Axial U(1) dynamics in eta and eta' photoproduction

We discuss the sensitivity of eta and eta' photoproduction near threshold to the gluonic OZI breaking parameters in the U_A(1)-extended effective chiral Lagrangian for low-energy QCD. Our coupled-channels analysis hints at a strong correlation between the gluon-induced contributions to the eta' mass and the low-energy pp -> pp eta' reaction and the near-threshold behaviour of the gamma p -> eta p cross-section.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figure

Weightlifting competitions: lessons for performance management

Christos Genakos and Mario Pagliero look at professional weightlifters to assess the effects of reward systems based on relative performance.

Estimates for parameters and characteristics of the confining SU(3)-gluonic field in charged pions and kaons from leptonic decays and chiral symmetry breaking

The confinement mechanism proposed earlier by the author is employed for to compute the decay constants $f_P$ corresponding to leptonic decays $P\to l^\pm+\nu_l$, $l=\mu, e$, where $P$ stands for any meson from $\pi^\pm$, $K^\pm$. For this aim the weak axial form factor of $P$-meson is nonperturbatively calculated. The study entails estimates for parameters of the confining SU(3)-gluonic field in charged pions and kaons. The corresponding estimates of the gluon concentrations, electric and magnetic colour field strengths are also adduced for the mentioned field at the scales of the mesons under consideration. Further the obtained results are applied to the problem of chiral symmetry breaking in quantum chromodynamics (QCD). It is shown that in chirally symmetric world masses of pions and kaons are fully determined by the confining SU(3)-gluonic field among (massless) $u$, $d$ and $s$ quarks and not equal to zero. Accordingly chiral symmetry is sufficiently rough approximate one holding true only when neglecting the mentioned SU(3)-gluonic field between quarks and no additional mechanism of the spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking connected to the so-called Goldstone bosons is required. Finally, a possible relation of the results obtained with a phenomenological string-like picture of confinement is discussed too.Comment: 31 pages, LaTeX, 2 figures. Nucl. Phys. A812 (2008) to appea

The U(1) Problem in Chiral Random Matrix Models

We show that conventional asymmetric chiral random matrix models (ChRMM), with a gaussian distribution in the asymmetry, provide for a screening of the topological charge and a resolution of the $U(1)$ problem in the unquenched approximation. Our exact results to order $1/N$ are in agreement with numerical estimates using large ensembles of asymmetric ChRMM with gaussian distributions.Comment: ReVTaeX, 9 pages with 2 EPS figures. Uses the feynmf package version 1.0 for Feynman graph

Level crossing of particle-hole and mesonic modes in eta mesic nuclei

We study eta meson properties in the infinite nuclear matter and in atomic nuclei with an emphasis on effects of the eta coupling to N*(1535)--nucleon-hole modes. The N*(1535) resonance, which dominates the low-energy eta-nucleon scattering, can be seen as a chiral partner of the nucleon. The change of the chiral mass gap between the N* and the nucleon in a nuclear medium has an impact on the properties of the eta-nucleus system. If the N*-nucleon mass gap decreases with a density increase (chiral symmetry restoration) the calculations show the existence of the resonance state at the energy about 60 MeV and two bound eta-nucleus states with the binding energies about -80 MeV. These states can have strong effect on predicted cross sections of the ^12C (gamma,p) ^11B reaction with eta-meson production.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figure

Axial Vector Couplings of the Nucleon in Chiral Quark Model Incorporating U(1)A U(1)_A Anomaly Effects

Renormalization of the axial vector currents due to Goldstone loops is studied in a simple extension of Manohar - Georgi chiral quark model which incorporates $U(1)_A$ anomaly effects. The polarized strage quark sea in the polarized nucleon results from different renormalization of the flavor singlet and octet currents and is in reasonable agreement with the experiment.Comment: 11 pages REVtex, 2 figures sent upon reques

Fermion production despite fermion number conservation

Lattice proposals for a nonperturbative formulation of the Standard Model easily lead to a global U(1) symmetry corresponding to exactly conserved fermion number. The absence of an anomaly in the fermion current would then appear to inhibit anomalous processes, such as electroweak baryogenesis in the early universe. One way to circumvent this problem is to formulate the theory such that this U(1) symmetry is explicitly broken. However we argue that in the framework of spectral flow, fermion creation and annihilation still in fact occurs, despite the exact fermion number conservation. The crucial observation is that fermions are excitations relative to the vacuum, at the surface of the Dirac sea. The exact global U(1) symmetry prohibits a state from changing its fermion number during time evolution, however nothing prevents the fermionic ground state from doing so. We illustrate our reasoning with a model in two dimensions which has axial-vector couplings, first using a sharp momentum cutoff, then using the lattice regulator with staggered fermions. The difference in fermion number between the time evolved state and the ground state is indeed in agreement with the anomaly. A study of the vacuum energy shows that the perturbative counterterm needed for restoration of gauge invariance is insufficient in a nonperturbative setting. For reference we also study a closely related model with vector couplings, the Schwinger model, and we examine the emergence of the $\theta$-vacuum structure of both theories.Comment: 31 pages, LaTeX + uuencoded figs file (=5 PS figs). UvA-ITFA 94-17, UCSD/PTH 94-0

Christos Tsiolkas's Style

This article takes up a specific feature of Christos Tsiolkas's writing, his style. Focusing on Tsiolkas's fourth novel, The Slap, this article argues that Tsiolkas’s style is an inarticulate style: a style that does not always use the right word at the right moment, that employs language for narrative utility rather than its own sake, and that sporadically departs from standard usage and correctness in ways that do not appear artistically motivated. My argument is that The Slap is notable among contemporary fiction in that what I consider to be Tsiolkas’s worst sentences are the most revealing of his inclinations as a novelist. Consequently, I depart from what has become a standard formula in Tsiolkas's reception, that where Tsiolkas succeeds as a writer he succeeds in spite of his style. Finally, this article also contributes to recent debates about the purpose and vocabulary of Australian literary discussion: how critics debate the work of a prize-winning author, how criticism and praise operate in critical judgements, and the significance of style in evaluations of literature

Neutral and Charged Polymers at Interfaces

Chain-like macromolecules (polymers) show characteristic adsorption properties due to their flexibility and internal degrees of freedom, when attracted to surfaces and interfaces. In this review we discuss concepts and features that are relevant to the adsorption of neutral and charged polymers at equilibrium, including the type of polymer/surface interaction, the solvent quality, the characteristics of the surface, and the polymer structure. We pay special attention to the case of charged polymers (polyelectrolytes) that have a special importance due to their water solubility. We present a summary of recent progress in this rapidly evolving field. Because many experimental studies are performed with rather stiff biopolymers, we discuss in detail the case of semi-flexible polymers in addition to flexible ones. We first review the behavior of neutral and charged chains in solution. Then, the adsorption of a single polymer chain is considered. Next, the adsorption and depletion processes in the many-chain case are reviewed. Profiles, changes in the surface tension and polymer surface excess are presented. Mean-field and corrections due to fluctuations and lateral correlations are discussed. The force of interaction between two adsorbed layers, which is important in understanding colloidal stability, is characterized. The behavior of grafted polymers is also reviewed, both for neutral and charged polymer brushes.Comment: a review: 130 pages, 30 ps figures; final form, added reference