arXiv subjects

Tobias Fischer

Publications and source records attributed to Tobias Fischer.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Application of Deep Learning methods to analysis of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes data

Ground based gamma-ray observations with Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) play a significant role in the discovery of very high energy (E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emitters. The analysis of IACT data demands a highly efficient background rejection technique, as well as methods to accurately determine the energy of the recorded gamma-ray and the position of its source in the sky. We present results for background rejection and signal direction reconstruction from first studies of a novel data analysis scheme for IACT measurements. The new analysis is based on a set of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) applied to images from the four H.E.S.S. phase-I telescopes. As the H.E.S.S. cameras pixels are arranged in a hexagonal array, we demonstrate two ways to use such image data to train CNNs: by resampling the images to a square grid and by applying modified convolution kernels that conserve the hexagonal grid properties. The networks were trained on sets of Monte-Carlo simulated events and tested on both simulations and measured data from the H.E.S.S. array. A comparison between the CNN analysis to current state-of-the-art algorithms reveals a clear improvement in background rejection performance. When applied to H.E.S.S. observation data, the CNN direction reconstruction performs at a similar level as traditional methods. These results serve as a proof-of-concept for the application of CNNs to the analysis of events recorded by IACTs.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2018

Context-aware Deep Feature Compression for High-speed Visual Tracking

We propose a new context-aware correlation filter based tracking framework to achieve both high computational speed and state-of-the-art performance among real-time trackers. The major contribution to the high computational speed lies in the proposed deep feature compression that is achieved by a context-aware scheme utilizing multiple expert auto-encoders; a context in our framework refers to the coarse category of the tracking target according to appearance patterns. In the pre-training phase, one expert auto-encoder is trained per category. In the tracking phase, the best expert auto-encoder is selected for a given target, and only this auto-encoder is used. To achieve high tracking performance with the compressed feature map, we introduce extrinsic denoising processes and a new orthogonality loss term for pre-training and fine-tuning of the expert auto-encoders. We validate the proposed context-aware framework through a number of experiments, where our method achieves a comparable performance to state-of-the-art trackers which cannot run in real-time, while running at a significantly fast speed of over 100 fps.

cs.CV↗

arXiv2018

Joint Antenna Selection and Phase-Only Beamforming Using Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming

In this paper, we consider the problem of joint antenna selection and analog beamformer design in downlink single-group multicast networks. Our objective is to reduce the hardware costs by minimizing the number of required phase shifters at the transmitter while fulfilling given distortion limits at the receivers. We formulate the problem as an L0 minimization problem and devise a novel branch-and-cut based algorithm to solve the resulting mixed-integer nonlinear program to optimality. We also propose a suboptimal heuristic algorithm to solve the above problem approximately with a low computational complexity. Computational results illustrate that the solutions produced by the proposed heuristic algorithm are optimal in most cases. The results also indicate that the performance of the optimal methods can be significantly improved by initializing with the result of the suboptimal method.

math.OC↗

arXiv2018

Vector-Interaction-Enhanced Bag Model

A commonly applied quark matter model in astrophysics is the thermodynamic bag model (tdBAG). The original MIT bag model approximates the effect of quark confinement, but does not explicitly account for the breaking of chiral symmetry, an important property of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). It further ignores vector repulsion. The vector-interaction-enhanced bag model (vBag) improves the tdBAG approach by accounting for both dynamical chiral symmetry breaking and repulsive vector interactions. The latter is of particular importance to studies of dense matter in beta-equilibriumto explain the two solar mass maximum mass constraint for neutron stars. The model is motivated by analyses of QCD based Dyson-Schwinger equations (DSE), assuming a simple quark-quark contact interaction. Here, we focus on the study of hybrid neutron star properties resulting from the application of vBag and will discuss possible extensions.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2018

The state of matter in simulations of core-collapse supernovae -- Reflections and recent developments

In this review article we discuss selected developments regarding the role of the equation of state (EOS) in simulations of core-collapse supernovae. There are no first-principle calculations of the state of matter under supernova conditions since a wide range of conditions is covered, in terms of density, temperature and isospin asymmetry. Instead, model EOS are commonly employed in supernova studies. These can be divided into regimes with intrinsically different degrees of freedom: heavy nuclei at low temperatures, inhomogeneous nuclear matter where light and heavy nuclei coexist together with unbound nucleons, and the transition to homogeneous matter at high densities and temperatures. In this article we discuss each of these phases with particular view on their role in supernova simulations.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Impact of Neutrino Opacities on Core-Collapse Supernova Simulations

Accurate description of neutrino opacities is central both to the core-collapse supernova (CCSN) phenomenon and to the validity of the explosion mechanism itself. In this work, we study in a systematic fashion the role of a variety of well-selected neutrino opacities in CCSN simulations where multi-energy, three-flavor neutrino transport is solved by the isotropic diffusion source approximation (IDSA) scheme. To verify our code, we first present results from one-dimensional (1D) simulations following core-collapse, bounce, and up to ~ 250 ms postbounce of a 15 $M_{\odot}$ star using a standard set of neutrino opacities by Bruenn (1985). Detailed comparison with published results supports the reliability of our three-flavor IDSA scheme using the standard opacity set. We then investigate in 1D simulations how the individual opacity update leads to the difference from the base-line run with the standard opacity set. By making a detailed comparison with previous work, we check the validity of our implementation of each update in a step-by-step manner. Individual neutrino opacities with the largest impact on the overall evolution in 1D simulations are selected for a systematic comparison in our two-dimensional (2D) simulations. Special emphasis is devoted to the criterion of explodability in the 2D models. We discuss the implications of these results as well as the limitations and requirements for future towards more elaborate CCSN modeling.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Diffuse Supernova Neutrino Background from extensive core-collapse simulations of $8$-$100 {\rm M}_\odot$ progenitors

We revisit the diffuse supernova neutrino background in light of recent systematic studies of stellar core collapse that reveal the quantitative impacts of the progenitor conditions on the collapse process. In general, the dependence of the progenitor on the core-collapse neutrino emission is not monotonic in progenitor initial mass, but we show that it can, at first order, be characterized by the core compactness. For the first time, we incorporate the detailed variations in the neutrino emission over the entire mass range $8$-$100 {\rm M}_\odot$, based on (i) a long-term simulation of the core collapse of a $8.8 {\rm M}_\odot$ O-Ne-Mg core progenitor, (ii) over 100 simulations of iron core collapse to neutron stars, and (iii) half a dozen simulations of core collapse to black holes (the "failed channel"). The fraction of massive stars that undergo the failed channel remains uncertain, but in view of recent simulations which reveal high compactness to be conducive to collapse to black holes, we characterize the failed fraction by considering a threshold compactness above which massive stars collapse to black holes and below which the final remnant is a neutron star. We predict that future detections of the diffuse supernova neutrino background may have the power to reveal this threshold compactness, if its value is relatively small as suggested by interpretations of several recent astronomical observations.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Strange matter prospects within the string-flip model

In this contribution we extend the recently developed two-flavor quark-matter string-flip model by including strange quarks. We discuss implications for compact stars.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

Probing Convolutional Neural Networks for Event Reconstruction in γ-Ray Astronomy with Cherenkov Telescopes

A dramatic progress in the field of computer vision has been made in recent years by applying deep learning techniques. State-of-the-art performance in image recognition is thereby reached with Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs). CNNs are a powerful class of artificial neural networks, characterized by requiring fewer connections and free parameters than traditional neural networks and exploiting spatial symmetries in the input data. Moreover, CNNs have the ability to automatically extract general characteristic features from data sets and create abstract data representations which can perform very robust predictions. This suggests that experiments using Cherenkov telescopes could harness these powerful machine learning algorithms to improve the analysis of particle-induced air-showers, where the properties of primary shower particles are reconstructed from shower images recorded by the telescopes. In this work, we present initial results of a CNN-based analysis for background rejection and shower reconstruction, utilizing simulation data from the H.E.S.S. experiment. We concentrate on supervised training methods and outline the influence of image sampling on the performance of the CNN-model predictions.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2017

DAC-h3: A Proactive Robot Cognitive Architecture to Acquire and Express Knowledge About the World and the Self

This paper introduces a cognitive architecture for a humanoid robot to engage in a proactive, mixed-initiative exploration and manipulation of its environment, where the initiative can originate from both the human and the robot. The framework, based on a biologically-grounded theory of the brain and mind, integrates a reactive interaction engine, a number of state-of-the-art perceptual and motor learning algorithms, as well as planning abilities and an autobiographical memory. The architecture as a whole drives the robot behavior to solve the symbol grounding problem, acquire language capabilities, execute goal-oriented behavior, and express a verbal narrative of its own experience in the world. We validate our approach in human-robot interaction experiments with the iCub humanoid robot, showing that the proposed cognitive architecture can be applied in real time within a realistic scenario and that it can be used with naive users.

cs.AI↗

arXiv2017

Simultaneous chiral symmetry restoration and deconfinement - Consequences for the QCD phase diagram

For studies of quark matter in astrophysical scenarios the thermodynamic bag model (tdBag) is commonly employed. Although successful, it does not account for dynamical chiral symmetry breaking (D$χ$SB) and repulsions due to the vector interaction which is crucial to explain recent observations of massive, two solar mass neutron stars. In Klähn & Fischer (2015) we developed the novel vBag quark matter model which takes these effects into account. This article extends vBag to finite temperatures and isospin asymmetry. Another particular feature of vBag is the determination of the deconfinement bag constant $B_{\rm dc}$ from a given hadronic equation of state (EoS) in order to ensure that chiral and deconfinement transitions coincide. We discuss consequences of this novel approach for the phase transition construction, the phase diagram, and implications for protoneutron stars.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2016

Probing axions with the neutrino signal from the next galactic supernova

We study the impact of axion emission in simulations of massive star explosions, as an additional source of energy loss complementary to the standard neutrino emission. The inclusion of this channel shortens the cooling time of the nascent protoneutron star and hence the duration of the neutrino signal. We treat the axion-matter coupling strength as a free parameter to study its impact on the protoneutron star evolution as well as on the neutrino signal. We furthermore analyze the observability of the enhanced cooling in current and next-generation underground neutrino detectors, showing that values of the axion mass $m_a \gtrsim 8 \times 10^{-3}$ eV can be probed. Therefore a galactic supernova neutrino observation would provide a valuable possibility to probe axion masses in a range within reach of the planned helioscope experiment, the International Axion Observatory (IAXO).

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Role of medium modifications for neutrino-pair processes from nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung - Impact on the protoneutron star deleptonization

In this article the neutrino-pair production from nucleon-nucleon (NN) bremsstrahlung is explored via medium-modifications of the strong interactions at the level of the one-pion exchange approximation. It governs the bulk part of the NN interaction at low densities relevant for the neutrino physics in core-collapse supernova studies. The resulting medium modified one-pion exchange rate for the neutrino-pair processes is implemented in simulations of core collapse supernovae in order to study the impact on the neutrino signal emitted from the deleptonization of the nascent proto-neutron star. Consequences for the nucleosynthesis of heavy elements of the material ejected from the PNS surface are discussed.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Consequences of simultaneous chiral symmetry breaking and deconfinement for the isospin symmetric phase diagram

The thermodynamic bag model (tdBag) has been applied widely to model quark matter properties in both heavy-ion and astrophysics communities. Several fundamental physics aspects are missing in tdBag, e.g., dynamical chiral symmetry breaking (D$χ$SB) and repulsions due to the vector interaction are both included explicitly in the novel vBag quark matter model of Klähn and Fischer (2015) (Astrophys. J. 810, 134 (2015)). An important feature of vBag is the simultaneous D$χ$SB and deconfinement, where the latter links vBag to a given hadronic model for the construction of the phase transition. In this article we discuss the extension to finite temperatures and the resulting phase diagram for the isospin symmetric medium.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2016

Constraining the supersaturation density equation of state from core-collapse supernova simulations - Excluded volume extension of the baryons

In this article the role of the supersaturation density equation of state (EOS) is explored in simulations of failed core-collapse supernova explosions. Therefore the nuclear EOS is extended via a one-parameter excluded volume description for baryons, taking into account their finite and increasing volume with increasing density in excess of saturation density. Parameters are selected such that the resulting supernova EOS represent extreme cases, with high pressure variations at supersaturation density which feature extreme stiff and soft EOS variants of the reference case, i.e. without excluded volume corrections. Unlike in the interior of neutron stars with central densities in excess of several times saturation density, central densities of core-collapse supernovae reach only slightly above saturation density. Hence, the impact of the supersaturation density EOS on the supernova dynamics as well as the neutrino signal is found to be negligible. It is mainly determined from the low- and intermediate-density domain, which is left unmodified within this generalized excluded volume approach.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2015

A new quark-hadron hybrid equation of state for astrophysics - I. High-mass twin compact stars

Aims: We present a new microscopic hadron-quark hybrid equation of state model for astrophysical applications, from which compact hybrid star configurations are constructed. These are composed of a quark core and a hadronic shell with a first-order phase transition at their interface. The resulting mass-radius relations are in accordance with the latest astrophysical constraints. Methods: The quark matter description is based on a quantum chromodynamics (QCD) motivated chiral approach with higher-order quark interactions in the Dirac scalar and vector coupling channels. For hadronic matter we select a relativistic mean-field equation of state with density-dependent couplings. Since the nucleons are treated in the quasi-particle framework, an excluded volume correction has been included for the nuclear equation of state at suprasaturation density which takes into account the finite size of the nucleons. Results: These novel aspects, excluded volume in the hadronic phase and the higher-order repulsive interactions in the quark phase, lead to a strong first-order phase transition with large latent heat, i.e. the energy-density jump at the phase transition, which fulfils a criterion for a disconnected third-family branch of compact stars in the mass-radius relationship. These twin stars appear at high masses ($\sim$ 2 M$_\odot$) that are relevant for current observations of high-mass pulsars. Conclusions: This analysis offers a unique possibility by radius observations of compact stars to probe the QCD phase diagram at zero temperature and large chemical potential and even to support the existence of a critical point in the QCD phase diagram.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2015

Vector interaction enhanced bag model for astrophysical applications

For quark matter studies in astrophysics the thermodynamic bag model (tdBAG) has been widely used. Despite its success it fails to account for various phenomena expected from Quantum-Chromo-Dynamics (QCD). We suggest a straightforward extension of tdBAG in order to take the dynamical breaking of chiral symmetry and the influence of vector interactions explicitly into account. As for tdBAG the model mimics confinement in a phenomenological approach. It is based on an analysis of the Nambu--Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model at finite density. Furthermore, we demonstrate how NJL and bag models in this regime follow from the more general and QCD based framework of Dyson-Schwinger (DS) equations in medium by assuming a simple gluon contact interaction. Based on our simple and novel model, we construct quark hadron hybrid equations of state (EoS) and study systematically chiral and deconfinement phase transitions, the appearance of $s$-quarks and the role of vector interaction. We further study these aspects for matter in beta-equilibrium at zero temperature, with particular focus on the current ~2 solar masses maximum mass constraint for neutron stars. Our approach indicates that the currently only theoretical evidence for the hypothesis of stable strange matter is an artifact of tdBAG and results from neglecting the dynamical breaking of chiral symmetry.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2015

Revisiting the SN1987A gamma-ray limit on ultralight axion-like particles

We revise the bound from the supernova SN1987A on the coupling of ultralight axion-like particles (ALPs) to photons. In a core-collapse supernova, ALPs would be emitted via the Primakoff process, and eventually convert into gamma rays in the magnetic field of the Milky Way. The lack of a gamma-ray signal in the GRS instrument of the SMM satellite in coincidence with the observation of the neutrinos emitted from SN1987A therefore provides a strong bound on their coupling to photons. Due to the large uncertainty associated with the current bound, we revise this argument, based on state-of-the-art physical inputs both for the supernova models and for the Milky-Way magnetic field. Furthermore, we provide major amendments, such as the consistent treatment of nucleon-degeneracy effects and of the reduction of the nuclear masses in the hot and dense nuclear medium of the supernova. With these improvements, we obtain a new upper limit on the photon-ALP coupling: g_{aγ} < 5.3 x 10^{-12} GeV^{-1}, for m_a < 4.4 x 10^{-10} eV, and we also give its dependence at larger ALP masses. Moreover, we discuss how much the Fermi-LAT satellite experiment could improve this bound, should a close-enough supernova explode in the near future.

astro-ph.HE↗