A universal ionization threshold for strongly driven Rydberg states

We observe a universal ionization threshold for microwave driven one-electron Rydberg states of H, Li, Na, and Rb, in an {\em ab initio} numerical treatment without adjustable parameters. This sheds new light on old experimental data, and widens the scene for Anderson localization in light matter interaction.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur

Unconventional superfluid order in the FF-band of a bipartite optical square lattice

We report on the first observation of bosons condensed into the energy minima of an $F$-band of a bipartite square optical lattice. Momentum spectra indicate that a truly complex-valued staggered angular momentum superfluid order is established. The corresponding wave function is composed of alternating local $F_{2x^3-3x} + i F_{2y^3-3y}$-orbits and local $S$-orbits residing in the deep and shallow wells of the lattice, which are arranged as the black and white areas of a checkerboard. A pattern of staggered vortical currents arises, which breaks time reversal symmetry and the translational symmetry of the lattice potential. We have measured the populations of higher order Bragg peaks in the momentum spectra for varying relative depths of the shallow and deep lattice wells and find remarkable agreement with band calculations.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Smart grids for rural conditions and e-mobility - Applying power routers, batteries and virtual power plants

Significant reductions of greenhouse gas emission by use of renewable energy sources belong to the common targets of the European Union. Smart grids address intelligent use and integration of conventional and renewable generation in combination with controllable loads and storages. Two special aspects have also to be considered for smart grids in future: rural conditions and electric vehicles. Both, the increasing share of renewable energy sources and a rising demand for charging power by electrical vehicles lead to new challenges of network stability (congestion, voltage deviation), especially in rural distribution grids. This paper describes two lighthouse projects in Europe (“Well2Wheel” and “Smart Rural Grid”) dealing with these topics. The link between these projects is the implementation of the same virtual power plant technology and the approach of cellular grid cells. Starting with an approach for the average energy balance in 15 minutes intervals in several grid cells in the first project, the second project even allows the islanded operation of such cells as a microgrid. The integration of renewable energy sources into distribution grids primary takes place in rural areas. The lighthouse project “Smart Rural Grid”, which is founded by the European Union, demonstrates possibilities to use the existing distribution system operator infrastructure more effectively by applying an optimised and scheduled operation of the assets and using intelligent distribution power routers, called IDPR. IDPR are active power electronic devices operating at low voltage in distribution grids aiming to reduce losses due to unbalanced loads and enabling active voltage and reactive power control. This allows a higher penetration of renewable energy sources in existing grids without investing in new lines and transformers. Integrated in a virtual power plant and combined with batteries, the IDPR also allows a temporary islanded mode of grid cells. Both projects show the potential of avoiding or postponing investments in new primary infrastructure like cables, transformers and lines by using a forward-looking operation which controls generators, loads and batteries (mobile and stationary) by using new grid assets like power routers. While primary driven by physical restrictions as voltage-band violations and energy balance, these cells also define and allow local smart markets. In consequence the distribution system operators could avoid direct control access by giving an incentive to the asset owners by local price signals according to the grid situation and forecasted congestions.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Decoherence and Entropy Production in Relativistic Nuclear Collisions

Short thermalization times of less than 1 fm/c for quark and gluon matter have been suggested by recent experiments at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). It has been difficult to justify this rapid thermalization in first-principle calculations based on perturbation theory or the color glass condensate picture. Here, we address the related question of the decoherence of the gluon field, which is a necessary component of thermalization. We present a simplified leading-order computation of the decoherence time of a gluon ensemble subject to an incoming flux of Weizsacker-Williams gluons. We also discuss the entropy produced during the decoherence process and its relation to the entropy in the final state which has been measured experimentally.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure

Possibility of Measuring Azimuthal Anisotropy in J/ψJ/\psi Absorption in the ALICE Experiment

The absorption of J/ψ by comovers in the forward rapidity region is predicted to be azimuthally anisotropic as compared to an isotropic Glauber absorption. In the framework of a fast simulation we investigate the possibility of measuring this anisotropy within the ALICE experiment for the J/ψ 's detected in the Di-Muon Spectrometer using the event plane provided by the Photon Multiplicity Detector(PMD). The effect of limitations in the event plane determination on measured J/ψ anisotropy is also investigated

Microscopic modelling of perpendicular electronic transport in doped multiple quantum wells

We present a microscopic calculation of transport in strongly doped superlattices where domain formation is likely to occur. Our theoretical method is based on a current formula involving the spectral functions of the system, and thus allows, in principle, a systematic investigation of various interaction mechanisms. Taking into account impurity scattering and optical phonons we obtain a good quantitative agreement with existing experimental data from Helgesen and Finstad (J. Appl. Phys. 69, 2689, (1991)). Furthermore the calculated spectral functions indicate a significant increase of the average intersubband spacing compared to the bare level differences which might explain the experimental trend.Comment: 10 pages 5 figure

Photon bunching in parametric down-conversion with continuous wave excitation

The first direct measurement of photon bunching (g2 correlation function) in one output arm of a spontaneous-parametric-down-conversion source operated with a continuous pump laser in the single-photon regime is demonstrated. The result is in agreement with the statistics of a thermal field of the same coherence length, and shows the feasibility of investigating photon statistics with compact cw-pumped sources. Implications for entanglement-based quantum cryptography are discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, expanded introduction and experimental details added. Accepted for publication in Phys.Rev.

An uncertainty principle for star formation -- III. The characteristic emission time-scales of star formation rate tracers

We recently presented a new statistical method to constrain the physics of star formation and feedback on the cloud scale by reconstructing the underlying evolutionary timeline. However, by itself this new method only recovers the relative durations of different evolutionary phases. To enable observational applications, it therefore requires knowledge of an absolute 'reference time-scale' to convert relative time-scales into absolute values. The logical choice for this reference time-scale is the duration over which the star formation rate (SFR) tracer is visible because it can be characterised using stellar population synthesis (SPS) models. In this paper, we calibrate this reference time-scale using synthetic emission maps of several SFR tracers, generated by combining the output from a hydrodynamical disc galaxy simulation with the SPS model SLUG2. We apply our statistical method to obtain self-consistent measurements of each tracer's reference time-scale. These include H${\alpha}$ and 12 ultraviolet (UV) filters (from GALEX, Swift, and HST), which cover a wavelength range 150-350 nm. At solar metallicity, the measured reference time-scales of H${\alpha}$ are ${4.32^{+0.09}_{-0.23}}$ Myr with continuum subtraction, and 6-16 Myr without, where the time-scale increases with filter width. For the UV filters we find 17-33 Myr, nearly monotonically increasing with wavelength. The characteristic time-scale decreases towards higher metallicities, as well as to lower star formation rate surface densities, owing to stellar initial mass function sampling effects. We provide fitting functions for the reference time-scale as a function of metallicity, filter width, or wavelength, to enable observational applications of our statistical method across a wide variety of galaxies.Comment: 24 pages, 18 figures, 7 tables (including Appendices); published in MNRA

Vortex Entanglement and Broken Symmetry

Based on the London approximation, we investigate numerically the stability of the elementary configurations of entanglement, the twisted-pair and the twisted-triplet, in the vortex-lattice and -liquid phases. We find that, except for the dilute limit, the twisted-pair is unstable and hence irrelevant in the discussion of entanglement. In the lattice phase the twisted-triplet constitutes a metastable, confined configuration of high energy. Loss of lattice symmetry upon melting leads to deconfinement and the twisted-triplet turns into a low-energy helical configuration.Comment: 4 pages, RevTex, 2 figures on reques

Nekhoroshev theorem for the periodic Toda lattice

The periodic Toda lattice with $N$ sites is globally symplectomorphic to a two parameter family of $N-1$ coupled harmonic oscillators. The action variables fill out the whole positive quadrant of $\R^{N-1}$. We prove that in the interior of the positive quadrant as well as in a neighborhood of the origin, the Toda Hamiltonian is strictly convex and therefore Nekhoroshev's theorem applies on (almost) all parts of phase space.Comment: 28 page