Quantum black holes in Type-IIA String Theory

We study black hole solutions of Type-IIA Calabi-Yau compactifications in the presence of perturbative quantum corrections. We define a class of black holes that only exist in the presence of quantum corrections and that, consequently, can be considered as purely quantum black holes. The regularity conditions of the solutions impose the topological constraint h^{1,1}>h^{2,1} on the Calabi-Yau manifold, defining a class of admissible compactifications, which we prove to be non-empty for h^{1,1}=3 by explicitly constructing the corresponding Calabi-Yau manifolds, new in the literature.Comment: 17 pages. References added. Explanation of the truncation improve

Efficacy of insecticides on Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) and other pests in pole tomato.

Experimentos de campo em 2001 e 2005 foram conduzidos para determinar a eficácia de diversos inseticidas no controle da Tuta absoluta e o impacto desse controle na ocorrência das demais pragas do tomateiro. Os inseticidas testados assim como as respectivas doses por 100 litros de água foram: espinosade 4,8; 6,0; 7,2 g. i.a. com e sem Break Thru 0,03% v/v; clorfenapir 12,0 g. i.a.; emamectina 2,0 g i.a. com Joint Oil 0,25 % v/v e indoxacarbe 4,8 g i.a. com Joint Oil 0,25 % v/v. O delineamento experimental foi de blocos ao acaso com 4 repetições por tratamento sendo avaliado o complexo de pragas semanalmente. Todos os produtos testados, com exceção do espinosade sem Break Thru, foram eficientes no controle da T. absoluta. Considerando-se o complexo de pragas, espinosade + Break Thru mostrou-se ser o melhor tratamento no manejo da mosca-minadora Liriomyza spp. Field studies were conducted on 2001 and 2005 to determine the effectiveness of several insecticides in controlling Tuta absoluta and the impact of this control on the occurrence of other pests on tomato. The tested insecticides with their respective rates per 100 liters of water were: spinosad 4.8, 6.0, 7.2 g. a.i. with and without Break Thru 0.03% v/v; chlorfenapyr 12.0 g. a.i., emamectin 2.0 g. a.i. with Joint Oil 0.25 % v/v e indoxacarb 4.8 g. a.i. with Joint Oil 0.25 % v/v. The experiment was designed as randomized complete block with 4 replications per treatment. Trials were evaluated on a weekly basis. All tested treatments, except spinosad without Break Thru, were effective to control T. absoluta. Considering the pest complex, spinosad + Break Thru was the best treatment mainly because of the best overall performance on the serpentine leafminer Liriomyza spp

Topological Quintessence

A global monopole (or other topological defect) formed during a recent phase transition with core size comparable to the present Hubble scale, could induce the observed accelerating expansion of the universe. In such a model, topological considerations trap the scalar field close to a local maximum of its potential in a cosmologically large region of space. We perform detailed numerical simulations of such an inhomogeneous dark energy system (topological quintessence) minimally coupled to gravity, in a flat background of initially homogeneous matter. We find that when the energy density of the field in the monopole core starts dominating the background density, the spacetime in the core starts to accelerate its expansion in accordance to a \Lambda CDM model with an effective inhomogeneous spherical dark energy density parameter \Omega_\Lambda(r). The matter density profile is found to respond to the global monopole profile via an anti-correlation (matter underdensity in the monopole core). Away from the monopole core, the spacetime is effectively Einstein-deSitter (\Omega_\Lambda(r_{out}) -> 0) while at the center \Omega_\Lambda(r ~ 0) is maximum. We fit the numerically obtained expansion rate at the monopole core to the Union2 data and show that the quality of fit is almost identical to that of \Lambda CDM. Finally, we discuss potential observational signatures of this class of inhomogeneous dark energy models.Comment: Accepted in Phys. Rev. D (to appear). Added observational bounds on parameters. 10 pages (two column revtex), 6 figures. The Mathematica files used to produce the figures of this study may be downloaded from http://leandros.physics.uoi.gr/topquin

Geometrical foundations of fractional supersymmetry

A deformed $q$-calculus is developed on the basis of an algebraic structure involving graded brackets. A number operator and left and right shift operators are constructed for this algebra, and the whole structure is related to the algebra of a $q$-deformed boson. The limit of this algebra when $q$ is a $n$-th root of unity is also studied in detail. By means of a chain rule expansion, the left and right derivatives are identified with the charge $Q$ and covariant derivative $D$ encountered in ordinary/fractional supersymmetry and this leads to new results for these operators. A generalized Berezin integral and fractional superspace measure arise as a natural part of our formalism. When $q$ is a root of unity the algebra is found to have a non-trivial Hopf structure, extending that associated with the anyonic line. One-dimensional ordinary/fractional superspace is identified with the braided line when $q$ is a root of unity, so that one-dimensional ordinary/fractional supersymmetry can be viewed as invariance under translation along this line. In our construction of fractional supersymmetry the $q$-deformed bosons play a role exactly analogous to that of the fermions in the familiar supersymmetric case.Comment: 42 pages, LaTeX. To appear in Int. J. Mod. Phys.

First test of a high voltage feedthrough for liquid Argon TPCs connected to a 300 kV power supply

Voltages above a hundred kilo-volt will be required to generate the drift field of future very large liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers. The most delicate component is the feedthrough whose role is to safely deliver the very high voltage to the cathode through the thick insulating walls of the cryostat without compromising the purity of the argon inside. This requires a feedthrough that is typically meters long and carefully designed to be vacuum tight and have small heat input. Furthermore, all materials should be carefully chosen to allow operation in cryogenic conditions. In addition, electric fields in liquid argon should be kept below a threshold to reduce risks of discharges. The combination of all above requirements represents significant challenges from the design and manufacturing perspective. In this paper, we report on the successful operation of a feedthrough satisfying all the above requirements. The details of the feedthrough design and its manufacturing steps are provided. Very high voltages up to unprecedented voltages of -300 kV could be applied during long periods repeatedly. A source of instability was observed, which was specific to the setup configuration which was used for the test and not due to the feedthrough itself.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figure

Non-extremal branes

We prove that for arbitrary black brane solutions of generic Supergravities there is an adapted system of variables in which the equations of motion are exactly invariant under electric-magnetic duality, i.e. the interchange of a given extended object by its electromagnetic dual. We obtain thus a procedure to automatically construct the electromagnetic dual of a given brane without needing to solve any further equation. We apply this procedure to construct the non-extremal (p, q)-string of Type-IIB String Theory (new in the literature), explicitly showing how the dual (p, q)-five-brane automatically arises in this construction. In addition, we prove that the system of variables used is suitable for a generic characterization of every double-extremal Supergravity brane solution, which we perform in full generality.Comment: 6 pages; v2 minor correction