7,390 research outputs found
The Generalized Area Theorem and Some of its Consequences
There is a fundamental relationship between belief propagation and maximum a
posteriori decoding. The case of transmission over the binary erasure channel
was investigated in detail in a companion paper. This paper investigates the
extension to general memoryless channels (paying special attention to the
binary case). An area theorem for transmission over general memoryless channels
is introduced and some of its many consequences are discussed. We show that
this area theorem gives rise to an upper-bound on the maximum a posteriori
threshold for sparse graph codes. In situations where this bound is tight, the
extrinsic soft bit estimates delivered by the belief propagation decoder
coincide with the correct a posteriori probabilities above the maximum a
posteriori threshold. More generally, it is conjectured that the fundamental
relationship between the maximum a posteriori and the belief propagation
decoder which was observed for transmission over the binary erasure channel
carries over to the general case. We finally demonstrate that in order for the
design rate of an ensemble to approach the capacity under belief propagation
decoding the component codes have to be perfectly matched, a statement which is
well known for the special case of transmission over the binary erasure
channel.Comment: 27 pages, 46 ps figure
Universal Polarization
A method to polarize channels universally is introduced. The method is based
on combining two distinct channels in each polarization step, as opposed to
Arikan's original method of combining identical channels. This creates an equal
number of only two types of channels, one of which becomes progressively better
as the other becomes worse. The locations of the good polarized channels are
independent of the underlying channel, guaranteeing universality. Polarizing
the good channels further with Arikan's method results in universal polar codes
of rate 1/2. The method is generalized to construct codes of arbitrary rates.
It is also shown that the less noisy ordering of channels is preserved under
polarization, and thus a good polar code for a given channel will perform well
over a less noisy one.Comment: Submitted to the IEEE Transactions on Information Theor
EURONU WP6 2009 yearly report: Update of the physics potential of Nufact, superbeams and betabeams
Many studies in the last ten years have shown that we can measure the unknown
angle theta13, discover leptonic CP violation and determine the neutrino
hierarchy in more precise neutrino oscillation experiments, searching for the
subleading channel nue -> numu in the atmospheric range. In this first report
of WP6 activities the following new results are reviewed: (1) Re-evaluation of
the physics reach of the upcoming generation of experiments to measure theta13
and delta; (2) New tools to explore a larger parameter space as needed beyond
the standard scenario; (3) Neutrino Factory: (a) evaluation of the physics
reach of a Nufact regards sterile neutrinos; (b) evaluation of the physics
reach of a Nufact as regards non-standard interactions; (c) evaluation of the
physics reach of a Nufact as regards violation of unitarity; (d) critical
assessment on long baseline tau-detection at Nufact; (e) new physics searches
at a near detector in a Nufact; (4) Beta-beams: (a) choice of ions and location
for a gamma = 100 CERN-based beta-beam; (b) re-evaluation of atmospheric
neutrino background for the gamma = 100 beta-beam scenario; (c) study of a two
baseline beta-beam; (d) measuring absolute neutrino mass with beta-beams; (e)
progress on monochromatic beta-beams; (5) Update of the physics potential of
the SPL super-beam. Eventually, we present an updated comparison of the
sensitivity to theta13, delta and the neutrino mass hierarchy of several of the
different proposed facilities.Comment: 2009 Yearly report of the Working Package 6 (Physics) of the EUROnu
FP7 EU project. 55 pages, 21 figures
The Multi-Object, Fiber-Fed Spectrographs for SDSS and the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey
We present the design and performance of the multi-object fiber spectrographs
for the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and their upgrade for the Baryon
Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). Originally commissioned in Fall 1999
on the 2.5-m aperture Sloan Telescope at Apache Point Observatory, the
spectrographs produced more than 1.5 million spectra for the SDSS and SDSS-II
surveys, enabling a wide variety of Galactic and extra-galactic science
including the first observation of baryon acoustic oscillations in 2005. The
spectrographs were upgraded in 2009 and are currently in use for BOSS, the
flagship survey of the third-generation SDSS-III project. BOSS will measure
redshifts of 1.35 million massive galaxies to redshift 0.7 and Lyman-alpha
absorption of 160,000 high redshift quasars over 10,000 square degrees of sky,
making percent level measurements of the absolute cosmic distance scale of the
Universe and placing tight constraints on the equation of state of dark energy.
The twin multi-object fiber spectrographs utilize a simple optical layout
with reflective collimators, gratings, all-refractive cameras, and
state-of-the-art CCD detectors to produce hundreds of spectra simultaneously in
two channels over a bandpass covering the near ultraviolet to the near
infrared, with a resolving power R = \lambda/FWHM ~ 2000. Building on proven
heritage, the spectrographs were upgraded for BOSS with volume-phase
holographic gratings and modern CCD detectors, improving the peak throughput by
nearly a factor of two, extending the bandpass to cover 360 < \lambda < 1000
nm, and increasing the number of fibers from 640 to 1000 per exposure. In this
paper we describe the original SDSS spectrograph design and the upgrades
implemented for BOSS, and document the predicted and measured performances.Comment: 43 pages, 42 figures, revised according to referee report and
accepted by AJ. Provides background for the instrument responsible for SDSS
and BOSS spectra. 4th in a series of survey technical papers released in
Summer 2012, including arXiv:1207.7137 (DR9), arXiv:1207.7326 (Spectral
Classification), and arXiv:1208.0022 (BOSS Overview
Report of the Higgs Working Group of the Tevatron Run 2 SUSY/Higgs Workshop
This report presents the theoretical analysis relevant for Higgs physics at
the upgraded Tevatron collider and documents the Higgs Working Group
simulations to estimate the discovery reach in Run 2 for the Standard Model and
MSSM Higgs bosons. Based on a simple detector simulation, we have determined
the integrated luminosity necessary to discover the SM Higgs in the mass range
100-190 GeV. The first phase of the Run 2 Higgs search, with a total integrated
luminosity of 2 fb-1 per detector, will provide a 95% CL exclusion sensitivity
comparable to that expected at the end of the LEP2 run. With 10 fb-1 per
detector, this exclusion will extend up to Higgs masses of 180 GeV, and a
tantalizing 3 sigma effect will be visible if the Higgs mass lies below 125
GeV. With 25 fb-1 of integrated luminosity per detector, evidence for SM Higgs
production at the 3 sigma level is possible for Higgs masses up to 180 GeV.
However, the discovery reach is much less impressive for achieving a 5 sigma
Higgs boson signal. Even with 30 fb-1 per detector, only Higgs bosons with
masses up to about 130 GeV can be detected with 5 sigma significance. These
results can also be re-interpreted in the MSSM framework and yield the required
luminosities to discover at least one Higgs boson of the MSSM Higgs sector.
With 5-10 fb-1 of data per detector, it will be possible to exclude at 95% CL
nearly the entire MSSM Higgs parameter space, whereas 20-30 fb-1 is required to
obtain a 5 sigma Higgs discovery over a significant portion of the parameter
space. Moreover, in one interesting region of the MSSM parameter space (at
large tan(beta)), the associated production of a Higgs boson and a b b-bar pair
is significantly enhanced and provides potential for discovering a non-SM-like
Higgs boson in Run 2.Comment: 185 pages, 124 figures, 55 table
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