No Arabic abstract
Innershell ionization of a $1s$ electron by either photons or electrons is important for X-ray photoionized objects such as active galactic nuclei and electron-ionized sources such as supernova remnants. Modeling and interpreting observations of such objects requires accurate predictions for the charge state distribution (CSD) which results as the $1s$-hole system stabilizes. Due to the complexity of the complete stabilization process, few modern calculations exist and the community currently relies on 40-year-old atomic data. Here, we present a combined experimental and theoretical study for innershell photoionization of neutral atomic nitrogen for photon energies of $403-475$~eV. Results are reported for the total ion yield cross section, for the branching ratios for formation of N$^+$, N$^{2+}$, and N$^{3+}$, and for the average charge state. We find significant differences when comparing to the data currently available to the astrophysics community. For example, while the branching ratio to N$^{2+}$ is somewhat reduced, that for N$^+$ is greatly increased, and that to N$^{3+}$, which was predicted not to be zero, grows to $approx 10%$ at the higher photon energies studied. This work demonstrates some of the shortcomings in the theoretical CSD data base for innershell ionization and points the way for the improvements needed to more reliably model the role of innershell ionization of cosmic plasmas.
Photoionization fronts play a dominant role in many astrophysical environments, but remain difficult to achieve in a laboratory experiment. Recent papers have suggested that experiments using a nitrogen medium held at ten atmospheres of pressure that is irradiated by a source with a radiation temperature of T$_{rm R}sim$ 100 eV can produce viable photoionization fronts. We present a suite of one-dimensional numerical simulations using the helios multi-material radiation hydrodynamics code that models these conditions and the formation of a photoionization front. We study the effects of varying the atomic kinetics and radiative transfer model on the hydrodynamics and ionization state of the nitrogen gas, finding that more sophisticated physics, in particular a multi-angle long characteristic radiative transfer model and a collisional-radiative atomics model, dramatically changes the atomic kinetic evolution of the gas. A photoionization front is identified by computing the ratios between the photoionization rate, the electron impact ionization rate, and the total recombination rate. We find that due to the increased electron temperatures found using more advanced physics that photoionization fronts are likely to form in our nominal model. We report results of several parameter studies. In one of these, the nitrogen pressure is fixed at ten atmospheres and varies the source radiation temperature while another fixes the temperature at 100 eV and varied the nitrogen pressure. Lower nitrogen pressures increase the likelihood of generating a photoionization front while varying the peak source temperature has little effect.
Absolute cross sections for the K-shell photoionization of C-like nitrogen ions were measured by employing the ion-photon merged-beam technique at the SOLEIL synchrotron radiation facility in Saint-Aubin, France. High-resolution spectroscopy with E/$Delta$E $approx$ 7,000 was achieved with the photon energy from 388 to 430 eV scanned with a band pass of 300 meV, and the 399.4 to 402 eV range with 60 meV. Experimental results are compared with theoretical predictions made from the multi-configuration Dirac-Fock (MCDF) and R-matrix methods. The interplay between experiment and theory enabled the identification and characterization of the strong 1s $rightarrow$ 2p resonances observed in the spectra.
The far-ultraviolet (FUV) spectrum of the Bright Star (B8 III) in 47 Tuc (NGC 104) shows a remarkable pattern: it is well fit by LTE models at wavelengths longer than Lyman beta, but at shorter wavelengths it is fainter than the models by a factor of two. A spectrum of this star obtained with the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) shows broad absorption troughs with sharp edges at 995 and 1010 A and a deep absorption feature at 1072 A, none of which are predicted by the models. We find that these features are caused by resonances in the photoionization cross sections of the first and second excited states of atomic nitrogen (2s$^2$ 2p$^3$ $^2$D$^0$ and $^2$P$^0$). Using cross sections from the Opacity Project, we can reproduce these features, but only if we use the cross sections at their full resolution, rather than the resonance-averaged cross sections usually employed to model stellar atmospheres. These resonances are strongest in stellar atmospheres with enhanced nitrogen and depleted carbon abundances, a pattern typical of post-AGB stars.
The goals of this study are 1) to test the best theoretical transition probabilities for Ca I (a relatively light alkaline earth spectrum) from a modern ab initio calculation using configuration interaction plus many body perturbation theory against the best modern experimental transition probabilities, and 2) to produce as accurate and comprehensive a line list of Ca I transition probabilities as is currently possible based on this comparison. We report new Ca I radiative lifetime measurements from a laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) experiment and new emission branching fraction measurements from a 0.5 m focal length grating spectrometer with a detector array. We combine these data for upper levels that have both a new lifetime and new branching fractions to report log(gf)s for two multiplets consisting of nine transitions. Detailed comparisons are made between theory and experiment, including the measurements reported herein and a selected set of previously published experimental transition probabilities. We find that modern theory compares favorably to experimental measurements in most instances where such data exist. A final list of 202 recommended transition probabilities is presented, which covers lines of Ca I with wavelengths ranging from 2200 - 10,000 Angstroms. These are mostly selected from theory, but are augmented with high quality experimental measurements from this work and from the literature. The recommended transition probabilities are used in a redetermination of the Ca abundance in the Sun and in the metal-poor star HD 84937.
We review recent work on the photoionization of atomic ions of astrophysical interest that has been carried out at the photon-ion merged-beams setup PIPE, a permanently installed end station at the XUV beamline P04 of the PETRAIII synchrotron radiation source operated by DESY in Hamburg, Germany. Our results on single and multiple L-shell photoionization of Fe+, Fe2+, and Fe3+ ions and on single and multiple K-shell photoionization of C-, C+, C4+, Ne+, and Si2+ ions are discussed in astrophysical contexts. Moreover, these experimental results bear witness of the fact, that the implementation of the photon-ion merged-beams method at one of the worlds brightest synchrotron light sources has led to a breakthrough for the experimental study of atomic inner-shell photoionization processes with ions.