Quantum Inequalities for the Electromagnetic Field

A quantum inequality for the quantized electromagnetic field is developed for observers in static curved spacetimes. The quantum inequality derived is a generalized expression given by a mode function expansion of the four-vector potential, and the sampling function used to weight the energy integrals is left arbitrary up to the constraints that it be a positive, continuous function of unit area and that it decays at infinity. Examples of the quantum inequality are developed for Minkowski spacetime, Rindler spacetime and the Einstein closed universe.Comment: 19 pages, 1 table and 1 figure. RevTex styl

Non-perturbative approach to nearly antiferromagnetic Fermi liquids

We present a non-perturbative approach to the problem of quasiparticles coupled to spin-fluctuations. If the fully dressed spin-fluctuation propagator is used in the Feynman graph expansion of the single-particle Green's function, the problem of summing all spin-fluctuation exchange graphs (i.e without virtual fermion loops) can be cast as a functional integral over gaussian distributed random vector fields. A Monte Carlo sampling of this functional integral does not suffer from the 'fermion sign problem' and offers an attractive alternative to perturbative calculations. We compare the results of our computer simulations with perturbation theory and self-consistent one-loop calculations.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure

Determinants of the population growth of the West Nile virus mosquito vector Culex pipiens in a repeatedly affected area in Italy

Background The recent spread of West Nile Virus in temperate countries has raised concern. Predicting the likelihood of transmission is crucial to ascertain the threat to Public and Veterinary Health. However, accurate models of West Nile Virus (WNV) expansion in Europe may be hampered by limited understanding of the population dynamics of their primary mosquito vectors and their response to environmental changes.<p></p> Methods We used data collected in north-eastern Italy (2009–2011) to analyze the determinants of the population growth rate of the primary WNV vector Culex pipiens. A series of alternative growth models were fitted to longitudinal data on mosquito abundance to evaluate the strength of evidence for regulation by intrinsic density-dependent and/or extrinsic environmental factors. Model-averaging algorithms were then used to estimate the relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic variables in describing the variations of per-capita growth rates.<p></p> Results Results indicate a much greater contribution of density-dependence in regulating vector population growth rates than of any environmental factor on its own. Analysis of an average model of Cx. pipiens growth revealed that the most significant predictors of their population dynamics was the length of daylight, estimated population size and temperature conditions in the 15 day period prior to sampling. Other extrinsic variables (including measures of precipitation, number of rainy days, and humidity) had only a minor influence on Cx. pipiens growth rates.<p></p> Conclusions These results indicate the need to incorporate density dependence in combination with key environmental factors for robust prediction of Cx. pipiens population expansion and WNV transmission risk. We hypothesize that detailed analysis of the determinants of mosquito vector growth rate as conducted here can help identify when and where an increase in vector population size and associated WNV transmission risk should be expected.<p></p&gt

Novel compact model for the radiation pattern of UWB antennas using vector spherical and Slepian decomposition

A new compact model is described for the 3D radiation pattern of an ultrawideband antenna, using a vector spherical and Slepian decomposition. Vector spherical modes are known to provide a good basis for the angular dependency of the radiation pattern. This paper is the first to extend such a model to also incorporate the frequency dependency of a radiation pattern. This is achieved by using a Slepian mode expansion. It is shown that this model requires considerably less coefficients than traditional sampling to accurately describe a frequency-dependent 3D radiation pattern. Also, generating the Slepian modes is computationally more efficient than comparable techniques, such as the singularity expansion method ( SEM). The coefficients can then directly be used to efficiently calculate performance measures such as the antenna Fidelity Factor for all angles (phi, theta) without reconstructing the radiation pattern, or to reduce the noise contribution

How isotropic is the Universe?

A fundamental assumption in the standard model of cosmology is that the Universe is isotropic on large scales. Breaking this assumption leads to a set of solutions to Einstein's field equations, known as Bianchi cosmologies, only a subset of which have ever been tested against data. For the first time, we consider all degrees of freedom in these solutions to conduct a general test of isotropy using cosmic microwave background temperature and polarization data from Planck. For the vector mode (associated with vorticity), we obtain a limit on the anisotropic expansion of $(\sigma_V/H)_0 < 4.7 \times 10^{-11}$ (95% CI), which is an order of magnitude tighter than previous Planck results that used CMB temperature only. We also place upper limits on other modes of anisotropic expansion, with the weakest limit arising from the regular tensor mode, $(\sigma_{T,\rm reg}/H)_0<1.0 \times 10^{-6}$ (95% CI). Including all degrees of freedom simultaneously for the first time, anisotropic expansion of the Universe is strongly disfavoured, with odds of 121,000:1 against.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, v2: replaced with version accepted by PR