Quantum gravitational optics: the induced phase

The geometrical approximation of the extended Maxwell equation in curved spacetime incorporating interactions induced by the vacuum polarization effects is considered. Taking into account these QED interactions and employing the analogy between eikonal equation in geometrical optics and Hamilton-Jacobi equation for the particle motion, we study the phase structure of the modified theory. There is a complicated, local induced phase which is believed to be responsible for the modification of the classical picture of light ray. The main features of QGO could be obtained through the study of this induced phase. We discuss initial principles in conventional and modified geometrical optics and compare the results.Comment: 10 pages, REVTex forma

Fermat's principle in quantum gravitational optics

Interactions incorporating the vacuum polarization effects in curved backgrounds modify the null cone structure in such a way that the photon trajectories would not be the space-time geodesics anymore. The gravitational birefringence introduced as a direct consequence of these effects, will allow shifts in the photon velocities leading to polarization dependent superluminal propagation. Taking these effects into account we study Fermat's principle in the context of the 1+3 (threading) formulation of the space-time decomposition. We find an expression for the modified spacetime refractive index and show it is proportional to the light cone correction to the first order. Consequences of this modification on polarization sum rules and spatial light paths are considered.Comment: 13 Pages, REVTex format, section on gravitomagnetic monopoles is removed along with its references, new references adde

Three new infrared bands of the He-OCS complex

Three new infrared bands of the weakly-bound He-OCS complex are studied, using tunable lasers to probe a pulsed supersonic slit jet expansion. They correspond to the (0400) <-- (0000), (1001)<-- (0000), and (0401) <-- (0000) transitions of OCS at 2105, 2918, and 2937 cm-1, respectively. The latter band is about 7900 times weaker than the previously studied OCS nu1 fundamental. Vibrational shifts relative to the free OCS monomer are found to be additive. Since carbonyl sulfide has previously been shown to be a valuable probe of superfluid quantum solvation effects in helium clusters and droplets, the present results could be useful for future studies of vibrational effects in such systems.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figure, 4 table

Pump-Enhanced Continuous-Wave Magnetometry using Nitrogen-Vacancy Ensembles

Ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond are a highly promising platform for high-sensitivity magnetometry, whose efficacy is often based on efficiently generating and monitoring magnetic-field dependent infrared fluorescence. Here we report on an increased sensing efficiency with the use of a 532-nm resonant confocal cavity and a microwave resonator antenna for measuring the local magnetic noise density using the intrinsic nitrogen-vacancy concentration of a chemical-vapor deposited single-crystal diamond. We measure a near-shot-noise-limited magnetic noise floor of 200 pT/$\sqrt{\text{Hz}}$ spanning a bandwidth up to 159 Hz, and an extracted sensitivity of approximately 3 nT/$\sqrt{\text{Hz}}$, with further enhancement limited by the noise floor of the lock-in amplifier and the laser damage threshold of the optical components. Exploration of the microwave and optical pump-rate parameter space demonstrates a linewidth-narrowing regime reached by virtue of using the optical cavity, allowing an enhanced sensitivity to be achieved, despite an unoptimized collection efficiency of <2 %, and a low nitrogen-vacancy concentration of about 0.2 ppb.Comment: 10 pages and 5 figure

Shear flow induced isotropic to nematic transition in a suspension of active filaments

We study the effects of externally applied shear flow on a model of suspensions of motors and filaments, via the equations of active hydrodynamics [PRL {\bf 89} (2002) 058101; {\bf 92} (2004) 118101]. In the absence of shear, the orientationally ordered phase of {\it both} polar and apolar active particles is always unstable at zero-wavenumber. An imposed steady shear large enough to overcome the active stresses stabilises both apolar and moving polar phases. Our work is relevant to {\it in vitro} studies of active filaments, the reorientation of endothelial cells subject to shear flow and shear-induced motility of attached cells.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures submitted to Europhysics Letter

Nitrogen-Vacancy Ensemble Magnetometry Based on Pump Absorption

We demonstrate magnetic field sensing using an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy centers by recording the variation in the pump-light absorption due to the spin-polarization dependence of the total ground state population. Using a 532 nm pump laser, we measure the absorption of native nitrogen-vacancy centers in a chemical vapor deposited diamond placed in a resonant optical cavity. For a laser pump power of 0.4 W and a cavity finesse of 45, we obtain a noise floor of $\sim$ 100 nT/$\sqrt{\textrm{Hz}}$ spanning a bandwidth up to 125 Hz. We project a photon shot-noise-limited sensitivity of $\sim$ 1 pT/$\sqrt{\textrm{Hz}}$ by optimizing the nitrogen-vacancy concentration and the detection method.Comment: 7 pages and 5 figure