25 research outputs found
Massless scalar field in two-dimensional de Sitter universe
We study the massless minimally coupled scalar field on a two--dimensional de
Sitter space-time in the setting of axiomatic quantum field theory. We
construct the invariant Wightman distribution obtained as the renormalized
zero--mass limit of the massive one. Insisting on gauge invariance of the model
we construct a vacuum state and a Hilbert space of physical states which are
invariant under the action of the whole de Sitter group. We also present the
integral expression of the conserved charge which generates the gauge
invariance and propose a definition of dual field.Comment: 13 page
Spectral stochastic processes arising in quantum mechanical models with a non-L2 ground state
A functional integral representation is given for a large class of quantum
mechanical models with a non--L2 ground state. As a prototype the particle in a
periodic potential is discussed: a unique ground state is shown to exist as a
state on the Weyl algebra, and a functional measure (spectral stochastic
process) is constructed on trajectories taking values in the spectrum of the
maximal abelian subalgebra of the Weyl algebra isomorphic to the algebra of
almost periodic functions. The thermodynamical limit of the finite volume
functional integrals for such models is discussed, and the superselection
sectors associated to an observable subalgebra of the Weyl algebra are
described in terms of boundary conditions and/or topological terms in the
finite volume measures.Comment: 15 pages, Plain Te
Plane waves in quantum gravity: breakdown of the classical spacetime
Starting with the Hamiltonian formulation for spacetimes with two commuting
spacelike Killing vectors, we construct a midisuperspace model for linearly
polarized plane waves in vacuum gravity. This model has no constraints and its
degrees of freedom can be interpreted as an infinite and continuous set of
annihilation and creation like variables. We also consider a simplified version
of the model, in which the number of modes is restricted to a discrete set. In
both cases, the quantization is achieved by introducing a Fock representation.
We find regularized operators to represent the metric and discuss whether the
coherent states of the quantum theory are peaked around classical spacetimes.
It is shown that, although the expectation value of the metric on Killing
orbits coincides with a classical solution, its relative fluctuations become
significant when one approaches a region where null geodesics are focused. In
that region, the spacetimes described by coherent states fail to admit an
approximate classical description. This result applies as well to the vacuum of
the theory.Comment: 11 pages, no figures, version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Localization and symmetries
The violation of the Noether relation between symmetries and charges is
reduced to the time dependence of the charge associated to a conserved current.
For the U(1) gauge symmetry a non-perturbative control of the charge
commutators is obtained by an analysis of the Coulomb charged fields. From
this, in the unbroken case we obtain a correct expression for the electric
charge on the Coulomb states, its superselection and the presence of massless
vector bosons; in the broken case, we obtain a general non-perturbative version
of the Higgs phenomenon, i.e. the absence of massless Goldstone bosons and of
massless vector bosons. The conservation of the (gauge dependent) current
associated to the U(1) axial symmetry in QCD is shown to be compatible with the
time dependence of the corresponding charge commutators and a non-vanishing
eta' mass, as a consequence of the non locality of the (conserved) current.Comment: Invited contribution to ``The Quantum Universe'', dedicated to G.
Ghirardi for his 70th birthda
Ventilation and outcomes following robotic-assisted abdominal surgery: an international, multicentre observational study
Background: International data on the epidemiology, ventilation practice, and outcomes in patients undergoing abdominal robotic-assisted surgery (RAS) are lacking. The aim of the study was to assess the incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs), and to describe ventilator management after abdominal RAS. Methods: This was an international, multicentre, prospective study in 34 centres in nine countries. Patients ≥18 yr of age undergoing abdominal RAS were enrolled between April 2017 and March 2019. The Assess Respiratory Risk in Surgical Patients in Catalonia (ARISCAT) score was used to stratify for higher risk of PPCs (≥26). The primary outcome was the incidence of PPCs. Secondary endpoints included the preoperative risk for PPCs and ventilator management. Results: Of 1167 subjects screened, 905 abdominal RAS patients were included. Overall, 590 (65.2%) patients were at increased risk for PPCs. Meanwhile, 172 (19%) patients sustained PPCs, which occurred more frequently in 132 (22.4%) patients at increased risk, compared with 40 (12.7%) patients at lower risk of PPCs (absolute risk difference: 12.2% [95% confidence intervals (CI), 6.8–17.6%]; P<0.001). Plateau and driving pressures were higher in patients at increased risk, compared with patients at low risk of PPCs, but no ventilatory variables were independently associated with increased occurrence of PPCs. Development of PPCs was associated with a longer hospital stay. Conclusions: One in five patients developed one or more PPCs (chiefly unplanned oxygen requirement), which was associated with a longer hospital stay. No ventilatory variables were independently associated with PPCs. Clinical trial registration: NCT02989415
La renovación de la palabra en el bicentenario de la Argentina : los colores de la mirada lingüística
El libro reúne trabajos en los que se exponen resultados de investigaciones presentadas por investigadores de Argentina, Chile, Brasil, España, Italia y Alemania en el XII Congreso de la Sociedad Argentina de Lingüística (SAL), Bicentenario: la renovación de la palabra, realizado en Mendoza, Argentina, entre el 6 y el 9 de abril de 2010. Las temáticas abordadas en los 167 capítulos muestran las grandes líneas de investigación que se desarrollan fundamentalmente en nuestro país, pero también en los otros países mencionados arriba, y señalan además las áreas que recién se inician, con poca tradición en nuestro país y que deberían fomentarse. Los trabajos aquí publicados se enmarcan dentro de las siguientes disciplinas y/o campos de investigación: Fonología, Sintaxis, Semántica y Pragmática, Lingüística Cognitiva, Análisis del Discurso, Psicolingüística, Adquisición de la Lengua, Sociolingüística y Dialectología, Didáctica de la lengua, Lingüística Aplicada, Lingüística Computacional, Historia de la Lengua y la Lingüística, Lenguas Aborígenes, Filosofía del Lenguaje, Lexicología y Terminología