Tests for the asymptotic behaviour of the gamma^* --> gamma pi^0 form factor

The gamma^* --> gamma pi^0 transition measured at different photon virtualities already provides us with a clean test for the behaviour of the pi^0 gamma^* gamma off-shell axial anomaly at large time-like squared momenta. It also allows reliable predictions for the branching ratio of heavy quarkonium decays into omega pi^0.Comment: Latex, 7 pages + 1 .ps figure, comments on the Brodsky-Lepage limit and 5 new references adde

Relativistic Coulomb scattering of spinless bosons

The relativistic scattering of spin-0 bosons by spherically symmetric Coulomb fields is analyzed in detail with an arbitrary mixing of vector and scalar couplings. It is shown that the partial wave series reduces the scattering amplitude to the closed Rutherford formula exactly when the vector and scalar potentials have the same magnitude, and as an approximation for weak fields. The behavior of the scattering amplitude near the conditions that furnish its closed form is also discussed. Strong suppressions of the scattering amplitude when the vector and scalar potentials have the same magnitude are observed either for particles or antiparticles with low incident momentum. We point out that such strong suppressions might be relevant in the analysis of the scattering of fermions near the conditions for the spin and pseudospin symmetries. From the complex poles of the partial scattering amplitude the exact closed form of bound-state solutions for both particles and antiparticles with different scenarios for the coupling constants are obtained. Perturbative breaking of the accidental degeneracy appearing in a pair of special cases is related to the nonconservation of the Runge-Lenz vector

New solutions of the D-dimensional Klein-Gordon equation via mapping onto the nonrelativistic one-dimensional Morse potential

New exact analytical bound-state solutions of the D-dimensional Klein-Gordon equation for a large set of couplings and potential functions are obtained via mapping onto the nonrelativistic bound-state solutions of the one-dimensional generalized Morse potential. The eigenfunctions are expressed in terms of generalized Laguerre polynomials, and the eigenenergies are expressed in terms of solutions of irrational equations at the worst. Several analytical results found in the literature, including the so-called Klein-Gordon oscillator, are obtained as particular cases of this unified approac

Dynamical charge density waves rule the phase diagram of cuprates

In the last few years charge density waves (CDWs) have been ubiquitously observed in high-temperature superconducting cuprates and are now the most investigated among the competing orders in the still hot debate on these systems. A wealth of new experimental data raise several fundamental issues that challenge the various theoretical proposals. Here, we account for the complex experimental temperature vs. doping phase diagram and we provide a coherent scenario explaining why different CDW onset curves are observed by different experimental probes and seem to extrapolate at zero temperature into seemingly different quantum critical points (QCPs) in the intermediate and overdoped region. We also account for the pseudogap and its onset temperature T*(p) on the basis of dynamically fluctuating CDWs. The nearly singular anisotropic scattering mediated by these fluctuations also account for the rapid changes of the Hall number seen in experiments and provides the first necessary step for a possible Fermi surface reconstruction fully establishing at lower doping. Finally we show that phase fluctuations of the CDWs, which are enhanced in the presence of strong correlations near the Mott insulating phase, naturally account for the disappearance of the CDWs at low doping with yet another QCP.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure

Tests of flavor symmetry in J/psi decays

We use SU(3) flavor symmetry to analyze the $PP', VP$ and baryon-antibaryon decays of $J/\psi$. Both, the SU(3)-invariant and -violating contributions are considered. Particular attention is paid to the interference of the electromagnetic and strong amplitudes.Comment: 8 pages, latex. Talk given at CAM-94 Physics Meetin

Phase Separation close to the density-driven Mott transition in the Hubbard-Holstein model

The density driven Mott transition is studied by means of Dynamical Mean-Field Theory in the Hubbard-Holstein model, where the Hubbard term leading to the Mott transition is supplemented by an electron-phonon (e-ph) term. We show that an intermediate e-ph coupling leads to a first-order transition at T=0, which is accompanied by phase separation between a metal and an insulator. The compressibility in the metallic phase is substantially enhanced. At quite larger values of the coupling a polaronic phase emerges coexisting with a non-polaronic metal.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. Slightly revised text. More details in Fig.1 and 2. Smaller size version of Fig.

Doping-driven transition to a time-reversal breaking state in the phase diagram of the cuprates

Motivated by recent tunnelling and Andreev-reflection experiments, we study the conditions for a quantum transition within the superconducting phase of the cuprates,in which a bulk imaginary (time-reversal breaking) $id_{xy}$component appears in addition to the $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ order parameter. We examine in detail the role of some important physical features of the cuprates.In particular we show that a closed Fermi surface,a bilayer splitting, an orthorhombic distortion,and the proximity to a quantum critical point around optimal doping favor the appearance of the imaginary component. These findings could explain why the mixed $d_{x^2 - y^2}+ id_{xy}$ order parameter is observed in YBCO and LSCO, and suggest that it could appear also in Bi2212. We also predict that, in all cuprates, the mixed state should be stable only in a limited doping region all contained beneath the $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ dome. The behavior of the specific heat at the secondary transition is discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures. Expanded text, 1 extra figur

Electronic polymers and soft-matter-like broken symmetries in underdoped cuprates

Empirical evidence in heavy fermion, pnictide, and other systems suggests that unconventional superconductivity appears associated to some form of real-space electronic order. For the cuprates, despite several proposals, the emergence of order in the phase diagram between the commensurate antiferromagnetic state and the superconducting state is not well understood. Here we show that in this regime doped holes assemble in "electronic polymers." Within a Monte Carlo study we find, that in clean systems by lowering the temperature the polymer melt condenses first in a smectic state and then in a Wigner crystal both with the addition of inversion symmetry breaking. Disorder blurs the positional order leaving a robust inversion symmetry breaking and a nematic order, accompanied by vector chiral spin order and with the persistence of a thermodynamic transition. Such electronic phases, whose properties are reminiscent of soft-matter physics, produce charge and spin responses in good accord with experiments.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures plus supplementary informatio

Proof of Luck: an Efficient Blockchain Consensus Protocol

In the paper, we present designs for multiple blockchain consensus primitives and a novel blockchain system, all based on the use of trusted execution environments (TEEs), such as Intel SGX-enabled CPUs. First, we show how using TEEs for existing proof of work schemes can make mining equitably distributed by preventing the use of ASICs. Next, we extend the design with proof of time and proof of ownership consensus primitives to make mining energy- and time-efficient. Further improving on these designs, we present a blockchain using a proof of luck consensus protocol. Our proof of luck blockchain uses a TEE platform's random number generation to choose a consensus leader, which offers low-latency transaction validation, deterministic confirmation time, negligible energy consumption, and equitably distributed mining. Lastly, we discuss a potential protection against up to a constant number of compromised TEEs.Comment: SysTEX '16, December 12-16, 2016, Trento, Ital