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The relationship between B-field orientation and density structure in molecular clouds is often assessed using the Histogram of Relative Orientations (HRO). We perform a plane-of-the-sky geometrical analysis of projected B-fields, by interpreting HROs in dense, spheroidal, prestellar and protostellar cores. We use James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) POL-2 850 $\mu$m polarisation maps and Herschel column density maps to study dense cores in the Ophiuchus molecular cloud complex. We construct two-dimensional core models, assuming Plummer column density profiles and modelling both linear and hourglass B-fields. We find high-aspect-ratio ellipsoidal cores produce strong HRO signals, as measured using the shape parameter $\xi$. Cores with linear fields oriented $< 45^{\circ}$ from their minor axis produce constant HROs with $-1 < \xi < 0$, indicating fields are preferentially parallel to column density gradients. Fields parallel to the core minor axis produce the most negative value of $\xi$. For low-aspect-ratio cores, $\xi \approx 0$ for linear fields. Hourglass fields produce a minimum in $\xi$ at intermediate densities in all cases, converging to the minor-axis-parallel linear field value at high and low column densities. We create HROs for six dense cores in Ophiuchus. $\rho$ Oph A and IRAS 16293 have high aspect ratios and preferentially negative HROs, consistent with moderately strong-field behaviour. $\rho$ Oph C, L1689A and L1689B have low aspect ratios, and $\xi \approx 0$. $\rho$ Oph B is too complex to be modelled using a simple spheroidal field geometry. We see no signature of hourglass fields, agreeing with previous findings that dense cores generally exhibit linear fields on these size scales., Comment: 16 pages, 19 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRAS

We present 850 $\mu$m polarization observations of the IC 348 star-forming region in the Perseus molecular cloud as part of the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observation (BISTRO) survey. We study the magnetic properties of two cores (HH 211 MMS and IC 348 MMS) and a filamentary structure of IC 348. We find that the overall field tends to be more perpendicular than parallel to the filamentary structure of the region. The polarization fraction decreases with intensity, and we estimate the trend by power-law and the mean of the Rice distribution fittings. The power indices for the cores are much smaller than 1, indicative of possible grain growth to micron size in the cores. We also measure the magnetic field strengths of the two cores and the filamentary area separately by applying the Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method and its alternative version for compressed medium. The estimated mass-to-flux ratios are 0.45-2.20 and 0.63-2.76 for HH 211 MMS and IC 348 MMS, respectively, while the ratios for the filament is 0.33-1.50. This result may suggest that the transition from subcritical to supercritical conditions occurs at the core scale ($\sim$ 0.05 pc) in the region. In addition, we study the energy balance of the cores and find that the relative strength of turbulence to the magnetic field tends to be stronger for IC 348 MMS than HH 211 MMS. The result could potentially explain the different configurations inside the two cores: a single protostellar system in HH 211 MMS and multiple protostars in IC 348 MMS., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 21 pages, 12 figures

The near-infrared (NIR) emission of the youngest protostars still needs to be characterized to better understand the evolution of their accretion and ejection activity. We analyze James Webb Space Telescope NIRSpec 1.7 -- 5.3 $\mu$m observations of two deeply embedded sources in the S68N protostellar core in Serpens. The North Central (NC) source exhibits a highly obscured spectrum (A_K ~ 4.8 mag) that is modeled with a pre-main-sequence photosphere and a hot disk component. The photospheric parameters are consistent with a young, low-mass photosphere, as suggested by the low surface gravity, log g of 1.94 $\pm$ 0.15 cm s$^{-2}$. The hot disk suggests that accretion onto the central protostellar embryo is ongoing, although prototypical accretion-tracing emission lines HI are not detected. The South Central (SC) source, which is even more embedded (A_K ~ 8 mag; no continuum is detected shortward of 3.6 $\mu$m) appears to be driving the large-scale S68N protostellar outflow, and launches a collimated hot molecular jet detected in \Ht and CO ro-vibrational lines. Shock modeling of the \Ht (ro)vibrational lines establishes that fast $C$-type shocks ($\geq$ 30 km s$^{-1}$), with high pre-shock density ($\geq$ $10^7$ cm$^{-3}$), and strong magnetic field (b ~ 3--10, where $B = b\,\times\,\sqrt{\textrm{n}_{\textrm{H}} (\textrm{cm}^{-3})}\,\mu\textrm{G}$) best match the data. The bright CO fundamental line forest suggests energetic excitation, with the contribution of non-LTE effects, ie irradiation pumping. Detected OH and CH$^{+}$ ro-vibrational lines support this hypothesis. These two Class 0 protostars seem to be in very young evolutionary stages and still have to acquire the bulk of their final stellar masses. These results demonstrate that JWST enables unprecedented diagnostics of these first stages of the protostellar evolutionary phase.

We report the discovery of jets emanating from pre-main-sequence objects exclusively at mid-infrared wavelengths, enabled by the superb sensitivity of JWST's Mid-InfraRed Medium-Resolution Spectrometer (MIRI MRS) instrument. These jets are observed only in lines of [NiII], [FeII], [ArII], and [NeII]. The H$_2$ emission, imaged in eight distinct transitions, has a completely different morphology, exhibiting a wide-angled, biconical shape, symmetrically distributed about the jet axes. Synergistic high-resolution Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations resolve a pair of side-by-side edge-on accretion disks lying at the origin of the twin mid-infrared jets. Assuming coevality of the components of the young multiple system under investigation, the system age is at least (2 $-$ 2.5) $\times$ 10$^6$ yr, despite the discrepantly younger age inferred from the spectral energy distribution of the combined edge-on disk sources. The later system evolutionary stage is corroborated by ALMA observations of CO(2$-$1), $^{13}$CO(2$-1$), and C$^{18}$O(2$-$1), which show no traces of molecular outflows or remnant cavity walls. Consequently, the observed H$_2$ structures must have their origins in wide-angled disk winds, in the absence of any ambient, swept-up gas. In the context of recent studies of protostars, we propose an outflow evolutionary scenario in which the molecular gas component dominates in the youngest sources, whereas the fast, ionized jets dominate in the oldest sources, as is the case for the twin jets discovered in the WL 20 system., Comment: 25 pages, 19 figures; Accepted for publication in ApJ

Mapping stars and gas in nearby galaxies is fundamental for understanding their growth and the impact of their environment. This issue is addressed by comparing the stellar "edges" of galaxies $D_{\rm stellar}$, defined as the outermost diameter where in situ star formation significantly drops, with the gaseous distribution parameterized by the neutral atomic hydrogen diameter measured at 1 $M_{sun}$/pc$^2$, $D_{HI}$. By sampling a broad HI mass range $10^5 M_{sun} < M_{HI} < 10^{11} M_{sun}$, we find several dwarf galaxies with $M_{HI} < 10^9 M_{sun}$ from the field and Fornax Cluster which are distinguished by $D_{\rm stellar} >> D_{HI}$. For the cluster dwarfs, the average HI surface density near $D_{\rm stellar}$ is $\sim$0.3 $M_{sun}$/pc$^2$, reflecting the impact of quenching and outside-in gas removal from ram pressure and tidal interactions. In comparison, $D_{\rm stellar}/D_{HI}$ ranges between 0.5-2 in dwarf field galaxies, consistent with the expectations from stellar feedback. Only more massive disk galaxies in the field can thus be characterized by the common assumption that $D_{\rm stellar} \lesssim D_{HI}$. We discover a break in the $D_{\rm stellar}-M_{\rm stellar}$ relation at $m_{break} \sim 4\times10^8 M_{sun}$ that potentially differentiates the low mass regime where the influence of stellar feedback and environmental processes more prominently regulates the sizes of nearby galaxies. Our results highlight the importance of combining deep optical and HI imaging for understanding galaxy evolution., Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, 2 tables. Key results in Figs. 4, 6, 7 and 8. Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal

Magnetic fields play an important role in shaping and regulating star formation in molecular clouds. Here, we present one of the first studies examining the relative orientations between magnetic ($B$) fields and the dust emission, gas column density, and velocity centroid gradients on the 0.02 pc (core) scales, using the BISTRO and VLA+GBT observations of the NGC 1333 star-forming clump. We quantified these relative orientations using the Project Rayleigh Statistic (PRS) and found preferential global parallel alignment between the $B$ field and dust emission gradients, consistent with large-scale studies with Planck. No preferential global alignments, however, are found between the $B$ field and velocity gradients. Local PRS calculated for subregions defined by either dust emission or velocity coherence further revealed that the $B$ field does not preferentially align with dust emission gradients in most emission-defined subregions, except in the warmest ones. The velocity-coherent structures, on the other hand, also showed no preferred $B$ field alignments with velocity gradients, except for one potentially bubble-compressed region. Interestingly, the velocity gradient magnitude in NGC 1333 ubiquitously features prominent ripple-like structures that are indicative of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) waves. Finally, we found $B$ field alignments with the emission gradients to correlate with dust temperature and anticorrelate with column density, velocity dispersion, and velocity gradient magnitude. The latter two anticorrelations suggest that alignments between gas structures and $B$ fields can be perturbed by physical processes that elevate velocity dispersion and velocity gradients, such as infall, accretions, and MHD waves., Comment: Accepted to the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Main Journal

Within the domain of optical frequency comb systems operating in the mid-infrared, extensive exploration has been undertaken regarding critical parameters such as stabilization, coherence, or spectral tunability. Despite this, certain essential parameters remain inadequately addressed, particularly concerning the light source prerequisites for advanced spectroscopy techniques operating in the 3-5 ${\mu}$m spectral region. Specifically, the necessity for high simultaneous stability of average power, spectral shape, and temporal properties, alongside requirements for excellent beam quality and high powers of several Watts, emerges for applications like cavity-enhanced Doppler-free saturation spectroscopy. Existing systems fall short of meeting these rigorous criteria. This study delves into the metrology aspects of an optical parametric oscillator system, with a particular emphasis on its suitability for powerhungry metrology applications. Notably, the highest average power reported in the 3-5 ${\mu}$m region, reaching 10.3W for the idler output at 3.1 ${\mu}$m, is achieved. Additionally, new aspects, like the analysis of idler phase noise and beam quality and the onset of higher order modes are discussed. These findings represent a significant advancement towards the realization of highly-stable, metrologygrade frequency combs in the mid-infrared, thereby facilitating precision spectroscopy techniques previously constrained by light source average powers and quality limitations.

We present 870 um polarimetric observations toward 61 protostars in the Orion molecular clouds, with ~400 au (1") resolution using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. We successfully detect dust polarization and outflow emission in 56 protostars, in 16 of them the polarization is likely produced by self-scattering. Self-scattering signatures are seen in several Class 0 sources, suggesting that grain growth appears to be significant in disks at earlier protostellar phases. For the rest of the protostars, the dust polarization traces the magnetic field, whose morphology can be approximately classified into three categories: standard-hourglass, rotated-hourglass (with its axis perpendicular to outflow), and spiral-like morphology. 40.0% (+-3.0%) of the protostars exhibit a mean magnetic field direction approximately perpendicular to the outflow on several 100--1000 au scales. However, in the remaining sample, this relative orientation appears to be random, probably due to the complex set of morphologies observed. Furthermore, we classify the protostars into three types based on the C17O (3--2) velocity envelope's gradient: perpendicular to outflow, non-perpendicular to outflow, and unresolved gradient (<1.0~km/s/arcsec). In protostars with a velocity gradient perpendicular to outflow, the magnetic field lines are preferentially perpendicular to outflow, most of them exhibit a rotated hourglass morphology, suggesting that the magnetic field has been overwhelmed by gravity and angular momentum. Spiral-like magnetic fields are associated with envelopes having large velocity gradients, indicating that the rotation motions are strong enough to twist the field lines. All of the protostars with a standard-hourglass field morphology show no significant velocity gradient due to the strong magnetic braking., Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures (16 pages and 7 figures for the supplementary materials) Accepted for publication on ApJ Letters

Accretion and ejection sets the outcome of the star and planet formation process. The mid-infrared wavelength range offers key tracers of those processes that were difficult to detect and spatially resolve in protostars until now. We aim to characterize the interplay between accretion and ejection in the low-mass Class I protobinary system TMC1, comprising two young stellar objects: TMC1-W and TMC1-E with 85 au separation. With the {\it James Webb} Space Telescope (JWST) - Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) observations in 5 - 28 $\mu$m range, we measure intensities of emission lines of H$_2$, atoms and ions, e.g., [Fe II] and [Ne II], and HI recombination lines. We detect H$_2$ outflow coming from TMC1-E, with no significant H$_2$ emission from TMC1-W. The H$_2$ emission from TMC1-E outflow appears narrow and extends to wider opening angles with decreasing E$_{up}$ from S(8) to S(1) rotational transitions, indicating a disk wind origin. The outflow from TMC1-E protostar shows spatially extended emission lines of [Ne II], [Ne III], [Ar II], and [Ar III], with their line ratios consistent with UV radiation as a source of ionization. With ALMA, we detect accretion streamer infalling from $>$ 1000 au scales onto the TMC1-E component. TMC1-W protostar powers a collimated jet, detected with [Fe II] and [Ni II] consistent with energetic flow. A much weaker ionized jet is observed from TMC1-E. TMC1-W is associated with strong emission from hydrogen recombination lines, tracing the accretion onto the young star. Observations of a binary Class I protostellar system show that the two processes are clearly intertwined, with accretion from the envelope onto the disk influencing a wide-angle wind ejected on disk scales, while accretion from the protostellar disk onto the protostar is associated with the source launching a collimated high-velocity jet within the innermost regions of the disk., Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics

Sun-like stars are thought to accrete most of their final mass during the protostellar phase, during which the stellar embryo is surrounded by an infalling dense envelope. We present an analysis of 26 $K$-band spectra of Class 0 protostars, which are the youngest protostars. 18 of these are new observations made with the Keck MOSFIRE instrument. HI Br$\gamma$ , several H$_2$, and CO $\Delta\,v\;=\;2$ features are detected and analyzed. We detect Br$\gamma$ emission in 62%, CO overtone emission in 50%, and H$_2$ emission in 90% of sources. The HI and CO emission is associated with accretion while the H$_2$ lines are consistent with shock excitation indicating jets/outflows. Six objects exhibit photospheric absorption features, with almost no outflow activity, and no detection of the accretion-related Br$\gamma$ emission line. Comparing these results with archival sample of Class I $K$-band spectra, we find that the CO and Br$\gamma$ emission lines are systematically more luminous in Class 0s, suggesting the accretion is on average more vigorous in the Class 0 phase. Typically associated with the heated inner accretion disk, the much higher detection rate of CO overtone emission in Class 0s indicate also that episodes of high accretion activity are more frequent in Class 0 systems. The kinematics of the Class 0 CO overtone emission suggest either an accretion-heated inner disk, or material directly infalling onto the central region. This could point toward an accretion mechanism of different nature in Class 0 systems than the typical picture of magnetospheric accretion.

We report 850 $\mu$m continuum polarization observations toward the filamentary high-mass star-forming region NGC 2264, taken as part of the B-fields In STar forming Regions Observations (BISTRO) large program on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). These data reveal a well-structured non-uniform magnetic field in the NGC 2264C and 2264D regions with a prevailing orientation around 30 deg from north to east. Field strengths estimates and a virial analysis for the major clumps indicate that NGC 2264C is globally dominated by gravity while in 2264D magnetic, gravitational, and kinetic energies are roughly balanced. We present an analysis scheme that utilizes the locally resolved magnetic field structures, together with the locally measured gravitational vector field and the extracted filamentary network. From this, we infer statistical trends showing that this network consists of two main groups of filaments oriented approximately perpendicular to one another. Additionally, gravity shows one dominating converging direction that is roughly perpendicular to one of the filament orientations, which is suggestive of mass accretion along this direction. Beyond these statistical trends, we identify two types of filaments. The type-I filament is perpendicular to the magnetic field with local gravity transitioning from parallel to perpendicular to the magnetic field from the outside to the filament ridge. The type-II filament is parallel to the magnetic field and local gravity. We interpret these two types of filaments as originating from the competition between radial collapsing, driven by filament self-gravity, and the longitudinal collapsing, driven by the region's global gravity., Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. 43 pages, 32 figures, and 4 tables (including Appendix)

Frequency combs are powerful tools for many applications and high performances are achieved by stabilizing these lasers. For operation in the mid-infrared, quantum cascade lasers (QCL) are ideal candidates as they present numerous advantages. However, stabilized QCL-combs lack of a detailed characterization of their noise properties due to the sensitivity limits of current analyzing techniques. To overcome these challenges, we developed what we believe to be the first tightly locked dual QCL-comb system. Its use is twofold. First, phase noise analysis of the dual-comb signal shows residual phase noise below 600 mrad for all comb lines, and we characterize the comb coherence as well as the performances of the repetition frequency locking mechanism. Second, we demonstrate coherent averaging with a $7 \times 10^5$ Hz$^{1/2}$ figure-of-merit system, which is compatible with high precision spectroscopy.

We present observations of polarized dust emission at 850 $\mu$m from the L43 molecular cloud which sits in the Ophiuchus cloud complex. The data were taken using SCUBA-2/POL-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope as a part of the BISTRO large program. L43 is a dense ($N_{\rm H_2}\sim 10^{22}$-10$^{23}$ cm$^{-2}$) complex molecular cloud with a submillimetre-bright starless core and two protostellar sources. There appears to be an evolutionary gradient along the isolated filament that L43 is embedded within, with the most evolved source closest to the Sco OB2 association. One of the protostars drives a CO outflow that has created a cavity to the southeast. We see a magnetic field that appears to be aligned with the cavity walls of the outflow, suggesting interaction with the outflow. We also find a magnetic field strength of up to $\sim$160$\pm$30 $\mu$G in the main starless core and up to $\sim$90$\pm$40 $\mu$G in the more diffuse, extended region. These field strengths give magnetically super- and sub-critical values respectively and both are found to be roughly trans-Alfv\'enic. We also present a new method of data reduction for these denser but fainter objects like starless cores., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 23 pages, 9 figures (7 main text, 2 appendix)

The linear polarization of thermal dust emission provides a powerful tool to probe interstellar and circumstellar magnetic fields, because aspherical grains tend to align themselves with magnetic field lines. While the Radiative Alignment Torque (RAT) mechanism provides a theoretical framework to this phenomenon, some aspects of this alignment mechanism still need to be quantitatively tested. One such aspect is the possibility that the reference alignment direction changes from the magnetic field ("B-RAT") to the radiation field k-vector ("k-RAT") in areas of strong radiation fields. We investigate this transition toward the Orion Bar PDR, using multi-wavelength SOFIA HAWC+ dust polarization observations. The polarization angle maps show that the radiation field direction is on average not the preferred grain alignment axis. We constrain the grain sizes for which the transition from B-RAT to k-RAT occur in the Orion Bar (grains > 0.1 {\mu}m toward the most irradiated locations), and explore the radiatively driven rotational disruption that may take place in the high-radiation environment of the Bar for large grains. While the grains susceptible to rotational disruption should be in supra-thermal rotation and aligned with the magnetic field, k-RAT aligned grains would rotate at thermal velocities. We find that the grain size at which the alignment shifts from B-RAT to k-RAT corresponds to grains too large to survive the rotational disruption. Therefore, we expect a large fraction of grains to be aligned at supra-thermal rotation with the magnetic field, and potentially be subject to rotational disruption depending on their tensile strength.

We demonstrate the use of a low power near-infrared laser illuminating the front facet of a quantum cascade laser (QCL) as an optical actuator for the coherent control of a mid-infrared frequency comb. We show that by appropriate current control of the QCL comb and intensity modulation of the near-infrared laser, a tight phase lock of a comb line to a distributed feedback laser is possible with 2 MHz of locking bandwidth and 200 mrad of residual phase noise. A characterization of the whole scheme is provided showing the limits of the electrical actuation which we bypassed using the optical actuation. Both comb degrees of freedom can be locked by performing electrical injection locking of the repetition rate in parallel. However, we show that the QCL acts as a fast near-infrared light detector such that injection locking can also be achieved through modulation of the near-infrared light. These results on the coherent control of a quantum cascade laser frequency comb are particularly interesting for coherent averaging in dual-comb spectroscopy and for mid-infrared frequency comb applications requiring high spectral purity., Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures; edited author list

The polarized dust emission observed in Class 0 protostellar cores at high angular resolution with ALMA has raised several concerns about the grain alignment conditions in these regions. We aim to study the role of the radiation field on the grain alignment mechanisms occurring in the interior (<1000 au) of Class 0 protostars. We produce synthetic observations of the polarized dust emission from a MHD model of protostellar formation, using the POLARIS dust radiative transfer tool, which includes dust alignment with Radiative Torques Alignment (RATs). We test how the polarized dust emission from the model core depends on the irradiation conditions in the protostellar envelope, by varying the radiation due to accretion luminosity propagating from the central protostellar embryo throughout the envelope. The level of grain alignment efficiency obtained in the radiative transfer models is then compared to (sub-) millimeter ALMA dust polarization observations of Class 0 protostars. Our radiative transfer calculations have a central irradiation that reproduces the protostellar luminosities typically observed towards low- to intermediate-mass protostars, as well as super-paramagnetic grains, and grains >10 micron, which are required to bring the dust grain alignment efficiencies of the synthetic observations up to observed levels. Our radiative transfer calculations show that irradiation plays an important role in the mechanisms that dictate the size range of aligned grains in Class 0 protostars. Regions of the envelope that are preferentially irradiated harbor strong polarized dust emission but can be affected by the rotational disruption of dust grains. Episodes of high luminosity could affect grain alignment and trigger grain disruption mechanisms. [abridged]

We present BISTRO Survey 850 {\mu}m dust emission polarisation observations of the L1495A-B10 region of the Taurus molecular cloud, taken at the JCMT. We observe a roughly triangular network of dense filaments. We detect 9 of the dense starless cores embedded within these filaments in polarisation, finding that the plane-of-sky orientation of the core-scale magnetic field lies roughly perpendicular to the filaments in almost all cases. We also find that the large-scale magnetic field orientation measured by Planck is not correlated with any of the core or filament structures, except in the case of the lowest-density core. We propose a scenario for early prestellar evolution that is both an extension to, and consistent with, previous models, introducing an additional evolutionary transitional stage between field-dominated and matter-dominated evolution, observed here for the first time. In this scenario, the cloud collapses first to a sheet-like structure. Uniquely, we appear to be seeing this sheet almost face-on. The sheet fragments into filaments, which in turn form cores. However, the material must reach a certain critical density before the evolution changes from being field-dominated to being matter-dominated. We measure the sheet surface density and the magnetic field strength at that transition for the first time and show consistency with an analytical prediction that had previously gone untested for over 50 years (Mestel 1965)., Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures. ApJ accepted

High angular resolution observations of Class 0 protostars have produced detailed maps of the polarized dust emission in the envelopes of these young embedded objects. Interestingly, the improved sensitivity brought by ALMA has revealed wide dynamic ranges of polarization fractions, with specific locations harboring surprisingly large amounts of polarized dust emission. Our aim is to characterize the grain alignment conditions and dust properties responsible for the observed polarized dust emission in the inner envelopes (~1000 au) of Class 0 protostars. We analyzed the polarized dust emission maps obtained with ALMA and compared them to molecular line emission maps of specific molecular tracers, mainly CCH, which allowed us to probe one of the key components in dust grain alignment theories: the irradiation field. We show that CCH peaks toward outflow cavity walls, where the polarized dust emission is also enhanced. Our analysis provides a tentative correlation between the morphology of the polarized intensity and CCH emission, suggesting that the radiation field impinging on the cavity walls favors both the grain alignment and the warm carbon chain chemistry in these regions. We propose that shocks happening along outflow cavity walls could potentially represent an additional source of photons contributing to dust grain alignment. However, some parts of the cores, such as the equatorial planes, exhibit enhanced polarized flux, although no radiation driven chemistry is observed, for example where radiative torques are theoretically not efficient enough. This suggests that additional physical conditions, such as source geometry and dust grain evolution, may play a role in grain alignment.

We study the HII regions associated with the NGC 6334 molecular cloud observed in the sub-millimeter and taken as part of the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) Survey. In particular, we investigate the polarization patterns and magnetic field morphologies associated with these HII regions. Through polarization pattern and pressure calculation analyses, several of these bubbles indicate that the gas and magnetic field lines have been pushed away from the bubble, toward an almost tangential (to the bubble) magnetic field morphology. In the densest part of NGC 6334, where the magnetic field morphology is similar to an hourglass, the polarization observations do not exhibit observable impact from HII regions. We detect two nested radial polarization patterns in a bubble to the south of NGC 6334 that correspond to the previously observed bipolar structure in this bubble. Finally, using the results of this study, we present steps (incorporating computer vision; circular Hough Transform) that can be used in future studies to identify bubbles that have physically impacted magnetic field lines., Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal (ApJ)

We present 850 $\mu$m dust polarization observations of the massive DR21 filament from the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) survey, using the POL-2 polarimeter and the SCUBA-2 camera on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. We detect ordered magnetic fields perpendicular to the parsec-scale ridge of the DR21 main filament. In the sub-filaments, the magnetic fields are mainly parallel to the filamentary structures and smoothly connect to the magnetic fields of the main filament. We compare the POL-2 and Planck dust polarization observations to study the magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament on 0.1--10 pc scales. The magnetic fields revealed in the Planck data are well aligned with those of the POL-2 data, indicating a smooth variation of magnetic fields from large to small scales. The plane-of-sky magnetic field strengths derived from angular dispersion functions of dust polarization are 0.6--1.0 mG in the DR21 filament and $\sim$ 0.1 mG in the surrounding ambient gas. The mass-to-flux ratios are found to be magnetically supercritical in the filament and slightly subcritical to nearly critical in the ambient gas. The alignment between column density structures and magnetic fields changes from random alignment in the low-density ambient gas probed by Planck to mostly perpendicular in the high-density main filament probed by JCMT. The magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament are in agreement with MHD simulations of a strongly magnetized medium, suggesting that magnetic fields play an important role in shaping the DR21 main filament and sub-filaments., Comment: 26 pages, 13 figures, ApJ accepted

We present and analyze observations of polarized dust emission at 850 $\mu$m towards the central 1 pc $\times$ 1 pc hub-filament structure of Monoceros R2 (Mon R2). The data are obtained with SCUBA-2/POL-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) as part of the BISTRO (B-fields in Star-forming Region Observations) survey. The orientations of the magnetic field follow the spiral structure of Mon R2, which are well-described by an axisymmetric magnetic field model. We estimate the turbulent component of the magnetic field using the angle difference between our observations and the best-fit model of the underlying large-scale mean magnetic field. This estimate is used to calculate the magnetic field strength using the Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method, for which we also obtain the distribution of volume density and velocity dispersion using a column density map derived from $Herschel$ data and the C$^{18}$O ($J$ = 3-2) data taken with HARP on the JCMT, respectively. We make maps of magnetic field strengths and mass-to-flux ratios, finding that magnetic field strengths vary from 0.02 to 3.64 mG with a mean value of 1.0 $\pm$ 0.06 mG, and the mean critical mass-to-flux ratio is 0.47 $\pm$ 0.02. Additionally, the mean Alfv\'en Mach number is 0.35 $\pm$ 0.01. This suggests that in Mon R2, magnetic fields provide resistance against large-scale gravitational collapse, and magnetic pressure exceeds turbulent pressure. We also investigate the properties of each filament in Mon R2. Most of the filaments are aligned along the magnetic field direction and are magnetically sub-critical., Comment: This paper is accepted to the ApJ

Quantum cascade laser (QCL) frequency combs have revolutionized mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy by their high brightness and fast temporal resolution, and are a promising technology for fully-integrated and cost-effective sensors. As for other integrated comb sources such as micro-combs and interband cascade laser, QCLs have a comb spacing of several GHz, which is adequate for measurements of wide absorbing structures, typically found in liquid or solid samples. However, high-resolution gas-phase spectra require spectral interleaving and frequency calibration. We developed a frequency calibration scheme for fast interleaved measurements with combs featuring multi-GHz spacing. We then demonstrate dual-comb spectroscopy with 600 kHz accuracy in single-shot 54-ms measurements over 40 cm$^{-1}$ using two QCLs at 7.8 $\mathrm{\mu}$m. This work is an important contribution towards fast fingerprinting of complex molecular mixtures in the MIR. Moreover, the calibration scheme could be used with micro-combs for spectroscopy and ranging, both in comb-swept and comb-calibrated setups., Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, 1 table

We present 870 $\mu$m ALMA polarization observations of thermal dust emission from the iconic, edge-on debris disk $\beta$ Pic. While the spatially resolved map does not exhibit detectable polarized dust emission, we detect polarization at the $\sim$3$\sigma$ level when averaging the emission across the entire disk. The corresponding polarization fraction is $P_\textrm{frac}$ = $0.51 \pm 0.19$%. The polarization position angle $\chi$ is aligned with the minor axis of the disk, as expected from models of dust grains aligned via radiative alignment torques (RAT) with respect to a toroidal magnetic field ($B$-RAT) or with respect to the anisotropy in the radiation field ($k$-RAT). When averaging the polarized emission across the outer versus inner thirds of the disk, we find that the polarization arises primarily from the SW third. We perform synthetic observations assuming grain alignment via both $k$-RAT and $B$-RAT. Both models produce polarization fractions close to our observed value when the emission is averaged across the entire disk. When we average the models in the inner versus outer thirds of the disk, we find that $k$-RAT is the likely mechanism producing the polarized emission in $\beta$ Pic. A comparison of timescales relevant to grain alignment also yields the same conclusion. For dust grains with realistic aspect ratios (i.e., $s > 1.1$), our models imply low grain-alignment efficiencies., Comment: 22 pages, 13 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Materials accessible in the online version of the ApJ article include the FITS files used to make the ALMA images

We present 850 $\mu$m polarimetric observations toward the Serpens Main molecular cloud obtained using the POL-2 polarimeter on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) as part of the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) survey. These observations probe the magnetic field morphology of the Serpens Main molecular cloud on about 6000 au scales, which consists of cores and six filaments with different physical properties such as density and star formation activity. Using the histogram of relative orientation (HRO) technique, we find that magnetic fields are parallel to filaments in less dense filamentary structures where $N_{H_2} < 0.93\times 10^{22}$ cm$^{-2}$ (magnetic fields perpendicular to density gradients), while being perpendicular to filaments (magnetic fields parallel to density gradients) in dense filamentary structures with star formation activity. Moreover, applying the HRO technique to denser core regions, we find that magnetic field orientations change to become perpendicular to density gradients again at $N_{H_2} \approx 4.6 \times 10^{22}$ cm$^{-2}$. This can be interpreted as a signature of core formation. At $N_{H_2} \approx 16 \times 10^{22}$ cm$^{-2}$ magnetic fields change back to being parallel to density gradients once again, which can be understood to be due to magnetic fields being dragged in by infalling material. In addition, we estimate the magnetic field strengths of the filaments ($B_{POS} = 60-300~\mu$G)) using the Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method and discuss whether the filaments are gravitationally unstable based on magnetic field and turbulence energy densities., Comment: 18 pages, accepted for publication in ApJ

We investigate the internal 3D magnetic structure of dense interstellar filaments within NGC 1333 using polarization data at $850 \mu\mathrm{m}$ from the $B$-fields In STar-forming Region Observations survey at the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. Theoretical models predict that the magnetic field lines in a filament will tend to be dragged radially inward (i.e., pinched) toward the central axis due to the filament's self-gravity. We study the cross-sectional profiles of the total intensity ($I$) and polarized intensity (PI) of dust emission in four segments of filaments unaffected by local star formation that are expected to retain a pristine magnetic field structure. We find that the filaments' FWHM in PI are not the same as those in $I$, with two segments being appreciably narrower in PI (FWHM ratio $\simeq 0.7-0.8$) and one segment being wider (FWHM ratio $\simeq 1.3$). The filament profiles of the polarization fraction ($P$) do not show a minimum at the spine of the filament, which is not in line with an anticorrelation between $P$ and $I$ normally seen in molecular clouds and protostellar cores. Dust grain alignment variation with density cannot reproduce the observed $P$ distribution. We demonstrate numerically that the $I$ and PI cross-sectional profiles of filaments in magnetohydrostatic equilibrium will have differing relative widths depending on the viewing angle. The observed variations of FWHM ratios in NGC 1333 are therefore consistent with models of pinched magnetic field structures inside filaments, and especially if they are magnetically near-critical or supercritical., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJL

Kerr-effect-induced changes of the polarization state of light are well known in pulsed laser systems. An example is nonlinear polarization rotation, which is critical to the operation of many types of mode-locked lasers. Here, we demonstrate that the Kerr effect in a high-finesse Fabry-P\'erot resonator can be utilized to control the polarization of a continuous wave laser. It is shown that a linearly-polarized input field is converted into a left- or right-circularly-polarized field, controlled via the optical power. The observations are explained by Kerr-nonlinearity induced symmetry breaking, which splits the resonance frequencies of degenerate modes with opposite polarization handedness in an otherwise symmetric resonator. The all-optical polarization control is demonstrated at threshold powers down to 7 mW. The physical principle of such Kerr effect-based polarization controllers is generic to high-Q Kerr-nonlinear resonators and could also be implemented in photonic integrated circuits. Beyond polarization control, the spontaneous symmetry breaking of polarization states could be used for polarization filters or highly sensitive polarization sensors when operated close to the symmetry-breaking point.

We present the first linear-polarization mosaicked observations performed by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). We mapped the Orion-KLeinmann-Low (Orion-KL) nebula using super-sampled mosaics at 3.1 and 1.3 mm as part of the ALMA Extension and Optimization of Capabilities (EOC) program. We derive the magnetic field morphology in the plane of the sky by assuming that dust grains are aligned with respect to the ambient magnetic field. At the center of the nebula, we find a quasi-radial magnetic field pattern that is aligned with the explosive CO outflow up to a radius of approximately 12 arc-seconds (~ 5000 au), beyond which the pattern smoothly transitions into a quasi-hourglass shape resembling the morphology seen in larger-scale observations by the James-Clerk-Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). We estimate an average magnetic field strength $\langle B\rangle = 9.4$ mG and a total magnetic energy of 2 x 10^45 ergs, which is three orders of magnitude less than the energy in the explosive CO outflow. We conclude that the field has been overwhelmed by the outflow and that a shock is propagating from the center of the nebula, where the shock front is seen in the magnetic field lines at a distance of ~ 5000 au from the explosion center., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ

We characterize the accuracy of linear-polarization mosaics made using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). First, we observed the bright, highly linearly polarized blazar 3C 279 at Bands 3, 5, 6, and 7 (3 mm, 1.6 mm, 1.3 mm, and 0.87 mm, respectively). At each band, we measured the blazar's polarization on an 11$\times$11 grid of evenly-spaced offset pointings covering the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) area of the primary beam. After applying calibration solutions derived from the on-axis pointing of 3C 279 to all of the on- and off-axis data, we find that the residual polarization errors across the primary beam are similar at all frequencies: the residual errors in linear polarization fraction $P_\textrm{frac}$ and polarization position angle $\chi$ are $\lesssim$0.001 ($\lesssim$0.1% of Stokes $I$) and $\lesssim$1$^\circ$ near the center of the primary beam; the errors increase to $\sim$0.003-0.005 ($\sim$0.3-0.5% of Stokes $I$) and $\sim$1-5$^\circ$ near the FWHM as a result of the asymmetric beam patterns in the (linearly polarized) $Q$ and $U$ maps. We see the expected double-lobed "beam squint" pattern in the circular polarization (Stokes $V$) maps. Second, to test the polarization accuracy in a typical ALMA project, we performed observations of continuum linear polarization toward the Kleinmann-Low nebula in Orion (Orion-KL) using several mosaic patterns at Bands 3 and 6. We show that after mosaicking, the residual off-axis errors decrease as a result of overlapping multiple pointings. Finally, we compare the ALMA mosaics with an archival 1.3 mm CARMA polarization mosaic of Orion-KL and find good consistency in the polarization patterns., Comment: 19 pages, 13 figures, 5 tables, 1 appendix. Accepted for publication in PASP. The data used in this paper were taken as part of the ALMA Extension and Optimization of Capabilities (EOC) program, and will be available (along with all calibration and imaging scripts) via the ALMA Science Archive on 1 Oct 2020

The fastest molecular component to the protostellar outflows -- extremely high-velocity (EHV) molecular jets -- are still puzzling since they are seen only rarely. The first aim is to analyze the interaction between the EHV jet and the slow outflow by comparing their outflow force content. The second aim is to analyze the chemical composition of the different outflow velocity components and to reveal the spatial location of molecules. ALMA 3 mm and 1.3 mm observations of five outflow sources at 130 -- 260 au resolution in the Serpens Main cloud are presented. Observations of CO, SiO, H$_2$CO and HCN reveal the kinematic and chemical structure of those flows. Three velocity components are distinguished: the slow and the fast wing, and the EHV jet. Out of five sources, three have the EHV component. Comparison of outflow forces reveals that only the EHV jet in the youngest source Ser-emb 8 (N) has enough momentum to power the slow outflow. The SiO abundance is generally enhanced with velocity, while HCN is present in the slow and the fast wing, but disappears in the EHV jet. For Ser-emb 8 (N), HCN and SiO show a bow-shock shaped structure surrounding one of the EHV peaks suggesting sideways ejection creating secondary shocks upon interaction with the surroundings. Also, the SiO abundance in the EHV gas decreases with distance from this protostar, whereas that in the fast wing increases. H$_2$CO is mostly associated with low-velocity gas but also appears surprisingly in one of the bullets in the Ser-emb~8~(N) EHV jet. The high detection rate suggests that the presence of the EHV jet may be more common than previously expected. The origin and temporal evolution of the abundances of SiO, HCN and H$_2$CO through high-temperature chemistry are discussed. The data are consistent with a low C/O ratio in the EHV gas versus high C/O ratio in the fast and slow wings., Comment: 25 pages, 20 figures, Accepted for publication in the Astronomy & Astrophysics

We present 1.3 mm ALMA observations of polarized dust emission toward the wide-binary protostellar system BHR 71 IRS1 and IRS2. IRS1 features what appears to be a natal, hourglass-shaped magnetic field. In contrast, IRS2 exhibits a magnetic field that has been affected by its bipolar outflow. Toward IRS2, the polarization is confined mainly to the outflow cavity walls. Along the northern edge of the redshifted outflow cavity of IRS2, the polarized emission is sandwiched between the outflow and a filament of cold, dense gas traced by N$_2$D$^+$, toward which no dust polarization is detected. This suggests that the origin of the enhanced polarization in IRS2 is the irradiation of the outflow cavity walls, which enables the alignment of dust grains with respect to the magnetic field -- but only to a depth of ~300 au, beyond which the dust is cold and unpolarized. However, in order to align grains deep enough in the cavity walls, and to produce the high polarization fraction seen in IRS2, the aligning photons are likely to be in the mid- to far-infrared range, which suggests a degree of grain growth beyond what is typically expected in very young, Class 0 sources. Finally, toward IRS1 we see a narrow, linear feature with a high (10-20%) polarization fraction and a well ordered magnetic field that is not associated with the bipolar outflow cavity. We speculate that this feature may be a magnetized accretion streamer; however, this has yet to be confirmed by kinematic observations of dense-gas tracers., Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Materials accessible in the online version of the (open-access) ApJ article include the FITS files used to make several of the ALMA images

With the aim of characterizing the dynamical processes involved in the formation of young protostars, we present high angular resolution ALMA dust polarization observations of the Class 0 protostellar cores Serpens SMM1, Emb 8(N), and Emb 8. With spatial resolutions ranging from 150 to 40 au at 870 {\mu}m, we find unexpectedly high values of the polarization fraction along the outflow cavity walls in Serpens Emb8(N). We use 3 mm and 1 mm molecular tracers to investigate outflow and dense gas properties and their correlation with the polarization. These observations allow us to investigate the physical processes involved in the Radiative Alignment Torques (RATs) acting on dust grains along the outflow cavity walls, which experience irradiation from accretion processes and outflow shocks. The inner core of SMM1-a presents a polarization pattern with a poloidal magnetic field at the bases of the two lobes of the bipolar outflow. To the south of SMM1-a we see two polarized filaments, one of which seems to trace the redshifted outflow cavity wall. The other may be an accretion streamer of material infalling onto the central protostar. We propose that the polarized emission we see at millimeter wavelengths along the irradiated cavity walls can be reconciled with the expectations of RAT theory if the aligned grains present at '<' 500 au scales in Class 0 envelopes have grown larger than the 0.1 {\mu}m size of ISM dust grains. Our observations allow us to constrain the star-forming sources magnetic field morphologies within the central cores, along the outflow cavity walls, and in possible accretion streamers.

Here we present new ALMA observations of polarized dust emission from six of the most massive clumps in W43-Main. The clumps MM2, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM7, and MM8, have been resolved into two populations of fragmented filaments. From these two populations we extracted 81 cores (96 with the MM1 cores) with masses between 0.9 \Msun\ to 425 \Msun\ and a mass sensitivity of 0.08 M$_{\odot}$. The MM6, MM7, and MM8 clumps show significant fragmentation, but the polarized intensity appears to be sparse and compact. The MM2, MM3, and MM4 population shows less fragmentation, but with a single proto-stellar core dominating the emission at each clump. Also, the polarized intensity is more extended and significantly stronger in this population. From the polarized emission, we derived detailed magnetic field patterns throughout the filaments which we used to estimate field strengths for 4 out of the 6 clumps. The average field strengths estimations were found between 500 $\mu$G to 1.8 mG. Additionally, we detected and modeled infalling motions towards MM2 and MM3 from single dish HCO$^{+}(J=4 \rightarrow 3)$ and HCN$(J=4 \rightarrow 3)$ data resulting in mass infall rates of $\dot{\mathrm{M}}_{\mathrm{MM2}} = 1.2 \times 10^{-2}$ \Msun\ yr$^{-1}$ and $\dot{\mathrm{M}}_{\mathrm{MM3}} = 6.3 \times 10^{-3}$ \Msun\ yr$^{-1}$. By using our estimations, we evaluated the dynamical equilibrium of our cores by computing the total virial parameter $\alpha_{\mathrm{total}}$. For the cores with reliable field estimations, we found that 71\% of them appear to be gravitationally bound while the remaining 29\% are not. We concluded that these unbound cores, also less massive, are still accreting and have not yet reached a critical mass. This also implies different evolutionary time-scales, which essentially suggests that star-formation in high mass filaments is not uniform., Comment: Accepted for Publication in the Astrophysical Journal

Guiding and confining light at interfaces is crucial for applications involving light-matter interactions such as surface spectroscopy, nonlinear optics, and quantum information technology. While dielectric surface waves offer promising perspectives for strong light confinement at non-absorbing interfaces, their capacity has not yet been widely explored. Here, we focus on the propagation properties of optical modes supported at the free surface of a one-dimensional photonic crystal. The contributions of intrinsic and extrinsic loss mechanisms are investigated. Structures optimized to support long propagating optical surface waves are designed and fabricated. We experimentally demonstrate, for the first time, the existence of optical surface waves capable of propagating over centimeter-scale distances in the visible spectral range. Our results open new perspectives for the use of optical surface waves in integrated optics and enhanced light-matter interactions., Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures