Using high-resolution ultraviolet spectra of 16 low−z QSOs obtained with the E140M echelle mode of the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph, we study the physical conditions and statistics of O VI absorption in the intergalactic medium (IGM) at z < 0.5. We identify 51 intervening (zabs ≪ zQSO) O VI systems comprised of 77 individual components, and we find 14 “proximate” systems (zabs ≈ zQSO) c...

We measure the mean halo-mass of z ≃ 0.5 Mg II absorbers using the cross-correlation (over co-moving scales 0.05–13h Mpc) between 1806 Mg II quasar absorption systems and ∼ 250,000 Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs), both selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 3. The Mg II systems have λ2796 rest-frame equivalent widths W r & 0.3 Å. From the ratio of the Mg II–LRG cross-correlation t...

We studied the phenomenon of photothermal bleaching - a gradual reduction of contrast agent particles during repeated scans in photoacoustic microscopy. The dependence of the photothermal bleaching rate on the excitation pulse energy, pulse duration, and the absorber's size was determined while the laser focal diameter was held constant. Our results showed that, the dependence of the phototherm...

The need of a higher role solar energy within the mix in coming decades obliges collectors to increase their performance and reliability. It is demanded that absorbers, as key component thermal collectors, should be low cost with high efficiency for extended lifetimes under different kinds environments. Commercially, there are presently two main types solutions selective absorbers coatings temp...