Refine
Has Fulltext
- no (175) (remove)
Year of publication
- 2012 (175) (remove)
Document Type
- Article (175) (remove)
Language
- English (175)
Is part of the Bibliography
- yes (175)
Keywords
- gamma rays: galaxies (5)
- ISM: supernova remnants (4)
- quasars: absorption lines (4)
- stars: early-type (4)
- Planetary rings (3)
- cosmic rays (3)
- diffusion (3)
- instabilities (3)
- stars: mass-loss (3)
- stars: winds, outflows (3)
Institute
- Institut für Physik und Astronomie (175) (remove)
If a one-dimensional quantum lattice system is subject to one step of a reversible discrete-time dynamics, it is intuitive that as much "quantum information" as moves into any given block of cells from the left, has to exit that block to the right. For two types of such systems - namely quantum walks and cellular automata - we make this intuition precise by defining an index, a quantity that measures the "net flow of quantum information" through the system. The index supplies a complete characterization of two properties of the discrete dynamics. First, two systems S-1, S-2 can be "pieced together", in the sense that there is a system S which acts like S-1 in one region and like S-2 in some other region, if and only if S-1 and S-2 have the same index. Second, the index labels connected components of such systems: equality of the index is necessary and sufficient for the existence of a continuous deformation of S-1 into S-2. In the case of quantum walks, the index is integer-valued, whereas for cellular automata, it takes values in the group of positive rationals. In both cases, the map S bar right arrow. ind S is a group homomorphism if composition of the discrete dynamics is taken as the group law of the quantum systems. Systems with trivial index are precisely those which can be realized by partitioned unitaries, and the prototypes of systems with non-trivial index are shifts.
We propose a simple theoretical model for aggregative and fragmentative collisions in Saturn's dense rings. In this model the ring matter consists of a bimodal size distribution: large (meter sized) boulders and a population of smaller particles (tens of centimeters down to dust). The small particles can adhesively stick to the boulders and can be released as debris in binary collisions of their carriers. To quantify the adhesion force we use the JKR theory (Johnson, K., Kendall, K., Roberts, A. [1971]. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A 324, 301-313). The rates of release and adsorption of particles are calculated, depending on material parameters, sizes, and plausible velocity dispersions of carriers and debris particles. In steady state we obtain an expression for the amount of free debris relative to the fraction still attached to the carriers. In terms of this conceptually simple model a paucity of subcentimeter particles in Saturn's rings (French, R.G., Nicholson, P.D. [2000]. Icarus 145, 502-523; Marouf, E. et al. [2008]. Abstracts for "Saturn after Cassini-Huygens" Symposium, Imperial College London, UK, July 28 to August 1, p. 113) can be understood as a consequence of the increasing strength of adhesion (relative to inertial forces) for decreasing particle size. In this case particles smaller than a certain critical radius remain tightly attached to the surfaces of larger boulders, even when the boulders collide at their typical speed. Furthermore, we find that already a mildly increased velocity dispersion of the carrier-particles may significantly enhance the fraction of free debris particles, in this way increasing the optical depth of the system.
We consider the mean first-passage time of a random walker moving in a potential landscape on a finite interval, the starting and end points being at different potentials. From analytical calculations and Monte Carlo simulations we demonstrate that the mean first-passage time for a piecewise linear curve between these two points is minimized by the introduction of a potential barrier. Due to thermal fluctuations, this barrier may be crossed. It turns out that the corresponding expense for this activation is less severe than the gain from an increased slope towards the end point. In particular, the resulting mean first-passage time is shorter than for a linear potential drop between the two points.
We present the results of a joint observational campaign between the Green Bank radio telescope and the VERITAS gamma-ray telescope, which searched for a correlation between the emission of very-high-energy (VHE) gamma rays (E-gamma > 150 GeV) and giant radio pulses (GRPs) from the Crab pulsar at 8.9 GHz. A total of 15,366 GRPs were recorded during 11.6 hr of simultaneous observations, which were made across four nights in 2008 December and in 2009 November and December. We searched for an enhancement of the pulsed gamma-ray emission within time windows placed around the arrival time of the GRP events. In total, eight different time windows with durations ranging from 0.033 ms to 72 s were positioned at three different locations relative to the GRP to search for enhanced gamma-ray emission which lagged, led, or was concurrent with, the GRP event. Furthermore, we performed separate searches on main pulse GRPs and interpulse GRPs and on the most energetic GRPs in our data sample. No significant enhancement of pulsed VHE emission was found in any of the preformed searches. We set upper limits of 5-10 times the average VHE flux of the Crab pulsar on the flux simultaneous with interpulse GRPs on single-rotation-period timescales. On similar to 8 s timescales around interpulse GRPs, we set an upper limit of 2-3 times the average VHE flux. Within the framework of recent models for pulsed VHE emission from the Crab pulsar, the expected VHE-GRP emission correlations are below the derived limits.
When gold nanoparticles are covered with nanometric layers of transparent polyelectrolytes, the plasmon absorption spectrum A(lambda) increases by a factor of approximately three and shifts to the red. These modifications of dissipative experimental observables stop when the cover layer thickness approaches the particle diameter. Spectral modifications of dispersive parameters like the reflection R, however, keep changing with increasing cover layer thickness. The shift of the plasmon resonance caused by two interacting particle layers is studied as a function of the separating distance between the two layers. We discuss these observations in the context of an effective medium theory and conclude that it can only be applied for a layer thickness on the order of the particle diameter.
We present a toy-model for an ensemble of adhering mesoscopic constituents in order to estimate the effect of the granular temperature on the sizes of embedded aggregates. The major goal is to illustrate the relation between the mean aggregate size and the granular temperature in dense planetary rings. For sake of simplicity we describe the collective behavior of the ensemble by means of equilibrium statistical mechanics, motivated by the stationary temperature established by the balance between a Kepler-shear driven viscous heating and inelastic cooling in these cosmic granular disks. The ensemble consists of N' equal constituents which can form cluster(s) or move like a gas-or both phases may coexist-depending on the (granular) temperature of the system. We assume the binding energy levels of a cluster E-c = -N-c gamma a to be determined by a certain contact number N-c, given by the configuration of N constituents of the aggregate (energy per contact: -gamma a). By applying canonical and grand-canonical ensembles, we show that the granular temperature T of a gas of constituents (their mean kinetic energy) controls the size distribution of the aggregates. They are the smaller the higher the granular temperature T is. A mere gas of single constituents is sustained for T >> gamma a. In the case of large clusters (low temperatures T << gamma a) the size distribution becomes a Poissonian.
In this paper we analyze correlated continuous-time random walks introduced recently by Tejedor and Metzler (2010 J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. 43 082002). We obtain the Langevin equations associated with this process and the corresponding scaling limits of their solutions. We prove that the limit processes are self-similar and display anomalous dynamics. Moreover, we extend the model to include external forces. Our results are confirmed by Monte Carlo simulations.
Naturally occurring lipid granules diffuse in the cytoplasm and can be used as tracers to map out the viscoelastic landscape inside living cells. Using optical trapping and single particle tracking we found that lipid granules exhibit anomalous diffusion inside human umbilical vein endothelial cells. For these cells the exact diffusional pattern of a particular granule depends on the physiological state of the cell and on the localization of the granule within the cytoplasm. Granules located close to the actin rich periphery of the cell move less than those located towards to the center of the cell or within the nucleus. Also, granules in cells which are stressed by intense laser illumination or which have attached to a surface for a long period of time move in a more restricted fashion than those within healthy cells. For granules diffusing in healthy cells, in regions away from the cell periphery, occurrences of weak ergodicity breaking are observed, similar to the recent observations inside living fission yeast cells [1].
We study a disordered nonlinear Schrodinger equation with an additional relaxation process having a finite response time tau. Without the relaxation term, tau = 0, this model has been widely studied in the past and numerical simulations showed subdiffusive spreading of initially localized excitations. However, recently Caetano et al. [Eur. Phys. J. B 80, 321 (2011)] found that by introducing a response time tau > 0, spreading is suppressed and any initially localized excitation will remain localized. Here, we explain the lack of subdiffusive spreading for tau > 0 by numerically analyzing the energy evolution. We find that in the presence of a relaxation process the energy drifts towards the band edge, which enforces the population of fewer and fewer localized modes and hence leads to re-localization. The explanation presented here relies on former findings by Mulansky et al. [Phys. Rev. E 80, 056212 (2009)] on the energy dependence of thermalized states.
The electropolymerization of 3,4-(2,2-dibutylpropylenedioxy)thiophene (ProDOT-Bu-2) onto single carbon fiber microelectrode (SCFME) was conducted in acetonitrile (ACN) containing sodium perchlorate (NaClO4) as electrolyte and investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV). The nanostructured films of poly[3,4-(2,2-dibutyl-propyleneclioxy)thiophene] (PProDOT-Bu-2) which were depositing showed complete reversible redox behavior in monomer-free electrolyte solution.
The capacitive behavior of the films was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) at applied potentials from 0.1 V to 1.3 V. The analysis by equivalent circuit modeling revealed an applied potential around 0.4V to be most suitable for the system PProDOT-Bu-2/SCFME as a double layer supercapacitor component inducing a double layer capacitance C-d, value of 62 mFcm(-2).