51,539 research outputs found
The hydrogen atom in electric and magnetic fields : Pauli's 1926 article
The results obtained by Pauli, in his 1926 article on the hydrogen atom, made
essential use of the dynamical so(4) symmetry of the bound states. Pauli used
this symmetry to compute the perturbed energy levels of an hydrogen atom in a
uniform electric field (Stark effect) and in uniform electric and magnetic
fields. Although the experimental check of the single Stark effect on the
hydrogen atom has been studied experimentally, Pauli's results in mixed fields
have been studied only for Rydberg states of rubidium atoms in crossedfields
and lithium atoms in parallel fields.Comment: 11 pages, latex file, 2 figure
The Deep Lens Survey Transient Search I : Short Timescale and Astrometric Variability
We report on the methodology and first results from the Deep Lens Survey
transient search. We utilize image subtraction on survey data to yield all
sources of optical variability down to 24th magnitude. Images are analyzed
immediately after acquisition, at the telescope and in near-real time, to allow
for followup in the case of time-critical events. All classes of transients are
posted to the web upon detection. Our observing strategy allows sensitivity to
variability over several decades in timescale. The DLS is the first survey to
classify and report all types of photometric and astrometric variability
detected, including solar system objects, variable stars, supernovae, and short
timescale phenomena. Three unusual optical transient events were detected,
flaring on thousand-second timescales. All three events were seen in the B
passband, suggesting blue color indices for the phenomena. One event (OT
20020115) is determined to be from a flaring Galactic dwarf star of spectral
type dM4. From the remaining two events, we find an overall rate of \eta = 1.4
events deg-2 day-1 on thousand-second timescales, with a 95% confidence limit
of \eta < 4.3. One of these events (OT 20010326) originated from a compact
precursor in the field of galaxy cluster Abell 1836, and its nature is
uncertain. For the second (OT 20030305) we find strong evidence for an extended
extragalactic host. A dearth of such events in the R passband yields an upper
95% confidence limit on short timescale astronomical variability between 19.5 <
R < 23.4 of \eta_R < 5.2. We report also on our ensemble of astrometrically
variable objects, as well as an example of photometric variability with an
undetected precursor.Comment: 24 pages, 12 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ.
Variability data available at http://dls.bell-labs.com/transients.htm
Robust Non-Linear Regression Using The Dogleg Algorithm
What are the statistical and computational problems associated with robust nonlinear regression? This paper presents a number of possible approaches to these problems and develops a particular algorithm based on the work of Powell and Dennis.
A new model for the X-ray continuum of the magnetized accreting pulsars
Accreting highly magnetized pulsars in binary systems are among the brightest
X-ray emitters in our Galaxy. Although a number of high statistical quality
broad-band (0.1-100 keV) X-ray observations are available, the spectral energy
distribution of these sources is usually investigated by adopting pure
phenomenological models, rather than models linked to the physics of accretion.
In this paper, a detailed spectral study of the X-ray emission recorded from
the high-mass X-ray binary pulsars Cen X-3, 4U 0115+63, and Her X-1 is carried
out by using BeppoSAX and joined Suzaku+NuStar data, together with an advanced
version of the compmag model. The latter provides a physical description of the
high energy emission from accreting pulsars, including the thermal and bulk
Comptonization of cyclotron and bremsstrahlung seed photons along the neutron
star accretion column. The compmag model is based on an iterative method for
solving second-order partial differential equations, whose convergence
algorithm has been improved and consolidated during the preparation of this
paper. Our analysis shows that the broad-band X-ray continuum of all considered
sources can be self-consistently described by the compmag model. The cyclotron
absorption features, not included in the model, can be accounted for by using
Gaussian components. From the fits of the compmag model to the data we inferred
the physical properties of the accretion columns in all sources, finding values
reasonably close to those theoretically expected according to our current
understanding of accretion in highly magnetized neutron stars. The updated
version of the compmag model has been tailored to the physical processes that
are known to occur in the columns of highly magnetized accreting neutron stars
and it can thus provide a better understanding of the high energy radiation
from these sources.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Pathways to double ionization of atoms in strong fields
We discuss the final stages of double ionization of atoms in a strong
linearly polarized laser field within a classical model. We propose that all
trajectories leading to non-sequential double ionization pass close to a saddle
in phase space which we identify and characterize. The saddle lies in a two
degree of freedom subspace of symmetrically escaping electrons. The
distribution of longitudinal momenta of ions as calculated within the subspace
shows the double hump structure observed in experiments. Including a symmetric
bending mode of the electrons allows us to reproduce the transverse ion
momenta. We discuss also a path to sequential ionization and show that it does
not lead to the observed momentum distributions.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures; fig.6 and 7 exchanged in the final version
accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Variational analysis of self-focusing of intense ultrashort pulses in gases
By using perturbation theory we derive an expression for the electrical field
of a Gaussian laser pulse propagating in a gas medium. This expression is used
as a trial solution in a variational method to get quasianalytical solutions
for the width, intensity and self-focusing distance of ultrashort pulse. The
approximation gives an improved agreement with results of numerical simulations
for a broad range of values of the input power of the pulse than previous
analytical results available in the literature.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure
Heterotic Cosmic Strings
We show that all three conditions for the cosmological relevance of heterotic
cosmic strings, the right tension, stability and a production mechanism at the
end of inflation, can be met in the strongly coupled M-theory regime. Whereas
cosmic strings generated from weakly coupled heterotic strings have the well
known problems posed by Witten in 1985, we show that strings arising from
M5-branes wrapped around 4-cycles (divisors) of a Calabi-Yau in heterotic
M-theory compactifications, solve these problems in an elegant fashion.Comment: 25 pages, v2: section and references adde
MQCD, ('Barely') G_2 Manifolds and (Orientifold of) a Compact Calabi-Yau
We begin with a discussion on two apparently disconnected topics - one
related to nonperturbative superpotential generated from wrapping an M2-brane
around a supersymmetric three cycle embedded in a G_2-manifold evaluated by the
path-integral inside a path-integral approach of [1], and the other centered
around the compact Calabi-Yau CY_3(3,243) expressed as a blow-up of a degree-24
Fermat hypersurface in WCP^4[1,1,2,8,12]. For the former, we compare the
results with the ones of Witten on heterotic world-sheet instantons [2]. The
subtopics covered in the latter include an N=1 triality between Heterotic, M-
and F-theories, evaluation of RP^2-instanton superpotential, Picard-Fuchs
equation for the mirror Landau-Ginsburg model corresponding to CY_3(3,243),
D=11 supergravity corresponding to M-theory compactified on a `barely' G_2
manifold involving CY_3(3,243) and a conjecture related to the action of
antiholomorphic involution on period integrals. We then show an indirect
connection between the two topics by showing a connection between each one of
the two and Witten's MQCD [3]. As an aside, we show that in the limit of
vanishing "\zeta", a complex constant that appears in the Riemann surfaces
relevant to definining the boundary conditions for the domain wall in MQCD, the
infinite series of [4] used to represent a suitable embedding of a
supersymmetric 3-cycle in a G_2-mannifold, can be summed.Comment: 37 pages, LaTex; PARTLY based on talks given at ``Seventh Workshop on
QCD" [session on "Strings, Branes and (De-)Construction"], Jan 6-10, 2003, La
Cittadelle, Villefranche-sur-Mer, France; Fourth Workshop on ``Gauge Fields
and Strings", Feb 25-Mar 1, 2003, Jena, Germany; ``XII Oporto Meeting on
Geometry, Topology and Strings", July 17-20, 2003, Oporto, Portugal; "SQS03"
- International Workshop on "Supersymmetries and Quantum Symmetries', July
24-29, 2003, JINR, Dubna, Russia; poster presented at ``XIV International
Congress on Mathematical Physics", July 28-Aug 2, 2003, Lisbon, Portuga
On the relation between effective supersymmetric actions in different dimensions
We make two remarks: (i) Renormalization of the effective charge in a
4--dimensional (supersymmetric) gauge theory is determined by the same graphs
and is rigidly connected to the renormalization of the metric on the moduli
space of the classical vacua of the corresponding reduced quantum mechanical
system. Supersymmetry provides constraints for possible modifications of the
metric, and this gives us a simple proof of nonrenormalization theorems for the
original 4-dimensional theory. (ii) We establish a nontrivial relationship
between the effective (0+1)-dimensional and (1+1)-dimensional Lagrangia (the
latter represent conventional
Kahlerian sigma models).Comment: 15 pages, 2 figure
Is the remnant of SN1006 crab-like?
The solid state spectrometer on the Einstein Observatory and the GSFC cosmic X-ray spectrometer on OSO-8 observed the X-ray spectrum of SN1006. The data can be well-represented by a power-law model with alpha = 1.2, similar to the spectrum of the Crab nebula. This is in contrast to the radio and X-ray maps of SN1006 which show a shell structure more typical of SNR with thermal X-ray emission. The X-ray spectrum is suggestive of nonthermal synchrotron emission, raising the possibility that the remnant of SN1006 contains a source of relativistic electrons
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