Ground-states of spin-1 bosons in asymmetric double-wells

In this work we investigate the different states of a system of spin-1 bosons in two potential wells connected by tunneling, with spin-dependent interaction. The model utilizes the well-known Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian, adding a local interaction term that depends on the modulus of the total spin in a well, favoring a high- or low-spin state for different signs of the coupling constant. We employ the concept of fidelity to detect critical values of parameters for which the ground state undergoes significant changes. The nature of the states is investigated through evaluation of average occupation numbers in the wells and of spin correlations. A more detailed analysis is done for a two-particle system, but a discussion of the three-particle case and some results for larger numbers are also presented.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figure

Absence of Gluonic Components in Axial and Tensor Mesons

A quarkonium-gluonium mixing scheme previously developed to describe the characteristic of the pseudoscalar mesons is applied to axial and tensor mesons. The parameters of the model are determined by fitting the eigenvalues of a mass matrix. The corresponding eigenvectors give the proportion of light quarks, strange quarks and glueball in each meson. However the predictions of the model for branching ratios and electromagnetic decays are incompatible with the experimental results. These results suggest the absence of gluonic components in the states of axial and tensor isosinglet mesons analyzed here.Comment: 12 page

Understanding thio-effects in simple phosphoryl systems : role of solvent effects and nucleophile charge.

Recent experimental work (J. Org. Chem., 2012, 77, 5829) demonstrated pronounced differences in measured thio-effects for the hydrolysis of (thio)phosphodichloridates by water and hydroxide nucleophiles. In the present work, we have performed detailed quantum chemical calculations of these reactions, with the aim of rationalizing the molecular bases for this discrimination. The calculations highlight the interplay between nucleophile charge and transition state solvation in SN2(P) mechanisms as the basis of these differences, rather than a change in mechanism

Berry phases and zero-modes in toroidal topological insulator

An effective Hamiltonian describing the surface states of a toroidal topological insulator is obtained, and it is shown to support both bound-states and charged zero-modes. Actually, the spin connection induced by the toroidal curvature can be viewed as an position-dependent effective vector potential, which ultimately yields the zero-modes whose wave-functions harmonically oscillate around the toroidal surface. In addition, two distinct Berry phases are predicted to take place by the virtue of the toroidal topology.Comment: New version, accepted for publication in EPJB, 6 pages, 1 figur

Ground-state configurations in ferromagnetic nanotori

Magnetization ground states are studied in toroidal nanomagnets. The energetics associated to the ferromagnetic, vortex and onion-like configurations are explicitly computed. The analysis reveals that the vortex appears to be the most prominent of such states, minimizing total energy in every torus with internal radius $r\gtrsim10\,{\rm nm}$ (for Permalloy). For $r\lesssim10\,{\rm nm}$ the vortex remains the most favorable pattern whenever $R/\ell_{ex}\gtrsim1.5$ ($R$ is the torus external radius and $\ell_{ex}$ is the exchange length), being substituted by the ferromagnetic state whenever $R/\ell_{ex}\lesssim1.5$.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures, 3 apendices, Revtex forma

Thermal evolution of hybrid stars within the framework of a nonlocal Nambu--Jona-Lasinio model

We study the thermal evolution of neutron stars containing deconfined quark matter in their core. Such objects are generally referred to as quark-hybrid stars. The confined hadronic matter in their core is described in the framework of non-linear relativistic nuclear field theory. For the quark phase we use a non-local extension of the SU(3) Nambu Jona-Lasinio model with vector interactions. The Gibbs condition is used to model phase equilibrium between confined hadronic matter and deconfined quark matter. Our study indicates that high-mass neutron stars may contain between 35 and 40 % deconfined quark-hybrid matter in their cores. Neutron stars with canonical masses of around $1.4\, M_\odot$ would not contain deconfined quark matter. The central proton fractions of the stars are found to be high, enabling them to cool rapidly. Very good agreement with the temperature evolution established for the neutron star in Cassiopeia A (Cas A) is obtained for one of our models (based on the popular NL3 nuclear parametrization), if the protons in the core of our stellar models are strongly paired, the repulsion among the quarks is mildly repulsive, and the mass of Cas A has a canonical value of $1.4\, M_\odot$.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Supergiant Barocaloric Effects in Acetoxy Silicone Rubber over a Wide Temperature Range: Great Potential for Solid-state Cooling

Solid-state cooling based on caloric effects is considered a viable alternative to replace the conventional vapor-compression refrigeration systems. Regarding barocaloric materials, recent results show that elastomers are promising candidates for cooling applications around room-temperature. In the present paper, we report supergiant barocaloric effects observed in acetoxy silicone rubber - a very popular, low-cost and environmentally friendly elastomer. Huge values of adiabatic temperature change and reversible isothermal entropy change were obtained upon moderate applied pressures and relatively low strains. These huge barocaloric changes are associated both to the polymer chains rearrangements induced by confined compression and to the first-order structural transition. The results are comparable to the best barocaloric materials reported so far, opening encouraging prospects for the application of elastomers in near future solid-state cooling devices.Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures, 2 table