We report the large effort that is producing comprehensive high-level young star cluster (YSC) catalogs for a significant fraction of galaxies observed with the Legacy ExtraGalactic UV Survey (LEGUS) Hubble treasury program. We present the methodology developed to extract cluster positions, verify their genuine nature, produce multiband photometry (from NUV to NIR), and derive their physical properties via spectral energy distribution fitting analyses. We use the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 628 as a test case for demonstrating the impact that LEGUS will have on our understanding of the formation and evolution of YSCs and compact stellar associations within their host galaxy. Our analysis of the cluster luminosity function from the UV to the NIR finds a steepening at the bright end and at all wavelengths suggesting a dearth of luminous clusters. The cluster mass function of NGC 628The 1 is consistent with a power-law distribution of slopes~-2 and a truncation of a few times 10 5  M . After their formation, YSCs and compact associations follow different evolutionary paths. YSCs survive for a longer time frame, confirming their being potentially bound systems. Associations disappear on timescales comparable to hierarchically organized star-forming regions, suggesting that they are expanding systems. We find massindependent cluster disruption in the inner region of NGC 628, while in the outer part of the galaxy there is little or no disruption. We observe faster disruption rates for low mass (10 4  M ) clusters, suggesting that a massdependent component is necessary to fully describe the YSC disruption process in NGC 628.Astrophysical Journal, 841:131 (26pp), 2017 June 1 https:

Recent work, based on data from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST ) UV Legacy Survey of Galactic Globular Clusters (GCs), has revealed that all the analyzed clusters host two groups of first-(1G) and second-generation (2G) stars. In most GCs, both 1G and 2G stars host substellar populations with different chemical composition.We compare multi-wavelength HST photometry with synthetic spectra to determine for the first time the average helium difference between the 2G and 1G stars in a large sample of 57 GCs and the maximum helium variation within each of them. We find that in all clusters 2G stars are consistent with being enhanced in helium with respect to 1G. The maximum helium variation ranges from less than 0.01 to more than 0.10 in helium mass fraction and correlates with both the cluster mass and the color extension of the horizontal branch (HB). These findings demonstrate that the internal helium variation is one of the main (second) parameters governing the HB morphology.

This article reviews the various hole transporting materials (HTMs) used in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) in achieving high photo conversion efficiency (PCE) and operational stability. The PSCs are the latest development in solution processable solar cells offering PCE (~22%) on a par with that of practically deployed silicon and thin film solar cells. HTMs and electron transporting materials (ETMs) are important constituents in PSCs as they selectively transport charges within the device, influence photovoltaic parameters, determine device stability and also influence its cost. This article critically approaches role of structure, electrochemistry, and physical properties of varied of choice of HTMs categorized diversely as small and long polymers, organometallic, and inorganic on the photovoltaic parameters of PSCs conceived in various device configurations. Achievements in tailoring the properties of HTMs to best fit for PSCs are detailed; a well designed HTM suppresses carrier recombination by facilitating the passage of holes but blocking electrons at the HTM/perovskite interface. Moreover, in many PSCs the HTM acts as the first line of defense to external degrading factors such as humidity, oxygen and photon dose, the extent of which depends on its hydrophobicity, permeability, and density.

Using the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope, we have obtained deep optical images reaching stars well below the oldest main sequence turnoff in the spheroid, tidal stream, and outer disk of the Andromeda Galaxy. We have reconstructed the star formation history in these fields by comparing their color-magnitude diagrams to a grid of isochrones calibrated to Galactic globular clusters observed in the same bands. Each field exhibits an extended star formation history, with many stars younger than 10 Gyr but few younger than 4 Gyr. Considered together, the star counts, kinematics, and population characteristics of the spheroid argue against some explanations for its intermediate-age, metal-rich population, such as a significant contribution from stars residing in the disk or a chance intersection with the stream's orbit. Instead, it is likely that this population is intrinsic to the inner spheroid, whose highly-disturbed structure is clearly distinct from the pressure-supported metal-poor halo that dominates farther from the galaxy's center. The stream and spheroid populations are similar, but not identical, with the stream's mean age being ∼1 Gyr younger; this similarity suggests that the inner spheroid is largely polluted by material stripped from either the stream's progenitor or similar objects. The disk population is considerably younger and more metal-rich than the stream and spheroid populations, but not as young as the thin disk population of the solar neighborhood; instead, the outer disk of Andromeda is dominated by stars of age 4-8 Gyr, resembling the Milky Way's thick disk. The disk data are inconsistent with a population dominated by ages older than 10 Gyr, and in fact do not require any stars older than 10 Gyr.

We present stellar proper motions in the Galactic bulge from the Sagittarius Window Eclipsing Extrasolar Search (SWEEPS) project using ACS WFC on HST. Proper motions are extracted for more than 180,000 objects, with >81,000 measured to accuracy better than 0.3 mas yr À1 in both coordinates. We report several results based on these measurements: (1) Kinematic separation of bulge from disk allows a sample of >15,000 bulge objects to be extracted based on !6 detections of proper motion, with <0.2% contamination from the disk. This includes the first detection of a candidate bulge blue straggler population. (2) Armed with a photometric distance modulus on a star-by-star basis, and using the large number of stars with high-quality proper-motion measurements to overcome intrinsic scatter, we dissect the kinematic properties of the bulge as a function of distance along the line of sight. This allows us to extract the stellar circular speed curve from proper motions alone, which we compare with the circular speed curve obtained from radial velocities. (3) We trace the variation of the fl; bg velocity ellipse as a function of depth. (4) Finally, we use the density-weighted fl; bg proper-motion ellipse produced from the tracer stars to assess the kinematic membership of the 16 transiting planet candidates discovered in the Sagittarius Window; the kinematic distribution of the planet candidates is consistent with that of the disk and bulge stellar populations.