arXiv subjects

S. Zhang

Publications and source records attributed to S. Zhang.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources

arXiv2020

Polarization Calibration of the BICEP3 CMB polarimeter at the South Pole

The BICEP3 CMB Polarimeter is a small-aperture refracting telescope located at the South Pole and is specifically designed to search for the possible signature of inflationary gravitational waves in the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). The experiment measures polarization on the sky by differencing the signal of co-located, orthogonally polarized antennas coupled to Transition Edge Sensor (TES) detectors. We present precise measurements of the absolute polarization response angles and polarization efficiencies for nearly all of BICEP3s $\sim800$ functioning polarization-sensitive detector pairs from calibration data taken in January 2018. Using a Rotating Polarized Source (RPS), we mapped polarization response for each detector over a full 360 degrees of source rotation and at multiple telescope boresight rotations from which per-pair polarization properties were estimated. In future work, these results will be used to constrain signals predicted by exotic physical models such as Cosmic Birefringence.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

Receiver development for BICEP Array, a next-generation CMB polarimeter at the South Pole

A detection of curl-type ($B$-mode) polarization of the primary CMB would be direct evidence for the inflationary paradigm of the origin of the Universe. The BICEP/Keck Array (BK) program targets the degree angular scales, where the power from primordial $B$-mode polarization is expected to peak, with ever-increasing sensitivity and has published the most stringent constraints on inflation to date. BICEP Array (BA) is the Stage-3 instrument of the BK program and will comprise four BICEP3-class receivers observing at 30/40, 95, 150 and 220/270 GHz with a combined 32,000+ detectors; such wide frequency coverage is necessary for control of the Galactic foregrounds, which also produce degree-scale $B$-mode signal. The 30/40 GHz receiver is designed to constrain the synchrotron foreground and has begun observing at the South Pole in early 2020. By the end of a 3-year observing campaign, the full BICEP Array instrument is projected to reach $σ_r$ between 0.002 and 0.004, depending on foreground complexity and degree of removal of $B$-modes due to gravitational lensing (delensing). This paper presents an overview of the design, measured on-sky performance and calibration of the first BA receiver. We also give a preview of the added complexity in the time-domain multiplexed readout of the 7,776-detector 150 GHz receiver.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2020

X-ray reprocessing in accreting pulsar GX 301-2 observed with Insight-HXMT

We investigate the absorption and emission features in observations of GX 301-2 detected with Insight-HXMT/LE in 2017-2019. At different orbital phases, we found prominent Fe Kalpha, Kbeta and Ni Kalpha lines, as well as Compton shoulders and Fe K-shell absorption edges. These features are due to the X-ray reprocessing caused by the interaction between the radiation from the source and surrounding accretion material. According to the ratio of iron lines Kalpha and Kbeta, we infer the accretion material is in a low ionisation state. We find an orbital-dependent local absorption column density, which has a large value and strong variability around the periastron. We explain its variability as a result of inhomogeneities of the accretion environment and/or instabilities of accretion processes. In addition, the variable local column density is correlated with the equivalent width of the iron Kalpha lines throughout the orbit, which suggests that the accretion material near the neutron star is spherically distributed.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Insight-HXMT observations of a possible fast transition from jet to wind dominated state during a huge flare of GRS~1915+105

We present the analysis of the brightest flare that was recorded in the \emph{Insight}-HMXT data set, in a broad energy range (2$-$200 keV) from the microquasar GRS~1915+105 during an unusual low-luminosity state. This flare was detected by \emph{Insight}-HXMT among a series of flares during 2 June 2019 UTC 16:37:06 to 20:11:36, with a 2-200 keV luminosity of 3.4$-$7.27$\times10^{38}$ erg s$^{-1}$. Basing on the broad-band spectral analysis, we find that the flare spectrum shows different behaviors during bright and faint epochs. The spectrum of the flare can be fitted with a model dominated by a power-law component. Additional components show up in the bright epoch with a hard tail and in the faint epoch with an absorption line $\sim$ 6.78 keV. The reflection component of the latter is consistent with an inner disk radius $\sim$ 5 times larger than that of the former. These results on the giant flare during the "unusual" low-luminosity state of GRS~1915+105 may suggest that the source experiences a possible fast transition from a jet-dominated state to a wind-dominated state. We speculate that the evolving accretion disk and the large-scale magnetic field may play important roles in this peculiar huge flare.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The Hund's Superconductor Li(Fe,Co)As

We combine transport, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and scanning tunneling spectroscopy to investigate several low energy manifestations of the Hund coupling in a canonical FeSC family Li(Fe,Co)As. We determine the doping dependence of the coherent-incoherent crossover temperature and the quasi-particle effective mass enhancement in the normal state. Our tunneling spectroscopy result in the superconducting state supports the idea that superconductivity emerging from Hund's metal state displays a universal maximal superconducting gap vs transition temperature (2$Δ_{max}/k_{B}T_{c}$) value, which is independent of doping level and $T_{c}$.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2020

CHIMPS2: Survey description and $^{12}$CO emission in the Galactic Centre

The latest generation of Galactic-plane surveys is enhancing our ability to study the effects of galactic environment upon the process of star formation. We present the first data from CO Heterodyne Inner Milky Way Plane Survey 2 (CHIMPS2). CHIMPS2 is a survey that will observe the Inner Galaxy, the Central Molecular Zone (CMZ), and a section of the Outer Galaxy in $^{12}$CO, $^{13}$CO, and C$^{18}$O $(J = 3\rightarrow2)$ emission with the Heterodyne Array Receiver Program on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). The first CHIMPS2 data presented here are a first look towards the CMZ in $^{12}$CO J = 3$\rightarrow$2 and cover $-3^{\circ}\leq\,\ell\,\leq\,5^{\circ}$ and $\mid$b$\mid \leq 0.5^{\circ}$ with angular resolution of 15 arcsec, velocity resolution of 1 km s$^{-1}$, and rms $ΔT_A ^\ast =$ 0.58 K at these resolutions. Such high-resolution observations of the CMZ will be a valuable data set for future studies, whilst complementing the existing Galactic Plane surveys, such as SEDIGISM, the Herschel infrared Galactic Plane Survey, and ATLASGAL. In this paper, we discuss the survey plan, the current observations and data, as well as presenting position-position maps of the region. The position-velocity maps detect foreground spiral arms in both absorption and emission.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

Origin of gap-like behaviors in URu$_2$Si$_2$: Combined study via quasiparticle scattering spectroscopy and resistivity measurements

We address two long-standing questions regarding the hidden order in URu2Si2: Is it associated with the hybridization process, and what are the distinct roles played by the localized and itinerant electrons? Our quasiparticle scattering spectroscopy reveals a hybridization gap ubiquitous in the entire phase space spanned by P and Fe substitutions in URu2Si2, including the no-order and antiferromagnetic regions, with minimal change upon crossing the phase boundary. This indicates its opening isn't associated with the ordering, and thus localized electrons must be the major player. Towards a consistent understanding of all the other gap-like behaviors observed only below transition temperatures, we analyze the electrical resistivity using a model in which gapped bosonic excitations are the dominant scattering source. With their stiffness set to follow an unusual temperature dependence (decreasing with decreasing temperature), this model fits all of our resistivity data well including the jump at the transition. Remarkably, the extracted gap increases slowly with increasing Fe content, similarly to the gap detected by inelastic neutron scattering at Q1 = (1.4, 0, 0), suggesting a common origin. Such a model can also naturally explain the Hall effect temperature dependence without invoking Fermi surface gapping.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2020

Constraining the transient high-energy activity of FRB180916.J0158+65 with Insight-HXMT followup observations

A link between magnetars and fast radio burst (FRB) sources has finally been established. In this context, one of the open issues is whether/which sources of extra galactic FRBs exhibit X/gamma-ray outbursts and whether it is correlated with radio activity. We aim to constrain possible X/gamma-ray burst activity from one of the nearest extragalactic FRB sources currently known over a broad energy range, by looking for bursts over a range of timescales and energies that are compatible with being powerful flares from extragalactic magnetars. We followed up the as-yet nearest extragalactic FRB source at a mere 149 Mpc distance, the periodic repeater FRB180916.J0158+65, during the active phase on February 4-7, 2020, with the Insight-Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT). Taking advantage of the combination of broad band, large effective area, and several independent detectors available, we searched for bursts over a set of timescales from 1 ms to 1.024 s with a sensitive algorithm, that had previously been characterised and optimised. Moreover, through simulations we studied the sensitivity of our technique in the released energy-duration phase space for a set of synthetic flares and assuming different energy spectra. We constrain the possible occurrence of flares in the 1-100 keV energy band to E<10^46 erg for durations <0.1 s over several tens of ks exposure. We can rule out the occurrence of giant flares similar to the ones that were observed in the few cases of Galactic magnetars. The absence of reported radio activity during our observations does not allow us to make any statements on the possible simultaneous high-energy emission.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Continuous quantum error correction for evolution under time-dependent Hamiltonians

We develop a protocol for continuous operation of a quantum error correcting code for protection of coherent evolution due to an encoded Hamiltonian against environmental errors, using the three qubit bit flip code and bit flip errors as a canonical example. To detect errors in real time, we filter the output signals from continuous measurement of the error syndrome operators and use a double thresholding protocol for error diagnosis, while correction of errors is done as in the conventional operation. We optimize our continuous operation protocol for evolution under quantum memory and under quantum annealing, by maximizing the fidelity between the target and actual logical states at a specified final time. In the case of quantum memory we show that our continuous operation protocol yields a logical error rate that is slightly larger than the one obtained from using the optimal Wonham filter for error diagnosis. The advantage of our protocol is that it can be simpler to implement. For quantum annealing, we show that our continuous quantum error correction protocol can significantly reduce the final logical state infidelity when the continuous measurements are sufficiently strong relative to the strength of the time-dependent Hamiltonian, and that it can also significantly reduces the run time relative to that of a classical encoding. These results suggest that a continuous implementation is suitable for quantum error correction in the presence of encoded time-dependent Hamiltonians, opening the possibility of many applications in quantum simulation and quantum annealing.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2020

Continuum and three-nucleon force in Borromean system: The 17Ne case

Starting from chiral two-nucleon (2NF) and chiral three-nucleon (3NF) potentials, we present a detailed study of 17Ne, a Borromean system, with the Gamow shell model which can capture continuum effects. More precisely, we take advantage of the normal-ordering approach to include the 3NF and the Berggren representation to treat bound, resonant and continuum states on equal footing in a complex-momentum plane. In our framework, 3NF is essential to reproduce the Borromean structure of 17Ne, while the continuum is more crucial for the halo property of the nucleus. The two-proton halo structure is demonstrated by calculating the valence proton density and correlation density. The astrophysically interesting $3/2^-$ excited state has its energy above the threshold of the proton emission, and therefore the two-proton decay should be expected from the state.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2020

Contact network changes in ordered and disordered disk packings

We investigate the mechanical response of packings of purely repulsive, frictionless disks to quasistatic deformations. The deformations include simple shear strain at constant packing fraction and at constant pressure, "polydispersity" strain (in which we change the particle size distribution) at constant packing fraction and at constant pressure, and isotropic compression. For each deformation, we show that there are two classes of changes in the interparticle contact networks: jump changes and point changes. Jump changes occur when a contact network becomes mechanically unstable, particles "rearrange", and the potential energy (when the strain is applied at constant packing fraction) or enthalpy (when the strain is applied at constant pressure) and all derivatives are discontinuous. During point changes, a single contact is either added to or removed from the contact network. For repulsive linear spring interactions, second- and higher-order derivatives of the potential energy/enthalpy are discontinuous at a point change, while for Hertzian interactions, third- and higher-order derivatives of the potential energy/enthalpy are discontinuous. We illustrate the importance of point changes by studying the transition from a hexagonal crystal to a disordered crystal induced by applying polydispersity strain. During this transition, the system only undergoes point changes, with no jump changes. We emphasize that one must understand point changes, as well as jump changes, to predict the mechanical properties of jammed packings.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2020

Insight-HXMT firm detection of the highest energy fundamental cyclotron resonance scattering feature in the spectrum of GRO J1008-57

We report on the observation of the accreting pulsar GRO J1008-57 performed by Insight-HXMT at the peak of the source's 2017 outburst. Pulsations are detected with a spin period of 93.283(1) s. The pulse profile shows double peaks at soft X-rays, and only one peak above 20 keV. The spectrum is well described by the phenomenological models of X-ray pulsars. A cyclotron resonant scattering feature is detected with very high statistical significance at a centroid energy of $E_{\rm cyc}=90.32_{-0.28}^{+0.32}$ keV, for the reference continuum and line models, HIGHECUT and GABS respectively. Detection is very robust with respect to different continuum models. The line energy is significantly higher than what suggested from previous observations, which provided very marginal evidence for the line. This establishes a new record for the centroid energy of a fundamental cyclotron resonant scattering feature observed in accreting pulsars. We also discuss the accretion regime of the source during the Insight-HXMT observation.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Anisotropy fluctuation and correlation in central $α$-clustered $^{12}$C+$^{197}$Au collisions

In the framework of a multi-phase transport model, fluctuation and correlation of the azimuthal anisotropies in $^{12}$C+$^{197}$Au collisions at $\sqrt{S_{NN}}$ = 200 GeV are explored. Properties of the initial eccentricity and final harmonic flow fluctuation resulted from $^{12}$C+$^{197}$Au collisions with Woods-Saxon configuration and triangular $α$-clustering configurations of $^{12}$C are investigated via scaled variance, skewness and kurtosis. Comparisons are made between results from $α$-clustered configurations and Woods-Saxon configuration. The triangular flow fluctuation is found to have particular sensitivity in distinguishing triangular $α$-clustering structure of $^{12}$C. Furthermore, correlations between initial eccentricities and final flow harmonics are studied with strong multiplicity dependence observed for the correlation functions.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2020

Multi-Objective Energy Efficient Resource Allocation and User Association for In-band Full Duplex Small-Cells

In this paper, we develop a framework to maximize the network energy efficiency (EE) by optimizing joint user-base station~(BS) association,~subchannel assignment, and power control considering an in-band full-duplex (IBFD)-enabled small-cell network. We maximize EE (ratio of network aggregate throughput and power consumption) while guaranteeing a minimum data rate requirement in both the uplink and downlink. The considered problem belongs to the category of mixed-integer non-linear programming problem (MINLP), {\color{black} and thus is NP-hard}. To cope up with this complexity and to derive a trade-off between system throughput and energy utilization, we first restate the considered problem as a multi-objective optimization problem (MOOP) aiming at maximizing system's throughput and minimizing system's energy consumption, simultaneously. This MOOP is then tackled by using $ε$-constraint method. To do so, we first transform the binary subchannel and BS assignment variables into continuous ones without altering the feasible region of the problem and then approximate the non-convex rate functions through majorization-minimization (MM) approach. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed algorithm in improving network's EE compared to the existing literature.~Furthermore, simulation results unveil that by employing the IBFD capability in OFDMA networks, our proposed resource allocation algorithm achieves a $69\%$ improvement in the EE as compared to the half-duplex system for practical values of residual self-interference.

eess.SP↗

arXiv2020

Insight-HXMT insight into switch of the accretion mode: the case of the X-ray pulsar 4U 1901+03

We use the In data collected during the 2019 outburst from X-ray pulsar 4U 1901+03 to complement the orbital parameters reported by Fermi/GBM. Using the Insight-HXMT, we examine the correlation between the derivative of the intrinsic spin frequency and bolometric flux based on accretion torque models. It was found that the pulse profiles significantly evolve during the outburst. The existence of two types of the profile's pattern discovered in the Insight-HXMT data indicates that this source experienced transition between a super-critical and a sub-critical accretion regime during its 2019 outburst. Based on the evolution of the pulse profiles and the torque model, we derive the distance to 4U 1901+03 as 12.4+-0.2 kpc.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The evolution of the broadband temporal features observed in the black-hole transient MAXI J1820+070 with Insight-HXMT

We study the evolution of the temporal properties of MAXI 1820+070 during the 2018 outburst in its hard state from MJD 58190 to 58289 with Insight-HXMT in a broad energy band 1-150 keV. We find different behaviors of the hardness ratio, the fractional rms and time lag before and after MJD 58257, suggesting a transition occurred at around this point. The observed time lags between the soft photons in the 1-5 keV band and the hard photons in higher energy bands, up to 150 keV, are frequency-dependent: the time lags in the low-frequency range, 2-10 mHz, are both soft and hard lags with a timescale of dozens of seconds but without a clear trend along the outburst; the time lags in the high-frequency range, 1-10 Hz, are only hard lags with a timescale of tens of milliseconds; first increase until around MJD 58257 and decrease after this date. The high-frequency time lags are significantly correlated to the photon index derived from the fit to the quasi-simultaneous NICER spectrum in the 1-10 keV band. This result is qualitatively consistent with a model in which the high-frequency time lags are produced by Comptonization in a jet.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The role of Galactic HII regions in the formation of filaments. High-resolution submilimeter imaging of RCW 120 with ArTéMiS

Massive stars and their associated ionized (HII) regions could play a key role in the formation and evolution of filaments that host star formation. However, the properties of filaments that interact with H regions are still poorly known. To investigate the impact of HII regions on the formation of filaments, we imaged the Galactic HII region RCW 120 and its surroundings where active star formation takes place and where the role of ionization feedback on the star formation process has already been studied. We used the ArTéMiS camera on the APEX telescope and combined the ArTéMiS data at 350 and 450 microns with Herschel-SPIRE/HOBYS. We studied the dense gas distribution around RCW 120 with a resolution of 8 arcsec (0.05 pc at a distance of 1.34 kpc). Our study allows us to trace the median radial intensity profile of the dense shell of RCW 120. This profile is asymmetric, indicating a clear compression from the HII region on the inner part of the shell. The profile is observed to be similarly asymmetric on both lateral sides of the shell, indicating a homogeneous compression over the surface. On the contrary, the profile analysis of a radial filament associated with the shell, but located outside of it, reveals a symmetric profile, suggesting that the compression from the ionized region is limited to the dense shell. The mean intensity profile of the internal part of the shell is well fitted by a Plummer like profile with a deconvolved Gaussian FWHM of 0.09 pc, as observed for filaments in low-mass star-forming regions. This study suggests that compression exerted by HII regions may play a key role in the formation of filaments and may further act on their hosted star formation. ArTéMiS data also suggest that RCW 120 might be a 3D ring, rather than a spherical structure

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

Inhomogeneous response of an ion ensemble from mechanical stress

Material strain has recently received growing attention as a complementary resource to control the energy levels of quantum emitters embedded inside a solid-state environment. Some rare-earth ion dopants provide an optical transition which simultaneously has a narrow linewidth and is highly sensitive to strain. In such systems, the technique of spectral hole burning, in which a transparent window is burnt within the large inhomogeneous profile, allows to benefit from the narrow features, which are also sensitive to strain, while working with large ensembles of ions. However, working with ensembles may give rise to inhomogeneous responses among different ions. We investigate experimentally how the shape of a narrow spectral hole is modified due to external mechanical strain, in particular, the hole broadening as a function of the geometry of the crystal sites and the crystalline axis along which the stress is applied. Studying these effects are essential in order to optimize the existing applications of rare-earth doped crystals in fields which already profit from the more well-established coherence properties of these dopants such as frequency metrology and quantum information processing, or even suggest novel applications of these materials, for example as robust devices for force-sensing or highly sensitive accelerometers.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗