1,819 research outputs found
Cosmological backreaction of a quantized massless scalar field
We consider the backreaction problem of a quantized minimally coupled
massless scalar field in cosmology. The adiabatically regularized stress-energy
tensor in a general Friedmann-Robertson-Walker background is approximately
evaluated by using the fact that subhorizon modes evolve adiabatically and
superhorizon modes are frozen. The vacuum energy density is verified to obey a
new first order differential equation depending on a dimensionless parameter of
order unity, which calibrates subhorizon/superhorizon division. We check the
validity of the approximation by calculating the corresponding vacuum energy
densities in fixed backgrounds, which are shown to agree with the known results
in de Sitter space and space-times undergoing power law expansions. We then
apply our findings to slow-roll inflationary models. Although backreaction
effects are found to be negligible during the near exponential expansion, the
vacuum energy density generated during this period might be important at later
stages since it decreases slower than radiation or dust.Comment: 20 pages, 2 figures, v2: comments and a reference added, to appear in
JCA
Basalt models for the Mars penetrator mission: Geology of the Amboy Lava Field, California
Amboy lava field (San Bernardino County, California) is a Holocene basalt flow selected as a test site for potential Mars Penetrators. A discussion is presented of (1) the general relations of basalt flow features and textures to styles of eruptions on earth, (2) the types of basalt flows likely to be encountered on Mars and the rationale for selection of the Amboy lava field as a test site, (3) the general geology of the Amboy lava field, and (4) detailed descriptions of the target sites at Amboy lava field
Ultra-Short Optical Pulse Generation with Single-Layer Graphene
Pulses as short as 260 fs have been generated in a diode-pumped low-gain
Er:Yb:glass laser by exploiting the nonlinear optical response of single-layer
graphene. The application of this novel material to solid-state bulk lasers
opens up a way to compact and robust lasers with ultrahigh repetition rates.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, to appear in Journal of Nonlinear Optical Physics
& Material
Meteor ablation spheres from deep-sea sediments
Spheres from mid-Pacific abyssal clays (0 to 500,000 yrs old), formed from particles that completely melted and subsequently recrystallized as they separated from their meteoroid bodies, or containing relict grains of parent meteoroids that did not experience any melting were analyzed. The spheres were readily divided into three groups using their dominant mineralogy. The Fe-rich spheres were produced during ablation of Fe and metal-rich silicate meteoroids. The glassy spheres are considerably more Fe-rich than the silicate spheres. They consist of magnetite and an Fe glass which is relatively low in Si. Bulk compositions and relict grains are useful for determining the parent meteoroid types for the silicate spheres. Bulk analyses of recrystallized spheres show that nonvolatile elemental abundances are similar to chondrite abundances. Analysis of relict grains identified high temperature minerals associated with a fine-grained, low temperature, volatile-rich matrix. The obvious candidates for parent meteoroids of this type of silicate sphere is a carbonaceous chondrite
Hadamard States and Adiabatic Vacua
Reversing a slight detrimental effect of the mailer related to TeXabilityComment: 10pages, LaTeX (RevTeX-preprint style
Inflaton Decay in an Alpha Vacuum
We study the alpha vacua of de Sitter space by considering the decay rate of
the inflaton field coupled to a scalar field placed in an alpha vacuum. We find
an {\em alpha dependent} Bose enhancement relative to the Bunch-Davies vacuum
and, surprisingly, no non-renormalizable divergences. We also consider a
modified alpha dependent time ordering prescription for the Feynman propagator
and show that it leads to an alpha independent result. This result suggests
that it may be possible to calculate in any alpha vacuum if we employ the
appropriate causality preserving prescription.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figure, Revtex 4 preprin
Electron-electron interaction and charging effects in graphene quantum dots
We analyze charging effects in graphene quantum dots. Using a simple model,
we show that, when the Fermi level is far from the neutrality point, charging
effects lead to a shift in the electrostatic potential and the dot shows
standard Coulomb blockade features. Near the neutrality point, surface states
are partially occupied and the Coulomb interaction leads to a strongly
correlated ground state which can be approximated by either a Wigner crystal or
a Laughlin like wave function. The existence of strong correlations modify the
transport properties which show non equilibrium effects, similar to those
predicted for tunneling into other strongly correlated systems.Comment: Extended version accepted for publication at Phys. Rev.
Fiscal year 1976 progress report on a feasibility study evaluating the use of surface penetrators for planetary exploration
The feasibility of employing penetrators for exploring Mars was examined. Eight areas of interest for key scientific experiments were identified. These include: seismic activity, imaging, geochemistry, water measurement, heatflow, meteorology, magnetometry, and biochemistry. In seven of the eight potential experiment categories this year's progress included: conceptual design, instrument fabrication, instrument performance evaluation, and shock loading of important components. Most of the components survived deceleration testing with negligible performance changes. Components intended to be placed inside the penetrator forebody were tested up to 3,500 g and components intended to be placed on the afterbody were tested up to 21,000 g. A field test program was conducted using tentative Mars penetrator mission constraints. Drop tests were performed at two selected terrestrial analog sites to determine the range of penetration depths for anticipated common Martian materials. Minimum penetration occurred in basalt at Amboy, California. Three full-scale penetrators penetrated 0.4 to 0.9 m into the basalt after passing through 0.3 to 0.5 m of alluvial overburden. Maximum penetration occurred in unconsolidated sediments at McCook, Nebraska. Two full-scale penetrators penetrated 2.5 to 8.5 m of sediment. Impact occurred in two kinds of sediment: loess and layered clay. Deceleration g loads of nominally 2,000 for the forebody and 20,000 for the afterbody did not present serious design problems for potential experiments. Penetrators have successfully impacted into terrestrial analogs of the probable extremes of potential Martian sites
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