2017/07/31 by Matthew Route · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Brightness #Computational astrophysics #Cyclotron #Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae #Maser #Monte Carlo method #Population #Pseudorandom number generator #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #astro-ph.IM #astro-ph.SR #physics.comp-ph #physics.data-an
paper · pdf · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aa7ede
published as 2017, ApJ, 845, 66 · Published in The Astrophysical Journal; 18 pages, 4 figures
openalex created_date 2017/07/14 · openalex publication_date 2017/08/10 · arxiv created 2017/08/15 · arxiv updated 2017/08/16 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Over a dozen ultracool dwarfs (UCDs), low-mass objects of spectral types ≥M7, are known to be sources of radio flares. These typically several-minutes-long radio bursts can be up to 100% circularly polarized and have high brightness temperatures, consistent with coherent emission via the electron cyclotron maser operating in ∼kG magnetic fields. Recently, the statistical properties of the bulk physical parameters that describe these UCDs have become adequately described to permit synthesis of the population of radio-flaring objects. For the first time, I construct a Monte Carlo simulator to model the population of these radio-flaring UCDs. This simulator is powered by Intel Secure Key (ISK)- a new processor technology that uses a local entropy source to improve random number generation that has heretofore been used to improve cryptography. The results from this simulator indicate that only ∼5% of radio-flaring UCDs within the local interstellar neighborhood (<25 pc away) have been discovered. I discuss a number of scenarios which may explain this radio-flaring fraction, and suggest that the observed behavior is likely a result of several factors. The performance of ISK as compared to other pseudorandom number generators is also evaluated, and its potential utility for other astrophysical codes briefly described.