35,469 research outputs found
Scaling Lee-Yang Model on a Sphere. I. Partition Function
Some general properties of perturbed (rational) CFT in the background metric
of symmetric 2D sphere of radius are discussed, including conformal
perturbation theory for the partition function and the large asymptotic.
The truncated conformal space scheme is adopted to treat numerically perturbed
rational CFT's in the spherical background. Numerical results obtained for the
scaling Lee-Yang model lead to the conclusion that the partition function is an
entire function of the coupling constant. Exploiting this analytic structure we
are able to describe rather precisely the ``experimental'' truncated space
data, including even the large behavior, starting only with the CFT
information and few first terms of conformal perturbation theory.Comment: Extended version of a talk presented at the NATO Advanced Research
Workshop on Statistical Field Theories, Como 18--23 June 200
Sociological Knowledge and Transformation at ‘Diversity University’, UK
This chapter is based on a case study of one UK university sociology department and shows how sociology knowledge can transform the lives of ‘non-traditional’ students. The research from which the case is drawn focused on four departments teaching sociology-related subjects in universities positioned differently in UK league tables. It explored the question of the relationship between university reputation, pedagogic quality and curriculum knowledge, challenging taken-for-granted judgements about ‘quality’ and in conceptualising ‘just’ university pedagogy by taking Basil Bernstein’s ideas about how ‘powerful’ knowledge is distributed in society to illuminate pedagogy and curriculum. The project took the view that ‘power’ lies in the acquisition of specific (inter)disciplinary knowledges which allows the formation of disciplinary identities by way of developing the means to think about and act in the world in specific ways. We chose to focus on sociology because (1) university sociology is taken up by all socio-economic classes in the UK and is increasingly taught in courses in which the discipline is applied to practice; (2) it is a discipline that historically pursues social and moral ambition which assists exploration of the contribution of pedagogic quality to individuals and society beyond economic goals; (3) the researchers teach and research sociology or sociology of education - an understanding of the subjects under discussion is essential to make judgements about quality. ‘Diversity’ was one of four case study universities. It ranks low in university league tables; is located in a large, multi-cultural English inner city; and, its students are likely to come from lower socio-economic and/or ethnic minority groups, as well as being the first in their families to attend university. To make a case for transformative teaching at Diversity, the chapter draws on longitudinal interviews with students, interviews with tutors, curriculum documents, recordings of teaching, examples of student work, and a survey. It establishes what we can learn from the case of sociology at Diversity, arguing that equality, quality and transformation for individuals and society are served by a university curriculum which is research led and challenging combined with pedagogical practices which give access to difficult-to-acquire and powerful knowledge
AC-Tolerant Multifilament Coated Conductors
We report the magnetization losses in an experimental multifilament coated
conductor. A 4 mm wide and 10 cm long YBCO coated conductor was subdivided into
eight 0.5 mm wide filaments by laser ablation and subjected to post-ablation
treatment. As the result, the hysteresis loss was reduced, as expected, in
proportion to the width of the filaments. However, the coupling loss was
reduced dramatically, and became practically negligible, in the range of a
sweep rate up to 20 T/s. This represents a drastic improvement on previous
multifilament conductors in which often the coupling losses became equal to the
hysteresis loss at a sweep rate as low as 3-4 T/s. These results demonstrate
that there is an effective and practical way to suppress coupling losses in
coated multifilament conductors.Comment: This paper is based on a talk given at 2006 Applied Superconductivity
Conference in Seattle, WA (August 27-September 1, 2006). To be published in
IEEE Trans. Appl. Superconductivit
Current-spin coupling for ferromagnetic domain walls in fine wires
The coupling between a current and a domain wall is examined. In the presence
of a finite current and the absence of a potential which breaks the
translational symmetry, there is a perfect transfer of angular momentum from
the conduction electrons to the wall. As a result, the ground state is in
uniform motion. This remains the case when relaxation is accounted for. This is
described by, appropriately modified, Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equations.Comment: 4 pqges, no figure
Epitaxial Thin Films of the Giant-Dielectric-Constant Material CaCu_3Ti_4O_{12} Grown by Pulsed-laser Deposition
Pulsed-laser deposition has been used to grow epitaxial thin films of the
giant-dielectric-constant material CaCu_3Ti_4O_{12} on LaAlO_3 and SrTiO_3
substrates with or without various conducting buffer layers. The latter include
YBa_2Cu_3O_7, La_{1.85}Sr_{0.15}CuO_{4+\delta} and LaNiO_3. Above 100K - 150K
the thin films have a temperature independent dielectric constant as do single
crystals. The value of the dielectric constant is of the order of 1500 over a
wide temperature region, potentially making it a good candidate for many
applications. The frequency dependence of its dielectric properties below 100K
- 150K indicates an activated relaxation process.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure
Real-time data compression of broadcast video signals
A non-adaptive predictor, a nonuniform quantizer, and a multi-level Huffman coder are incorporated into a differential pulse code modulation system for coding and decoding broadcast video signals in real time
On the Symmetries of the Edgar-Ludwig Metric
The conformal Killing equations for the most general (non-plane wave)
conformally flat pure radiation field are solved to find the conformal Killing
vectors. As expected fifteen independent conformal Killing vectors exist, but
in general the metric admits no Killing or homothetic vectors. However for
certain special cases a one-dimensional group of homotheties or motions may
exist and in one very special case, overlooked by previous investigators, a
two-dimensional homethety group exists. No higher dimensional groups of motions
or homotheties are admitted by these metrics.Comment: Plain TeX, 7 pages, No figure
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