-based field-effect transistors (FETs) display the largest Hall mobilities among the transition metal dichalcogenides. The gate capacitance, as extracted from the Hall-effect, reveals the presence of spurious charges in the channel, while the two-terminal sheet resistivity displays two-dimensional variable-range hopping behavior, indicating carrier localization induced by disorder at the interface between WSe$_2$ and SiO$_2$. We argue that improvements in the fabrication protocols as, for example, the use of a substrate free of dangling bonds are likely to produce WSe$_2$-based FETs displaying higher room temperature mobilities, i.e. approaching those of $p$-doped Si, which would make it a suitable candidate for high performance opto-electronics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Classification of curves in 2D and 3D via affine integral signatures

We propose a robust classification algorithm for curves in 2D and 3D, under the special and full groups of affine transformations. To each plane or spatial curve we assign a plane signature curve. Curves, equivalent under an affine transformation, have the same signature. The signatures introduced in this paper are based on integral invariants, which behave much better on noisy images than classically known differential invariants. The comparison with other types of invariants is given in the introduction. Though the integral invariants for planar curves were known before, the affine integral invariants for spatial curves are proposed here for the first time. Using the inductive variation of the moving frame method we compute affine invariants in terms of Euclidean invariants. We present two types of signatures, the global signature and the local signature. Both signatures are independent of parameterization (curve sampling). The global signature depends on the choice of the initial point and does not allow us to compare fragments of curves, and is therefore sensitive to occlusions. The local signature, although is slightly more sensitive to noise, is independent of the choice of the initial point and is not sensitive to occlusions in an image. It helps establish local equivalence of curves. The robustness of these invariants and signatures in their application to the problem of classification of noisy spatial curves extracted from a 3D object is analyzed.

cs.CV↗

arXiv2008

Gas Damping Coefficient Research for MEMS Comb Linear Vibration Gyroscope

Silicon-MEMS gyroscope is an important part of MEMS (Micro Electrical Mechanical System). There are some disturb ignored in traditional gyroscope that must be evaluated newly because of its smaller size (reach the level of micron). In these disturb, the air pressure largely influences the performance of MEMS gyroscope. Different air pressure causes different gas damping coefficient for the MEMS comb linear vibration gyroscope and different gas damping coefficient influences the quality factor of the gyroscope directive. The quality factor influences the dynamic working bandwidth of the MEMS comb linear vibration gyroscope, so it is influences the output characteristic of the MEMS comb linear vibration gyroscope. The paper shows the relationship between the air pressure and the output amplified and phase of the detecting axis through analyzing the air pressure influence on the MEMS comb linear vibration gyroscope. It discusses the influence on the frequency distribute and quality factor of the MEMS comb linear vibration gyroscope for different air pressure.

cs.OH↗

arXiv1999

Primordial Black Hole Formation from Inflaton

Measurements of the distances to SNe Ia have produced strong evidence that the Universe is really accelarating, implying the existence of a nearly uniform component of dark energy with the simplest explanation as a cosmological constant. In this paper a small changing cosmological term is proposed, which is a function of a slow-rolling scalar field, by which the de Sitter primordial black holes' properties, for both charged and uncharged cases, are carefully examined and the relationship between the black hole formation and the energy transfer of the inflaton within this cosmological term is eluciated

hep-ph↗

arXiv1994

Strong-Coupling Behavior of Two $t-J$ Chains with Interchain Single Electron Hopping

Using the fermion-spin transformation to implement spin-charge separation of constrained electrons, a model of two $t-J$ chains with interchain single-electron hopping is studied by abelian bosonization. After spin-charge decoupling the charge dynamics can be trivially solved, while the spin dynamics is determined by a strong-coupling fixed point where the correlation functions can be calculated explicitly. This is a generalization of the Luther-Emery line for two-coupled $t-J$ chains. The interchain single-electron hopping changes the asymptotic behavior of the interchain spin-spin correlation functions and the electron Green function, but their exponents are independent of the coupling strength.

cond-mat↗

arXiv1994

Strong-Coupling Behavior of Two $t-J$ Chains with Interchain Single-Electron Hopping

cond-mat↗