21,662 research outputs found
A simple and surprisingly accurate approach to the chemical bond obtained from dimensional scaling
We present a new dimensional scaling transformation of the Schrodinger
equation for the two electron bond. This yields, for the first time, a good
description of the two electron bond via D-scaling. There also emerges, in the
large-D limit, an intuitively appealing semiclassical picture, akin to a
molecular model proposed by Niels Bohr in 1913. In this limit, the electrons
are confined to specific orbits in the scaled space, yet the uncertainty
principle is maintained because the scaling leaves invariant the
position-momentum commutator. A first-order perturbation correction,
proportional to 1/D, substantially improves the agreement with the exact ground
state potential energy curve. The present treatment is very simple
mathematically, yet provides a strikingly accurate description of the potential
energy curves for the lowest singlet, triplet and excited states of H_2. We
find the modified D-scaling method also gives good results for other molecules.
It can be combined advantageously with Hartree-Fock and other conventional
methods.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Letter
Diffusive Atomistic Dynamics of Edge Dislocations in Two Dimensions
The fundamental dislocation processes of glide, climb, and annihilation are
studied on diffusive time scales within the framework of a continuum field
theory, the Phase Field Crystals (PFC) model. Glide and climb are examined for
single edge dislocations subjected to shear and compressive strain,
respectively, in a two dimensional hexagonal lattice. It is shown that the
natural features of these processes are reproduced without any explicit
consideration of elasticity theory or ad hoc construction of microscopic
Peierls potentials. Particular attention is paid to the Peierls barrier for
dislocation glide/climb and the ensuing dynamic behavior as functions of strain
rate, temperature, and dislocation density. It is shown that the dynamics are
accurately described by simple viscous motion equations for an overdamped point
mass, where the dislocation mobility is the only adjustable parameter. The
critical distance for the annihilation of two edge dislocations as a function
of separation angle is also presented.Comment: 13 pages with 17 figures, submitted to Physical Review
Gravitational wave energy spectrum of a parabolic encounter
We derive an analytic expression for the energy spectrum of gravitational
waves from a parabolic Keplerian binary by taking the limit of the Peters and
Matthews spectrum for eccentric orbits. This demonstrates that the location of
the peak of the energy spectrum depends primarily on the orbital periapse
rather than the eccentricity. We compare this weak-field result to strong-field
calculations and find it is reasonably accurate (~10%) provided that the
azimuthal and radial orbital frequencies do not differ by more than ~10%. For
equatorial orbits in the Kerr spacetime, this corresponds to periapse radii of
rp > 20M. These results can be used to model radiation bursts from compact
objects on highly eccentric orbits about massive black holes in the local
Universe, which could be detected by LISA.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. Minor changes to match published version; figure
1 corrected; references adde
The Schwinger SU(3) construction - I: Multiplicity problem and relation to induced representations
The Schwinger oscillator operator representation of SU(3) is analysed with
particular reference to the problem of multiplicity of irreducible
representations. It is shown that with the use of an unitary
representation commuting with the SU(3) representation, the infinity of
occurrences of each SU(3) irreducible representation can be handled in complete
detail. A natural `generating representation' for SU(3), containing each
irreducible representation exactly once, is identified within a subspace of the
Schwinger construction; and this is shown to be equivalent to an induced
representation of SU(3).Comment: Latex, 25 page
Topological properties of Berry's phase
By using a second quantized formulation of level crossing, which does not
assume adiabatic approximation, a convenient formula for geometric terms
including off-diagonal terms is derived. The analysis of geometric phases is
reduced to a simple diagonalization of the Hamiltonian in the present
formulation. If one diagonalizes the geometric terms in the infinitesimal
neighborhood of level crossing, the geometric phases become trivial for any
finite time interval . The topological interpretation of Berry's phase such
as the topological proof of phase-change rule thus fails in the practical
Born-Oppenheimer approximation, where a large but finite ratio of two time
scales is involved.Comment: 9 pages. A new reference was added, and the abstract and the
presentation in the body of the paper have been expanded and made more
precis
Abdominal functional electrical stimulation to assist ventilator weaning in acute tetraplegia: a cohort study
Background
Severe impairment of the major respiratory muscles resulting from tetraplegia reduces respiratory function, causing many people with tetraplegia to require mechanical ventilation during the acute stage of injury. Abdominal Functional Electrical Stimulation (AFES) can improve respiratory function in non-ventilated patients with sub-acute and chronic tetraplegia. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical feasibility of using an AFES training program to improve respiratory function and assist ventilator weaning in acute tetraplegia.<p></p>
Methods
AFES was applied for between 20 and 40 minutes per day, five times per week on four alternate weeks, with 10 acute ventilator dependent tetraplegic participants. Each participant was matched retrospectively with a ventilator dependent tetraplegic control, based on injury level, age and sex. Tidal Volume (VT) and Vital Capacity (VC) were measured weekly, with weaning progress compared to the controls.<p></p>
Results
Compliance to training sessions was 96.7%. Stimulated VT was significantly greater than unstimulated VT. VT and VC increased throughout the study, with mean VC increasing significantly (VT: 6.2 mL/kg to 7.8 mL/kg VC: 12.6 mL/kg to 18.7 mL/kg). Intervention participants weaned from mechanical ventilation on average 11 (sd: ± 23) days faster than their matched controls.<p></p>
Conclusion
The results of this study indicate that AFES is a clinically feasible technique for acute ventilator dependent tetraplegic patients and that this intervention may improve respiratory function and enable faster weaning from mechanical ventilation.<p></p>
Weyl formulas for annular ray-splitting billiards
We consider the distribution of eigenvalues for the wave equation in annular
(electromagnetic or acoustic) ray-splitting billiards. These systems are
interesting in that the derivation of the associated smoothed spectral counting
function can be considered as a canonical problem. This is achieved by
extending a formalism developed by Berry and Howls for ordinary (without
ray-splitting) billiards. Our results are confirmed by numerical computations
and permit us to infer a set of rules useful in order to obtain Weyl formulas
for more general ray-splitting billiards
A geometric phase gate without dynamical phases
A general scheme for an adiabatic geometric phase gate is proposed which is
maximally robust against parameter fluctuations. While in systems with SU(2)
symmetry geometric phases are usually accompanied by dynamical phases and are
thus not robust, we show that in the more general case of a SU(2) x SU(2)
symmetry it is possible to obtain a non-vanishing geometric phase without
dynamical contributions. The scheme is illustrated for a phase gate using two
systems with dipole-dipole interactions in external laser fields which form an
effective four-level system.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Online Commentary Regarding Workplace Harassment
This study aimed to examine online commentary about enacted workplace harassment conflict to determine the applicability of existing, functional definitions of workplace harassment in this new context. Online comments (N=721) were analyzed through an inductive thematic analysis to identify trends in women’s commentary about harassment in the workplace. The analysis developed nine themes of content evident in women’s discourse about workplace harassment as well as characteristics of each content theme which were compared to literature on harassment conflict. The study confirms that current, definitions of harassment closely relate to how women describe workplace harassment conflict in this new, mediated context
A generalized Pancharatnam geometric phase formula for three level systems
We describe a generalisation of the well known Pancharatnam geometric phase
formula for two level systems, to evolution of a three-level system along a
geodesic triangle in state space. This is achieved by using a recently
developed generalisation of the Poincare sphere method, to represent pure
states of a three-level quantum system in a convenient geometrical manner. The
construction depends on the properties of the group SU(3)\/ and its
generators in the defining representation, and uses geometrical objects and
operations in an eight dimensional real Euclidean space. Implications for an
n-level system are also discussed.Comment: 12 pages, Revtex, one figure, epsf used for figure insertio
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