ABSTRACT
Accretion dynamics in the formation of young stars is still a matter of debate because of limitations in observations and modeling. Through scaled laboratory experiments of collimated plasma accretion onto a solid in the presence of a magnetic field, we open a first window on this phenomenon by tracking, with spatial and temporal resolution, the dynamics of the system and simultaneously measuring multiband emissions. We observe in these experiments that matter, upon impact, is ejected laterally from the solid surface and then refocused by the magnetic field toward the incoming stream. This ejected matter forms a plasma shell that envelops the shocked core, reducing escaped x-ray emission. This finding demonstrates one possible structure reconciling current discrepancies between mass accretion rates derived from x-ray and optical observations, respectively.
ABSTRACT
We have measured the dynamic alignment properties of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) suspensions in pulsed high magnetic fields through linear dichroism spectroscopy. Millisecond-duration pulsed high magnetic fields up to 56 T as well as microsecond-duration pulsed ultrahigh magnetic fields up to 166 T were used. Because of their anisotropic magnetic properties, SWNTs align in an applied magnetic field, and because of their anisotropic optical properties, aligned SWNTs show linear dichroism. The characteristics of their overall alignment depend on several factors, including the viscosity and temperature of the suspending solvent, the degree of anisotropy of nanotube magnetic susceptibilities, the nanotube length distribution, the degree of nanotube bundling, and the strength and duration of the applied magnetic field. To explain our data, we have developed a theoretical model based on the Smoluchowski equation for rigid rods that accurately reproduces the salient features of the experimental data.
Subject(s)
Carbon/chemistry , Nanotechnology/methods , Nanotubes, Carbon/chemistry , Algorithms , Anisotropy , Electromagnetic Fields , Light , Microscopy, Atomic Force , Models, Statistical , Nanoparticles/chemistry , Nanotubes/chemistry , Rheology , Spectrum Analysis , Surface Properties , Time FactorsABSTRACT
We report that symmetry breaking by a magnetic field can drastically increase the photoluminescence quantum yield of single-walled carbon nanotubes, by as much as a factor of 6, at low temperatures. To explain this we have developed a theoretical model based on field-dependent exciton band structure and the interplay of Coulomb interactions and the Aharonov-Bohm effect. This conclusively explains our data as the first experimental observation of dark excitons 5-10 meV below the bright excitons.
