42,771 research outputs found
Revivals of Coherence in Chaotic Atom-Optics Billiards
We investigate the coherence properties of thermal atoms confined in optical
dipole traps where the underlying classical dynamics is chaotic. A perturbative
expression derived for the coherence of the echo scheme of [Andersen et. al.,
Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 023001 (2003)] shows it is a function of the survival
probability or fidelity of eigenstates of the motion of the atoms in the trap.
The echo coherence and the survival probability display "system specific"
features, even when the underlying classical dynamics is chaotic. In
particular, partial revivals in the echo signal and the survival probability
are found for a small shift of the potential. Next, a "semi-classical"
expression for the averaged echo signal is presented and used to calculate the
echo signal for atoms in a light sheet wedge billiard. Revivals in the echo
coherence are found in this system, indicating they may be a generic feature of
dipole traps
Systematic methods for the computation of the directional fields and singular points of fingerprints
The first subject of the paper is the estimation of a high resolution directional field of fingerprints. Traditional methods are discussed and a method, based on principal component analysis, is proposed. The method not only computes the direction in any pixel location, but its coherence as well. It is proven that this method provides exactly the same results as the "averaged square-gradient method" that is known from literature. Undoubtedly, the existence of a completely different equivalent solution increases the insight into the problem's nature. The second subject of the paper is singular point detection. A very efficient algorithm is proposed that extracts singular points from the high-resolution directional field. The algorithm is based on the Poincare index and provides a consistent binary decision that is not based on postprocessing steps like applying a threshold on a continuous resemblance measure for singular points. Furthermore, a method is presented to estimate the orientation of the extracted singular points. The accuracy of the methods is illustrated by experiments on a live-scanned fingerprint databas
Discrete-time Quantum Walks in random artificial Gauge Fields
Discrete-time quantum walks (DTQWs) in random artificial electric and
gravitational fields are studied analytically and numerically. The analytical
computations are carried by a new method which allows a direct exact analytical
determination of the equations of motion obeyed by the average density
operator. It is proven that randomness induces decoherence and that the quantum
walks behave asymptotically like classical random walks. Asymptotic diffusion
coefficients are computed exactly. The continuous limit is also obtained and
discussed.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures. Submitted to Physica
Statistical-Mechanical Measure of Stochastic Spiking Coherence in A Population of Inhibitory Subthreshold Neurons
By varying the noise intensity, we study stochastic spiking coherence (i.e.,
collective coherence between noise-induced neural spikings) in an inhibitory
population of subthreshold neurons (which cannot fire spontaneously without
noise). This stochastic spiking coherence may be well visualized in the raster
plot of neural spikes. For a coherent case, partially-occupied "stripes"
(composed of spikes and indicating collective coherence) are formed in the
raster plot. This partial occupation occurs due to "stochastic spike skipping"
which is well shown in the multi-peaked interspike interval histogram. The main
purpose of our work is to quantitatively measure the degree of stochastic
spiking coherence seen in the raster plot. We introduce a new spike-based
coherence measure by considering the occupation pattern and the pacing
pattern of spikes in the stripes. In particular, the pacing degree between
spikes is determined in a statistical-mechanical way by quantifying the average
contribution of (microscopic) individual spikes to the (macroscopic)
ensemble-averaged global potential. This "statistical-mechanical" measure
is in contrast to the conventional measures such as the "thermodynamic" order
parameter (which concerns the time-averaged fluctuations of the macroscopic
global potential), the "microscopic" correlation-based measure (based on the
cross-correlation between the microscopic individual potentials), and the
measures of precise spike timing (based on the peri-stimulus time histogram).
In terms of , we quantitatively characterize the stochastic spiking
coherence, and find that reflects the degree of collective spiking
coherence seen in the raster plot very well. Hence, the
"statistical-mechanical" spike-based measure may be used usefully to
quantify the degree of stochastic spiking coherence in a statistical-mechanical
way.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, to appear in the J. Comput. Neurosc
Photoexcited transients in disordered semiconductors: Quantum coherence at very short to intermediate times
We study theoretically electron transients in semiconductor alloys excited by
light pulses shorter than 100 femtoseconds and tuned above the absorption edge
during and shortly after the pulse, when disorder scattering is dominant.
We use non-equilibrium Green functions employing the field-dependent
self-consistent Born approximation. The propagators and the particle
correlation function are obtained by a direct numerical solution of the Dyson
equations in differential form. For the purely elastic scattering in our model
system the solution procedures for the retarded propagator and for the
correlation function can be decoupled.The propagator is used as an input in
calculating the correlation function. Numerical results combined with a
cumulant expansion permit to separate in a consistent fashion the dark and the
induced parts of the self-energy. The dark behavior reduces to propagation of
strongly damped quasi-particles; the field induced self-energy leads to an
additional time non-local coherence. The particle correlation function is
formed by a coherent transient and an incoherent back-scattered component. The
particle number is conserved only if the field induced coherence is fully
incorporated. The transient polarization and the energy balance are also
obtained and interpreted.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. B; 37 pages,17 figure
Role of spatial heterogeneity on the collective dynamics of cilia beating in a minimal 1D model
Cilia are elastic hairlike protuberances of the cell membrane found in
various unicellular organisms and in several tissues of most living organisms.
In some tissues such as the airway tissues of the lung, the coordinated beating
of cilia induce a fluid flow of crucial importance as it allows the continuous
cleaning of our bronchia, known as mucociliary clearance. While most of the
models addressing the question of collective dynamics and metachronal wave
consider homogeneous carpets of cilia, experimental observations rather show
that cilia clusters are heterogeneously distributed over the tissue surface.
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of spatial heterogeneity
on the coherent beating of cilia using a very simple one dimensional model for
cilia known as the rower model. We systematically study systems consisting of a
few rowers to hundreds of rowers and we investigate the conditions for the
emergence of collective beating. When considering a small number of rowers, a
phase drift occurs, hence a bifurcation in beating frequency is observed as the
distance between rowers clusters is changed. In the case of many rowers, a
distribution of frequencies is observed. We found in particular the pattern of
the patchy structure that shows the best robustness in collective beating
behavior, as the density of cilia is varied over a wide range.Comment: 16 pages, 22 figures including appendi
On the role of coupling in mode selective excitation using ultrafast pulse shaping in stimulated Raman spectroscopy
The coherence of two, coupled two-level systems, representing vibrational
modes in a semiclassical model, is calculated in weak and strong fields for
various coupling schemes and for different relative phases between initial
state amplitudes. A relative phase equal to projects the system into a
dark state. The selective excitation of one of the two, two-level systems is
studied as a function of coupling strength and initial phases.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
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