Observational Constraints on Transverse Gravity: a Generalization of Unimodular Gravity

We explore the hypothesis that the set of symmetries enjoyed by the theory that describes gravity is not the full group of diffeomorphisms Diff(M), as in General Relativity, but a maximal subgroup of it, TransverseDiff(M), with its elements having a jacobian equal to unity; at the infinitesimal level, the parameter describing the coordinate change, xi^mu (x), is transverse, i.e., partial_mu(xi^mu)=0. Incidentally, this is the smaller symmetry one needs to propagate consistently a graviton, which is a great theoretical motivation for considering these theories. Also, the determinant of the metric, g, behaves as a "transverse scalar", so that these theories can be seen as a generalization of the better-known unimodular gravity. We present our results on the observational constraints on transverse gravity, in close relation with the claim of equivalence with general scalar-tensor theory. We also comment on the structure of the divergences of the quantum theory to the one-loop order.Comment: Prepared for the First Mediterranean Conference on Classical and Quantum Gravity, MCCQG, Kolymbari (Crete, Greece), 14-18 September, 2009; also, ERE2009: Gravitation in the Large, Bilbao (Spain), 7-11 September, 200

Desperately Seeking Chiral Fermions

Chiral fermions can (presumably) be constructed by introducing two regulators, one for the gauge fields (e.g. a lattice), and another for the fermion functional integrals in a fixed (regulated) gauge field. This talk discusses cutoff effects arising from the regulator of the fermions.Comment: 4 pages, contribution to Lattice '95 Postscript at http://www-theory.fnal.gov/people/ask/TeX/lat95/chiral.p

Neutrino interactions with nucleons and nuclei at intermediate energies

We investigate neutrino-nucleus collisions at intermediate energies incorporating quasielastic scattering and Delta(1232) excitation as elementary processes, together with Fermi motion, Pauli blocking and mean-field potentials in the nuclear medium. A full coupled-channel treatment of final state interactions is achieved with a semiclassical BUU transport model. Results for inclusive reactions and nucleon knockout are presented.Comment: Proceedings of PANIC'05, 3 pages, 3 figure

Neutral current neutrino-nucleus interactions at intermediate energies

We have extended our model for charged current neutrino-nucleus interactions to neutral current reactions. For the elementary neutrino-nucleon interaction, we take into account quasielastic scattering, Delta excitation and the excitation of the resonances in the second resonance region. Our model for the neutrino-nucleus collisions includes in-medium effects such as Fermi motion, Pauli blocking, nuclear binding, and final-state interactions. They are implemented by means of the Giessen Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck (GiBUU) coupled-channel transport model. This allows us to study exclusive channels, namely pion production and nucleon knockout. We find that final-state interactions modify considerably the distributions through rescattering, charge-exchange and absorption. Side-feeding induced by charge-exchange scattering is important in both cases. In the case of pions, there is a strong absorption associated with the in-medium pionless decay modes of the Delta, while nucleon knockout exhibits a considerable enhancement of low energy nucleons due to rescattering. At neutrino energies above 1 GeV, we also obtain that the contribution to nucleon knockout from Delta excitation is comparable to that from quasielastic scattering.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures; v2: version to be published in Phys. Rev. C, comparison with results of Paschos et al. remove

Non-integrability of the Armbruster-Guckenheimer-Kim quartic Hamiltonian through Morales-Ramis theory

We show the non-integrability of the three-parameter Armburster-Guckenheimer-Kim quartic Hamiltonian using Morales-Ramis theory, with the exception of the three already known integrable cases. We use Poincar\'e sections to illustrate the breakdown of regular motion for some parameter values.Comment: Accepted for publication in SIAM Journal on Applied Dynamical Systems. Adapted version for arxiv with 19 pages and 11 figure