335 research outputs found
Quark Confinement and Dual Representation in 2+1 Dimensional Pure Yang-Mills Theory
We study the quark confinement problem in 2+1 dimensional pure Yang-Mills
theory using euclidean instanton methods. The instantons are regularized and
dressed Wu-Yang monopoles. The dressing of a monopole is due to the mean field
of the rest of the monopoles. We argue that such configurations are stable to
small perturbations unlike the case of singular, undressed monopoles. Using
exact non-perturbative results for the 3-dim. Coulomb gas, where Debye
screening holds for arbitrarily low temperatures, we show in a self-consistent
way that a mass gap is dynamically generated in the gauge theory. The mass gap
also determines the size of the monopoles. In a sense the pure Yang-Mills
theory generates a dynamical Higgs effect. We also identify the disorder
operator of the model in terms of the Sine-Gordon field of the Coulomb gas.Comment: 26 pages, RevTex, Title changed, a new section added, the discussion
on stability of dressed monopole expanded. Version to appear in Physical
Review
Critical Statistical Charge for Anyonic Superconductivity
We examine a criterion for the anyonic superconductivity at zero temperature
in Abelian matter-coupled Chern-Simons gauge field theories in three
dimensions. By solving the Dyson-Schwinger equations, we obtain a critical
value of the statistical charge for the superconducting phase in a massless
fermion-Chern-Simons model.Comment: 11 pages; to appear in Phys Rev
Background Independent Quantum Mechanics and Gravity
We argue that the demand of background independence in a quantum theory of
gravity calls for an extension of standard geometric quantum mechanics. We
discuss a possible kinematical and dynamical generalization of the latter by
way of a quantum covariance of the state space. Specifically, we apply our
scheme to the problem of a background independent formulation of Matrix Theory.Comment: 9 pages, LaTe
Material properties and geohazards
In engineering terms, all materials deposited as a result of glacial and periglacial processes are transported soils. Many of these deposits have engineering characteristics that differ from those of water-lain sediments. In the UK, the most extensive glacial and periglacial deposits are tills. Previously, engineering geologists have classified them geotechnically as lodgement, melt-out, flow and deformation tills, or as variants of these. However, in this book tills have been reclassified as: subglacial traction till, glaciotectonite and supraglacial mass-flow diamicton/glaciogenic debris-flow deposits (see Chapter 4, Sections 4.1–4.3). Because this classification is new, it is not possible to relate geotechnical properties and characteristics to the subdivisions of the new classification. Consequently, the domain/stratigraphic classification, recently developed by the British Geological Survey and others, has been used and their geotechnical properties and characteristics are discussed on this basis. The geotechnical properties and characteristics of the other main glacial and periglacial deposits are also discussed. For some of these (e.g. glaciolacustrine deposits, quick clays and loess), geohazards relating to the lithology and/or fabric of the deposit are discussed along with their properties. Other geohazards that do not relate to lithology and/or fabric are discussed separately as either local or regional geohazards. In some cases (e.g. glaciofluvial sands and gravels), the geotechnical properties and behaviour are similar to sediments deposited under different climatic conditions; these deposits are therefore not discussed at length. Similarly, some of the local geohazards that are found associated with glacial and periglacial deposits relate to current climatic conditions and are not discussed here. Examples include landsliding and highly compressible organic soils (peats)
Vortex interaction in patches of randomly placed emergent cylinders
The flow field of multiple-cylinder configurations exhibits complex interactions between shear layers, vortexes and wakes. For high stem-Reynolds numbers, the flow is turbulent and, low and intermediate areal number-densities of cylinders, and turbulence is produced mostly by the work of Reynolds shear stresses in the horizontal plane (uv component) against the time-averaged shear rate characteristic of vertical-axis vortex shedding in the wake of cylinders. The spatial pattern of turbulent production and of other terms of the equation of conservation of Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is thus mostly determined by the interaction of vortexes shed by individual cylinders and by the distance between cylinders. The main objective of this paper is to advance on the understanding of vortex interaction in patches of randomly placed emergent and rigid cylinders. In particular, the relation between cylinder Strouhal numbers, vortex decay and vortex path statistics is investigated for isolated cylinder and for a cylinder within an array of randomly placed cylinders with a areal-number density of 980 cylinders/m2. Results are compared to shed light on the influence of neighbouring cylinders. An experimental database acquired with 2D Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) was explored. A methodology to detect vortexes in 2D flow fields is proposed. It features a point-based criterion and a global search to detect all the possible vortex core locations, combined with a curve-based criterion, to decide whether the detected point corresponds to a vortex, depending on the geometry of streamlines. The results show a decrease on the amount of vortexes and a shorter vortex life for the cylinder within the array when compared with the isolated cylinder. The averaged vortex path is also affected by the presence of neighbouring cylinders. Concerning the Strouhal number, the normalized shedding frequency is approximately the same for both studied cases
Chiral symmetry restoration and the Z3 sectors of QCD
Quenched SU(3) lattice gauge theory shows three phase transitions, namely the
chiral, the deconfinement and the Z3 phase transition. Knowing whether or not
the chiral and the deconfinement phase transition occur at the same temperature
for all Z3 sectors could be crucial to understand the underlying microscopic
dynamics. We use the existence of a gap in the Dirac spectrum as an order
parameter for the restoration of chiral symmetry. We find that the spectral gap
opens up at the same critical temperature in all Z3 sectors in contrast to
earlier claims in the literature.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Evidence Against Instanton Dominance of Topological Charge Fluctuations in QCD
The low-lying eigenmodes of the Dirac operator associated with typical gauge
field configurations in QCD encode, among other low-energy properties, the
physics behind the solution to the problem (i.e. the origin of the
mass), the nature of spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking, and the
physics of string-breaking, quark-antiquark pair production, and the OZI rule.
Moreover, the space-time chiral structure of these eigenmodes reflects the
space-time topological structure of the underlying gauge field. We present
evidence from lattice QCD on the local chiral structure of low Dirac eigenmodes
leading to the conclusion that topological charge fluctuations of the QCD
vacuum are not instanton-dominated. The result supports Witten's arguments that
topological charge is produced by confinement-related gauge fluctuations rather
than instantons.Comment: 35 pages, 11 figure
Confinement and Chiral Symmetry Breaking via Domain-Like Structures in the QCD Vacuum
A qualitative mechanism for the emergence of domain structured background
gluon fields due to singularities in gauge field configurations is considered,
and a model displaying a type of mean field approximation to the QCD partition
function based on this mechanism is formulated. Estimation of the vacuum
parameters (gluon condensate, topological susceptibility, string constant and
quark condensate) indicates that domain-like structures lead to an area law for
the Wilson loop, nonzero topological susceptibility and spontaneous breakdown
of chiral symmetry. Gluon and ghost propagators in the presence of domains are
calculated explicitly and their analytical properties are discussed. The
Fourier transforms of the propagators are entire functions and thus describe
confined dynamical fields.Comment: RevTeX, 48 pages (32 pages + Appendices A-E), new references added
[1,2,4,5] and minor formulae corrected for typographical error
The Earth: Plasma Sources, Losses, and Transport Processes
This paper reviews the state of knowledge concerning the source of magnetospheric plasma at Earth. Source of plasma, its acceleration and transport throughout the system, its consequences on system dynamics, and its loss are all discussed. Both observational and modeling advances since the last time this subject was covered in detail (Hultqvist et al., Magnetospheric Plasma Sources and Losses, 1999) are addressed
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