Understanding the Fe II emission from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) has been a grand challenge for many decades. The rewards from understanding the AGN spectra would be immense, involving both quasar classification schemes such as “Eigenvector 1” and tracing the chemical evolution of the cosmos. Recently, three large Fe II atomic data sets with radiative and electron collisional rates have become available. We have incorporated these into the spectral synthesis code Cloudy and examined predictions using a new generation of AGN spectral energy distribution (SED), which indicates that the ultraviolet (UV) emission can be quite different depending on the data set utilized. The Smyth et al. data set better reproduces the observed Fe II template of the I ZW 1 Seyfert galaxy in the UV and optical regions, and we adopt these data. We consider both thermal and microturbulent clouds and show that a microturbulence of ≈100 km s−1 reproduces the observed shape and strength of the so-called Fe II “UV bump.” Comparing our predictions to the observed Fe II template, we derive a typical cloud density of 1011 cm−3 and photon flux of 1020 cm−2 s−1, and show that these largely reproduce the observed Fe II emission in the UV and optical. We calculate the I(Fe II)/I(Mg II) emission-line intensity ratio using our best-fitting model and obtain log(I(Fe II)/I(Mg II)) ∼  0.7, suggesting many AGNs have a roughly solar Fe/Mg abundance ratio. Finally, we vary the Eddington ratio and SED shape as a step in understanding the Eigenvector 1 correlation.

Absorption and emission lines of the iron-peak species Fe II are prominent in the infrared, optical, and ultraviolet spectra of a myriad of astrophysical sources, requiring extensive and highly reliable sets of atomic structure and collisional data for an accurate quantitative analysis. However, comparisons among existing calculations reveal large discrepancies in the effective collision strengths, often up to factors of three, highlighting the need for further steps towards new converged calculations. Here we report a new 20 configuration, 6069 level atomic structure model, calculated using the multiconfigurational Dirac-Fock method. Collision strengths and effective collision strengths are presented, for a wide range of temperatures of astrophysical relevance, from substantial 262 level and 716 level Dirac R-matrix calculations, plus a 716 level Breit-Pauli R-matrix calculation. Convergence of the scattering calculations is discussed, and results are critically compared with existing data in the literature, providing us with error estimates for our data. As a consequence, we assign an uncertainty of ±15 per cent to relevant forbidden and allowed transitions encompassed within a 50 level subset of the 716 level Dirac R-matrix data set. To illustrate the implications of our new data sets for the analysis of astronomical observations of Fe II, they are incorporated into the CLOUDY modelling code, sample Fe II spectra are generated and compared.

Neutral tungsten is the primary candidate as a wall material in the divertor region of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The efficient operation of ITER depends heavily on precise atomic physics calculations for the determination of reliable erosion diagnostics, helping to characterise the influx of tungsten impurities into the core plasma. The following paper presents detailed calculations of the atomic structure of neutral tungsten using the multiconfigurational Dirac-Fock method, drawing comparisons with experimental measurements where available, and includes a critical assessment of existing atomic structure data. We investigate the electron-impact excitation of neutral tungsten using the Dirac R-matrix method and, by employing collisional-radiative models, we benchmark our results with recent Compact Toroidal Hybrid measurements. The resulting comparisons highlight alternative diagnostic lines to the widely used 400.88nm line.

Radiative association cross sections and rates are computed, using a quantum approach, for the formation of C 2 molecules (dicarbon) during the collision of two ground state C( 3 P) atoms. We find that transitions originating in the C 1 Π g , d 3 Π g , and 1 5 Π u states are the main contributors to the process. The results are compared and contrasted with previous results obtained from a semi-classical approximation. New ab initio potential curves and transition dipole moment functions have been obtained for the present work using the multi-reference configuration interaction approach with the Davidson correction (MRCI+Q) and aug-cc-pCV5Z basis sets, substantially increasing the available molecular data on dicarbon. Applications of the current computations to various astrophysical environments and laboratory studies are briefly discussed focusing on these rates.1 CO was also detected in the first overtone band (∆ν = 2). In SN 1987A individual rotational lines of CO and of SiO were detected at late epoch, see Abellán et al. (2017);Sarangi et al. (2018).

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