Freeze-Out Time in Ultrarelativistic Heavy Ion Collisions from Coulomb Effects in Transverse Pion Spectra

The influence of the nuclear Coulomb field on transverse spectra of $\pi^+$ and $\pi^-$ measured in $Pb+Pb$ reactions at 158 A GeV has been investigated. Pion trajectories are calculated in the field of an expanding fireball. The observed enhancement of the $\pi^-/\pi^+$ ratio at small momenta depends on the temperature and transverse expansion velocity of the source, the rapidity distribution of the net positive charge, and mainly the time of the freeze-out.Comment: 11 pages including 2 figure

Recent results from BRAHMS

The BRAHMS collaboration ended its data collection program in 2006. We are now well advanced in the analysis of a comprehensive set of data that spans systems ranging in mass from p+p to Au+Au and in energy from $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 62.4$ to 200 GeV. Our analysis has taken two distinct paths: we explore the rapidity dependence of intermediate and high-transverse-momentum, identified-particle production, thus helping to characterize the strongly-interacting quark-gluon plasma (sQGP) formed at RHIC; we also explore particle yields at lower transverse momentum to develop a systematic understanding of bulk particle production at RHIC energies.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, presented at the 20th International Conference on Ultra-Relativistic Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions, "Quark Matter 2008", Jaipur, India, February 4-10, 200

A high Reynolds number numerical solution of the Navier-Stokes equations in stream function-vorticity form

Problems encoutered in investigations of high Reynolds number, incompressible flow are reviewed. A numerical solution computer program was modified to solve the stream function-vorticity form of the Navier-Stokes equations. Using a body fitted coordinate system with a U-shaped outer boundary, a simulation of incompressible flow at a Reynolds number of one million and a body angle of attack of zero was achieved

Numerical solution of the Navier-Stokes equations for arbitrary two-dimensional multi-element airfoils

The development of a numerical simulation of time dependent, turbulent, compressible flow about two dimensional multi-element airfoils of arbitrary shape is described. The basis of this simulation is a technique of automatic numerical generation of coordinate systems fitted to the multiple bodies regardless of their number or shape. Procedures developed whereby the coordinate lines are automatically concentrated in the boundary layer at any Reynolds number are discussed. The compressible turbulent solution involves an algebraic eddy viscosity turbulence model. The laminar version was run for transonic flow at free stream Mach numbers up to 0.9

Comment on predator-prey dynamical behavior and stability with square root functional response

In this research, we revisit the paper by Pal et al. [Int. J. Appl. Comput. Math (2017) 3:1833-1845] and comment on the claim that global stability of the interior equilibrium point depends on some key parameters. This is not true, and we have provided detailed proof to this effect. The considered model is a modified Lotka-Volterra model where square root functional response is involved. The square root functional response is non-differentiable at the origin and hence cannot be studied with standard local stability tools. Furthermore, our numerical simulations indicate that we can classify the phase portrait into two modes of behavior where some positive initial conditions converge towards the predator axis in finite time

Alterations in white matter microstructure in neurofibromatosis-1.

Neurofibromatosis (NF1) represents the most common single gene cause of learning disabilities. NF1 patients have impairments in frontal lobe based cognitive functions such as attention, working memory, and inhibition. Due to its well-characterized genetic etiology, investigations of NF1 may shed light on neural mechanisms underlying such difficulties in the general population or other patient groups. Prior neuroimaging findings indicate global brain volume increases, consistent with neural over-proliferation. However, little is known about alterations in white matter microstructure in NF1. We performed diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) analyses using tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) in 14 young adult NF1 patients and 12 healthy controls. We also examined brain volumetric measures in the same subjects. Consistent with prior studies, we found significantly increased overall gray and white matter volume in NF1 patients. Relative to healthy controls, NF1 patients showed widespread reductions in white matter integrity across the entire brain as reflected by decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) and significantly increased absolute diffusion (ADC). When radial and axial diffusion were examined we found pronounced differences in radial diffusion in NF1 patients, indicative of either decreased myelination or increased space between axons. Secondary analyses revealed that FA and radial diffusion effects were of greatest magnitude in the frontal lobe. Such alterations of white matter tracts connecting frontal regions could contribute to the observed cognitive deficits. Furthermore, although the cellular basis of these white matter microstructural alterations remains to be determined, our findings of disproportionately increased radial diffusion against a background of increased white matter volume suggest the novel hypothesis that one potential alteration contributing to increased cortical white matter in NF1 may be looser packing of axons, with or without myelination changes. Further, this indicates that axial and radial diffusivity can uniquely contribute as markers of NF1-associated brain pathology in conjunction with the typically investigated measures

The relationship between particle freeze-out distributions and HBT radius parameters

The relationship between pion and kaon space-time freeze-out distributions and the HBT radius parameters in high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions is investigated. We show that the HBT radius parameters in general do not reflect the R.M.S. deviations of the single particle production points. Instead, the HBT radius parameters are most closely related to the curvature of the two-particle space-time relative position distribution at the origin. We support our arguments by studies with a dynamical model (RQMD 2.4).Comment: RevTex, 10 pages including 3 figures. v2: Discussion of the lambda parameter has been added. PRC, in prin

Freeze-out from HBT and Coulomb Effects

The freeze-out of hot and dense hadronic matter formed in relativistic nuclear collisions is probed by HBT interferometry of identical pions, kaons, etc. Coulomb repulsion/attraction of positive/negative particles show up at small particle momenta and is also very sensitive to the freeze-out conditions. The source sizes and times freeze-out are extracted from $\pi^-/\pi^+$ spectra and HBT radii and compared.Comment: 4 pages, proc. of QM'97, Tsukuba, Japa

On the Equation of State of Nuclear Matter in 158A GeV Pb+Pb Collisions

Within a hydrodynamical approach we investigate the sensitivity of single inclusive momentum spectra of hadrons in 158A GeV Pb+Pb collisions to three different equations of state of nuclear matter. Two of the equations of state are based on lattice QCD results and include a phase transition to a quark-gluon plasma. The third equation of state has been extracted from the microscopic transport code RQMD under the assumption of complete local thermalization. All three equations of state provide reasonable fits to data taken by the NA44 and NA49 Collaborations. The initial conditions before the evolution of the fireballs and the space-time evolution pictures differ dramatically for the three equations of state when the same freeze-out temperature is used in all calculations. However, the softest of the equations of state results in transverse mass spectra that are too steep in the central rapidity region. We conclude that the transverse particle momenta are determined by the effective softness of the equation of state during the fireball expansion.Comment: 4 pages, including 4 figures and 2 tables. For a PostScript file of the manuscript, you can also goto http://t2.lanl.gov/schlei/eprint.htm

Connectivity-enhanced diffusion analysis reveals white matter density disruptions in first episode and chronic schizophrenia.

Reduced fractional anisotropy (FA) is a well-established correlate of schizophrenia, but it remains unclear whether these tensor-based differences are the result of axon damage and/or organizational changes and whether the changes are progressive in the adult course of illness. Diffusion MRI data were collected in 81 schizophrenia patients (54 first episode and 27 chronic) and 64 controls. Analysis of FA was combined with "fixel-based" analysis, the latter of which leverages connectivity and crossing-fiber information to assess both fiber bundle density and organizational complexity (i.e., presence and magnitude of off-axis diffusion signal). Compared with controls, patients with schizophrenia displayed clusters of significantly lower FA in the bilateral frontal lobes, right dorsal centrum semiovale, and the left anterior limb of the internal capsule. All FA-based group differences overlapped substantially with regions containing complex fiber architecture. FA within these clusters was positively correlated with principal axis fiber density, but inversely correlated with both secondary/tertiary axis fiber density and voxel-wise fiber complexity. Crossing fiber complexity had the strongest (inverse) association with FA (r = -0.82). When crossing fiber structure was modeled in the MRtrix fixel-based analysis pipeline, patients exhibited significantly lower fiber density compared to controls in the dorsal and posterior corpus callosum (central, postcentral, and forceps major). Findings of lower FA in patients with schizophrenia likely reflect two inversely related signals: reduced density of principal axis fiber tracts and increased off-axis diffusion sources. Whereas the former confirms at least some regions where myelin and or/axon count are lower in schizophrenia, the latter indicates that the FA signal from principal axis fiber coherence is broadly contaminated by macrostructural complexity, and therefore does not necessarily reflect microstructural group differences. These results underline the need to move beyond tensor-based models in favor of acquisition and analysis techniques that can help disambiguate different sources of white matter disruptions associated with schizophrenia