Large Deviation Function of the Partially Asymmetric Exclusion Process

The large deviation function obtained recently by Derrida and Lebowitz for the totally asymmetric exclusion process is generalized to the partially asymmetric case in the scaling limit. The asymmetry parameter rescales the scaling variable in a simple way. The finite-size corrections to the universal scaling function and the universal cumulant ratio are also obtained to the leading order.Comment: 10 pages, 2 eps figures, minor changes, submitted to PR

Computationally Efficient Nonparametric Importance Sampling

The variance reduction established by importance sampling strongly depends on the choice of the importance sampling distribution. A good choice is often hard to achieve especially for high-dimensional integration problems. Nonparametric estimation of the optimal importance sampling distribution (known as nonparametric importance sampling) is a reasonable alternative to parametric approaches.In this article nonparametric variants of both the self-normalized and the unnormalized importance sampling estimator are proposed and investigated. A common critique on nonparametric importance sampling is the increased computational burden compared to parametric methods. We solve this problem to a large degree by utilizing the linear blend frequency polygon estimator instead of a kernel estimator. Mean square error convergence properties are investigated leading to recommendations for the efficient application of nonparametric importance sampling. Particularly, we show that nonparametric importance sampling asymptotically attains optimal importance sampling variance. The efficiency of nonparametric importance sampling algorithms heavily relies on the computational efficiency of the employed nonparametric estimator. The linear blend frequency polygon outperforms kernel estimators in terms of certain criteria such as efficient sampling and evaluation. Furthermore, it is compatible with the inversion method for sample generation. This allows to combine our algorithms with other variance reduction techniques such as stratified sampling. Empirical evidence for the usefulness of the suggested algorithms is obtained by means of three benchmark integration problems. As an application we estimate the distribution of the queue length of a spam filter queueing system based on real data.Comment: 29 pages, 7 figure

Correlation Assisted Phonon Softenings and the Mott-Peierls Transition in VO2_{2}

To explore the driving mechanisms of the metal-insulator transition (MIT) and the structural transition in VO2, we have investigated phonon dispersions of rutile VO2 (R-VO2) in the DFT and the DFT+U (U : Coulomb correlation) band calculations. We have found that the phonon softening instabilities occur in both cases, but the softened phonon mode only in the DFT+U describes properly both the MIT and the structural transition from R-VO2 to monoclinic VO2 (M1-VO2). This feature demonstrates that the Coulomb correlation effect plays an essential role of assisting the Peierls transition in R-VO2. We have also found from the phonon dispersion of M1-VO2 that M1 structure becomes unstable under high pressure. We have predicted a new phase of VO2 at high pressure that has a monoclinic CaCl2-type structure with metallic nature

Compositional changes on GaN surfaces under low-energy ion bombardment studied by synchrotron-based spectroscopies

We have investigated compositional changes on GaNsurfaces under Ar-ion bombardment using synchrotron-based high-resolution x-rayphotoemission (PES) and near-edge x-ray absorption fine structure(NEXAFS)spectroscopy. The low-energy ion bombardment of GaN produces a Ga-rich surface layer which transforms into a metallic Ga layer at higher bombarding energies. At the same time, the photoemissionspectra around N 1s core levels reveal the presence of both uncoordinated nitrogen and nitrogen interstitials, which we have analyzed in more details by x-rayabsorption measurements at N K edge. We have demonstrated that PES and NEXAFS provide a powerful combination for studying the compositional changes on GaNsurfaces. A mechanism for the relocation and loss of nitrogen during ion bombardment in agreement with some recent experimental and theoretical studies of defect formation in GaN has been proposed.P.N.K.D. is grateful for the financial support of the Australian Research Council

The Preference for Round Number Prices

This study determines if a preference for round prices exists in the wheat market and how wheat sales react to price movements around whole dollar amounts. The results show round prices are slightly more prevalent than non-round prices and that transactions increase when price moves above a whole dollar amount.Demand and Price Analysis,

Determining Returns to Storage: USDA Data versus Micro Level Data

USDA data are commonly used to determine producers' returns to storage. Aggregating data may result in a loss of information, leading to underestimated returns. This study compares USDA and elevator data from Oklahoma to determine how much USDA data underestimates returns. Results indicate USDA data only slightly underestimate returns to storage.Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Type Ia supernova diversity: Standardizing the candles

Future use of type Ia supernovae for cosmology aims not only to determine the equation of state of dark energy, but also to constrain possible variations in its value. To achieve this goal, supernovae need to become better calibrated standard candles - not only to improve the precision of the measurement, but more importantly to gain better control over systematic uncertainties in order to ensure the accuracy of the result. Here we report on a project to quantify the diversity in type Ia supernovae, and to look for trends and/or sub-types that can be used to improve their calibration as standard candles. We implement a version of principal component analysis on type Ia supernova spectra. Although the quantity of data is not sufficient to draw any firm conclusions we show that this method holds promise for, at the very least, effectively separating peculiar supernovae. Whether it can be further used to improve the calibration of normal type Ia's remains a project for future study.Comment: Conference Proceedings. Cefalu 2006, The multicoloured landscape of compact objects and their explosive origins. Six pages, three figure