Controlling quantum transport through a single molecule

We investigate multi-terminal quantum transport through single monocyclic aromatic annulene molecules, and their derivatives, using the nonequilibrium Green function approach in the self-consistent Hartree-Fock approximation. A new device concept, the Quantum Interference Effect Transistor (QuIET) is proposed, exploiting perfect destructive interference stemming from molecular symmetry, and controlling current flow by introducing decoherence and/or elastic scattering that break the symmetry. This approach overcomes the fundamental problems of power dissipation and environmental sensitivity that beset many nanoscale device proposals.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure

How to measure the spreading width for decay of superdeformed nuclei

A new expression for the branching ratio for the decay via the E1 process in the normal-deformed band of superdeformed nuclei is given within a simple two-level model. Using this expression, the spreading or tunneling width Gamma^downarrow for superdeformed decay can be expressed entirely in terms of experimentally known quantities. We show how to determine the tunneling matrix element V from the measured value of Gamma^downarrow and a statistical model of the energy levels. The accuracy of the two-level approximation is verified by considering the effects of the other normal-deformed states.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Quantum-ionic features in the absorption spectra of homonuclear diatomic molecules

Under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0 (CC-BY).We show that additional features can emerge in the linear absorption spectra of homonuclear diatomic molecules when the ions are described quantum mechanically. In particular, the widths and energies of the peaks in the optical spectra change with the initial configuration, mass, and charge of the molecule. We introduce a model that can describe these features and we provide a quantitative analysis of the resulting peak energy shifts and width broadenings as a function of the mass.We acknowledge financial support from the European Research Council Advanced Grant DYNamo (Grant No. ERC-2010-AdG-267374), Spanish Grants No. FIS2013-46159-C3-1-P and No. PIB2010US-00652, and Grupo Consolidado UPV/EHU del Gobierno Vasco (Grant No. IT578-13). A.C.-U. acknowledges financial support from the Departamento de Educacion, Universidades e Investigacion del Gobierno Vasco (Reference No. BFI-2011-26).Peer Reviewe

Optical Spectroscopy Of X-Ray Sources In The Extended Chandra Deep Field South

We present the first results of our optical spectroscopy program aimed to provide redshifts and identifications for the X-ray sources in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South. A total of 339 sources were targeted using the IMACS spectrograph at the Magellan telescopes and the VIMOS spectrograph at the VLT. We measured redshifts for 186 X-ray sources, including archival data and a literature search. We find that the active galactic nucleus (AGN) host galaxies have on average redder rest-frame optical colors than nonactive galaxies, and that they live mostly in the "green valley." The dependence of the fraction of AGNs that are obscured on both luminosity and redshift is confirmed at high significance and the observed AGN spatial density is compared with the expectations from existing luminosity functions. These AGNs show a significant difference in the mid-IR to X-ray flux ratio for obscured and unobscured AGNs, which can be explained by the effects of dust self-absorption on the former. This difference is larger for lower luminosity sources, which is consistent with the dust opening angle depending on AGN luminosity.National Aeronautics and Space Administration PF8-90055, NAS8-03060NSF AST0407295Spitzer JPL RSA1288440Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)National Academy of SciencesNASA/INTEGRAL NNG05GM79GAstronom

Galaxy Zoo Green Peas: discovery of a class of compact extremely star-forming galaxies

‘The definitive version is available at www3.interscience.wiley.com '. Copyright Royal Astronomical Society. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2009.15383.xWe investigate a class of rapidly growing emission line galaxies, known as 'Green Peas', first noted by volunteers in the Galaxy Zoo project because of their peculiar bright green colour and small size, unresolved in Sloan Digital Sky Survey imaging. Their appearance is due to very strong optical emission lines, namely [O iii]λ5007 Å, with an unusually large equivalent width of up to ∼1000 Å. We discuss a well-defined sample of 251 colour-selected objects, most of which are strongly star forming, although there are some active galactic nuclei interlopers including eight newly discovered narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies. The star-forming Peas are low-mass galaxies (M∼ 108.5–1010 M⊙) with high star formation rates (∼10 M⊙ yr−1) , low metallicities (log[O/H]+ 12 ∼ 8.7) and low reddening [ E(B−V) ≤ 0.25 ] and they reside in low-density environments. They have some of the highest specific star formation rates (up to ∼10−8 yr−1 ) seen in the local Universe, yielding doubling times for their stellar mass of hundreds of Myr. The few star-forming Peas with Hubble Space Telescope imaging appear to have several clumps of bright star-forming regions and low surface density features that may indicate recent or ongoing mergers. The Peas are similar in size, mass, luminosity and metallicity to luminous blue compact galaxies. They are also similar to high-redshift ultraviolet-luminous galaxies, e.g. Lyman-break galaxies and Lyα emitters, and therefore provide a local laboratory with which to study the extreme star formation processes that occur in high-redshift galaxies. Studying starbursting galaxies as a function of redshift is essential to understanding the build up of stellar mass in the Universe.Peer reviewe